The University of Mississippi Athletics
Tuesday, April 23
Oxford, Miss.
11 AM
Ole Miss
vs
North Alabama
Baseball Welcomes North Alabama for Kids’ Day
4/22/2024 | Baseball
| Tuesday, April 23 11 a.m. CT  |
| PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Grayson Saunier 3-3, 7.16 ERA, 20 K, 10 BB North Alabama: RHP John Allen Stogner 2-3, 9.20 ERA, 11 K, 9 BB |
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss Baseball (21-18, 6-12 SEC) hosts North Alabama (14-23, 6-12 ASUN) Tuesday for their annual Kids' Day Game.
LEADING OFF
- Ole Miss took one of three last weekend at No. 23 Georgia, winning the series finale in Athens.
- Liam Doyle struck out eight batters in his start in game two, giving him 8+ strikeouts in five of his seven starts.
- Austin Simmons pitched in both games of Saturday's doubleheader, combining for 2.2 innings and three strikeouts. Five of his last six outings have been scoreless.
- Ethan Lege is hitting .381 with three home runs, five walks, six RBI, and six runs scored over his last five games.
- Will Furniss is hitting .368 with two home runs and seven RBI over his last seven games.
- Ole Miss is currently No. 1 in Strength of Schedule, having played the hardest schedule in the country.
- The Rebels are ranked 22nd in the nation in strikeouts per nine, averaging 10.4 punchouts per game.
- Ole Miss is 16th in the NCAA in walks drawn (236), averaging 6.05 per game.
- The Rebels lead the SEC in sacrifice flies with 27.
- Jackson Ross' 40 walks this season are the second-most in a single-season over the last four seasons, behind only Jacob Gonzalez's 50 in 2022.
- Ethan Lege is the fourth-hardest hitter to strike out in the SEC, striking out just 13 times in 138 at bats.
- Connor Spencer has five saves this season, third-most in the SEC.
SCOUTING REPORT
Jad Prachniak is in his second year as head coach at North Alabama. Before taking over the reins for the Lions, Prachniak spent two seasons as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Delaware. Prior to that, he spent nine seasons as the head coach at Division II West Chester, leading the Rams to two national championships.
In the 2023 season, the Lions had an overall record of 14-37 (8-22 ASUN). UNA is currently 14-23 overall and 6-12 in conference play. The Lions are coming off a 2-1 series loss to Stetson University.
Infielder, Gehrig Frei, boasts a .343 batting average, 10 homeruns, and 32 RBIs. Jacob James, LHP, contributes on the mound for the Lions with a 4.45 ERA and 77 strikeouts through 54.2 innings pitched.
Ole Miss last played North Alabama in 2022 and the Rebels walked away with a 20-3 win. This will be only the fourth meeting between the two opponents and Ole Miss holds the 2-1 upper hand on the series.
DOYLE RULES
Liam Doyle has struck out eight or more batters in five of his seven starts this season. In each of those five starts, he has only issued one walk and worked through 4+ innings.
Doyle struck out 10 batters in each of his first two SEC starts, becoming the first Rebel since Dylan DeLucia in 2022 to post multiple double-digit strikeout games in a season. He is also the first Rebel since Doug Nikhazy in 2021 to have double-digit strikeouts in consecutive outings.
BIG GAME TWO GUY
Andrew Fischer is hitting .359 (14-for-39) with 10 home runs, 17 RBI, and 17 runs scored in game two of series this season. He has hit at least one home run in five of this season's 10 game twos and all four of his multi-home run games have come in game twos. Over the first six weeks of SEC play, Fischer has hit seven home runs and driven in 10 runs in game twos.
STEALING YOUR HEART
The Rebels have stolen 41 bases so far this season, just one short of their entire season total from 2023 and already seven more than 2022. Since setting a new single-season program record in 2019 (93), Ole Miss has not stolen more than 44 bases in a season. They are currently averaging 1.05 stolen bases per game.
Ethan Groff has stolen 12 bases in 2024, having not been caught yet. Luke Hill is 10-for-11 in stolen base attempts.
CAPTAIN CLUTCH
Ethan Lege has been the Rebels' most clutch hitter, hitting .435 (20-for-46) with two outs in an inning. He has 18 two-out RBI, is hitting .314 with runners in scoring position, and is 8-for-13 when hitting with a runner on third base and less than two outs.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss baseball on X at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissBaseball, on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemissbsb and on TikTok at @olemissbsb. Also, follow head coach Mike Bianco on X at @CoachMikeBianco.
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