PEARL — The No. 5 Ole Miss baseball team will take on No. 12 Southern Mississippi at 6 tonight at Trustmark Park.
Ole Miss (27-6) will try to rebound after losing two of three games to Mississippi State last weekend in Starkville. It was the Rebels’ first series loss of the season.
Sophomore right-hander Houston Roth (4-0, 4.00 earned run average) is scheduled to start for Ole Miss.
On March 27, Ole Miss edged Southern Miss 7-6.
Ole Miss remains tied fort the second-most wins in college baseball. Only No. 1 Florida (28-6) has more.
The Ole Miss pitching staff remains No. 1 in the Southeastern Conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.47). The Rebels have struck out more batters (326) and walked fewer batters (94) than any team in the conference.
Ole Miss is the only team in college baseball to rank in the top 25 in the nation in ERA, batting average, and fielding percentage.
Southern Miss (22-9) is coming off a series victory against Western Kentucky. It was the Golden Eagles’ eighth-straight Conference USA series victory.
Junior right-hander J.C. Keys (2-2, 6.26) is scheduled to start tonight for Southern Miss.
Walker Powell threw a complete game Sunday in a 14-1 win against Western Kentucky to become the first Southern Miss pitcher to go the distance this season. Powell struck out four and allowed only three hits in 69 pitches.
Ole Miss’ Keenan repeats as SEC Freshman of the Week
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — After winning SEC Freshman of the Week last week, Ole Miss third baseman Tyler Keenan put together another outstanding slate to take the honor for a second-straight week.
The rookie out of Clayton, North Carolina, hit .375 for the week, tallying six hits, including a home run against Mississippi State on Sunday that cleared the right-field seating at Dudy Noble Field. Keenan scored four runs and drove in three, including the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning of the rubber match. The third baseman also turned a double play to end the fourth and helped Ole Miss escape a two-on, one-out jam.
Keenan is the first Rebel to be named SEC Freshman of the Week in back-to-back weeks. He is one of two Rebels to earn the honor twice, joining Alex Yarbrough, who earned the nod twice in 2010.
Keenan is the second player this season to take freshman of the week honors in consecutive weeks. Texas A&M’s Zach DeLoach captured the honor in the first two weeks of the season. Arkansas freshman Casey Martin also took the award twice, though not in consecutive weeks.
Keenan is the only player to have won it twice during league play.
Ole Miss to hold Home Run Derby April 21
OXFORD — Fans will have an opportunity to show a little power and attempt to hit one over the fence at Swayze Field in a Home Run Derby on April 21 following the Ole Miss baseball team’s game against Georgia.
As part of the Ole Miss Year of the Fan, kids in grades eight or below, Ole Miss students, and adults over the age of 22 can step up to the plate and compete in the Home Run Derby.
Fans will be split into two divisions; the Landshark Division (eighth grade and under) and the Rebel Division (Ole Miss students and adults).
If a participant in the Rebel Division hits it over the wall, they will receive a pair of general admission season tickets to the 2019 Ole Miss baseball season. Participants in the Landshark Division who hit it over the temporary markers in the outfield on the fly, will win a VIP tour of the Rebel baseball team locker room and $50 in Rebel Bucks.
Besides season tickets and VIP tours for hitting it over the fence, fans will also have the opportunity to win prizes by hitting objects placed in the outfield.
Both divisions will receive 10 pitches and are only allowed one round. All equipment will be provided, and no equipment will be permitted to be brought into OU-Stadium.
Fans are encouraged to sign up at OMYearoftheFan.com. As recruitable prospects, students in grades 9-12 and non-Ole Miss college students may not participate in the Home Run Derby due to NCAA rules.
Alabama will play host to Alabama-Birmingham
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — After a weekend on the road, the Alabama baseball team will play host to Alabama-Birmingham at 6 tonight (SEC Network+) at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
Alabama, which is coming off a series victory against Missouri in Columbia, Missouri, is scheduled to start junior right-hander Sam Gardner.
UAB is expected to counter with senior left-hander Ryan Ruggles.
The series victory was the second in a row against a ranked opponent for Alabama (20-13). It helped the Crimson Tide surpass last season’s total of victories (19) and match their number of SEC wins (five).
With the lone loss in Columbia, Alabama has fallen by one run in five of its seven conference losses and has lost by a combined 11 runs in its seven losses overall.
UAB (14-16) beat Alabama 6-4 on March 20 at Regions Field in Birmingham, Alabama. It is coming off losing two of three games to Florida International last weekend.
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