Ole Miss Baseball (10-2) returns home this week to host Memphis (3-8) on Tuesday and North Alabama (7-5) on Wednesday for double midweek action at Swayze Field. First pitch for both games is at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.
DIAMOND NOTES
- Ole Miss went 1-2 at the BRUCE BOLT College Classic last weekend, losing to both Baylor and Coastal Carolina, but picking up a win over Ohio State.
- The pitching staff racked up 48 strikeouts over the weekend, punching out 20 of those in 10 innings against Baylor on Friday.
- Hunter Elliott, Cade Townsend, and Taylor Rabe all set new career highs for strikeouts in a game with their outings.
- Townsend and Rabe combined for a six-hit shutout of Ohio State on Saturday, striking out 16 of the 34 batters they faced.
- Dom Decker hit three home runs over the weekend in Houston, bringing his season total to four. He had not hit a home run in his career prior to this season.
- Decker drew six walks and had an on base percentage of .529 over four games last week.
- Ole Miss pitchers are now up to 145 total strikeouts on the season, the second most in the SEC and the sixth-highest total in the NCAA.
- The Rebel pitching staff owns the third-lowest ERA in the SEC at 2.88 and the third-highest K/9 at 12.7.
- Cade Townsend has struck out eight or more batters in each of his outings so far. His 25 punchouts are top-25 in the NCAA and his K/9 of 16.46 is top-10 in the NCAA.
- Judd Utermark has scored 20 times so far this season, the second-highest total in the SEC and the third highest in the NCAA.
- Will Furniss has drawn 14 walks through 12 games and is averaging 1.17 walks per game. Both Furniss and Decker are averaging at least one walk per game.
- Ole Miss has drawn 78 walks over 12 games, third in the SEC and 14th in the NCAA. Will Furniss already has 12 walks, second-most in the SEC.
- The Rebels will host Evansville this weekend for their final non-conference series of the season.
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
vs. Memphis: RHP Owen Kelly (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. LHP Isaac Lucas (0-0, 16.20 ERA)
vs. North Alabama: TBA vs. TBA
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Both games will be streamed live on SEC Network+. Richard Cross (PxP) and Keith Kessinger (analyst) will be on the call for Tuesday’s game against Memphis. Jake Hromada (PxP) and Matt McLaughlin (analyst) will be on the call for Wednesday’s game against North Alabama.
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: MEMPHIS
Head coach Matt Riser is in his second season with Memphis’ baseball program. He previously served as the head coach at Southeastern Louisiana. In his brief tenure, Memphis has experienced two losing seasons with 10th and ninth place finishes in the AAC.
The Tigers are 3-8 to begin the 2026 campaign. Memphis got swept by Jacksonville State over the weekend, and it allowed at least seven runs in all three games while scoring no more than four.
Shane Coz has been an offensive bright spot for the Tigers as he’s hit .422 at the plate with a home run and 11 RBI. He leads the team with 19 hits which ranks second in the AAC. Freddy Rodriguez is second on the team in hits with 13. Rodriguez is a speedster when he reaches the plate, already sitting at eight steals through 11 games. He paces the conference in that stat. Webb Watson and Michael Gupton are Memphis’ power hitters, knocking three homers each so far this season.
Seth Impson and Charlie Smith have been Memphis’ midweek starters so far this season. Both pitchers have over a 9.00 ERA and 10 combined strikeouts. Impson earned the win in Memphis’ 24-5 dismantling over Little Rock, working two innings and allowing three runs. As a staff, Memphis pitchers have given up 20 homers in just 11 games.
SCOUTING REPORT: NORTH ALABAMA
Jad Prachniak is in his fourth season as North Alabama’s baseball head coach. The Lions have not had a winning season under Prachniak thus far but finished with a positive win/loss ratio in conference play in 2025 which resulted in a third overall finish at the ASUN Tournament.
North Alabama is 7-5 at the start of 2026, which includes a sweep of Saint Louis in the second series of the season. However, the momentum for North Alabama is stunted after losing the overall series to Southern Indiana, which included a 20-1 loss at home.
Dylan Coleman and Nash Rippen are the Lions top hitters to begin 2026. They have totaled nine of the team’s 17 home runs and 23 of the teams 69 RBI. Coleman is a multi-base machine, having three doubles and a pair of triples to go alongside his team-leading five home runs. The duo are each averaging at least .330 at the plate with OPS marks above the 1.100 mark.
Jake Boynar and Nico Varlotta have been North Alabama’s midweek starters so far this season, with Boynar earning two of those starts. They’ve recorded only six combined strikeouts in 4.0 combined innings pitched. Varlotta took the loss in the 15-3 loss to UAB. Despite the minimal amount of innings pitched, the duo still has recorded 13 combined walks.