No. 25Ole Miss Baseball (22-11, 5-7 SEC) host Alcorn State (7-25, 1-11 SWAC) Tuesday night at Swayze Field. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.
LEADING OFF
- Ole Miss took two of three from No. 21 Florida in Gainesville last weekend, winning games one and three.
- It was their first road series win over a ranked opponent since May of 2022 when they swept LSU in Baton Rouge.
- Judd Utermark played the hero in the finale, hitting a two-RBI, game-tying home run in the ninth inning.
- It was his 42nd career home run taking over sole possession of third place in the Ole Miss record books. He trails only Tim Elko (46) and Kyle Gordon (48).
- Utermark is on a 21-game on base streak dating back to March 3 against Memphis.
- Utermark and Tristan Bissetta have combined to hit 27 of Ole Miss’ 52 (52%) home runs this season.
- Cade Townsend put together his first-career quality start on Saturday in game three against Florida, allowing just one run over six innings of work.
- Townsend has not issued a walk in back-to-back starts and has now struck out at least six batters in all but one of his starts.
- Hayden Federico hit .545 (6-for-11) over four games last week with a double and two RBI.
- Walker Hooks made two appearances in the series against Florida, earning a save in game one and the win in game three. He allowed just two hits over 4.1 innings.
- Dom Decker is tied at the top of the SEC in walks with 34 on the season. He is averaging 1.03 walks per game, third-best in the conference.
- Hunter Elliott is ranked sixth in the SEC in strikeouts with 60 punchouts on the season. His K/9 sits at 13.39 which is the fifth best rate in the SEC.
- The Ole Miss pitching staff has struck out 373 batters, second-most in the SEC and fifth in the NCAA. Their ERA of 3.75 is the sixth-lowest in the conference.
Ole Miss slugger Judd Utermark
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUP
LHP Grayson Gibson (1-1, 3.86 ERA) vs. RHP Yoni Castro (0-3, 13.50 ERA)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Tuesday’s game will be streamed live on SEC Network+ with Will Kollmeyer (PxP) and Matt McLaughlin (analyst) on the call.
Fans can listen to all Ole Miss Baseball games, home and away, on the Ole Miss Radio Network with David Kellum (PxP) and Brad Henderson (analyst) on the call.
SCOUTING REPORT
Head baseball coach Carlton Hardy is in his second season at the helm of Alcorn State’s program. He’s accumulated a 13-68 record with the Braces and enter Tuesday’s game with a 7-25 overall record, which includes one conference win.
Jaylyn Bennett is Alcorn State’s best batter, hitting .365 at the plate. He leads the team in doubles with six and also has a triple and home run. Keaten Hawk and Gavin Caston are the only other Braves to record a home run this season, both with two. Alcorn State is sneaky good at baserunning, recording 66 stolen bags this season. Kanious Davis leads that category with 16 this season, while Hawk and Rayfield Adams III each have at least 10.
Davis works both ways and has twice been Alcorn State’s starter on the mound in midweek games this season. He holds a 9.64 ERA and a 3-1 record. He’s struck out 20 batters in 14.0 innings pitched. Myles Dews is another potential starter, earning a pair of Tuesday starts. He has a 10.35 ERA with a 2-0 record. Caden Wade, Devin Kriley and Nicholas Johnson are other potential pitchers to see some game action.
