FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The top team in the SEC Western Division will get a look at the bottom of it.
SEC West leader No. 5 Arkansas (32-9, 12-6 SEC) hosts Ole Miss (23-17, 6-12), the division’s bottom-dweller, in a three-game set this weekend at Baum-Walker Stadium. First pitch in the opener between the Razorbacks and Rebels is set for 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 29, on SEC Network+.
Two of the three contests will broadcast on national television, including the series finale on ESPN – the only scheduled ESPN appearance for an SEC baseball game during the 2022 season.
Arkansas, winners of a conference-leading 11 consecutive SEC home series, vies for its first home series win against Ole Miss since 2015 this weekend.
Schedule
6:30 p.m. Friday: vs. Ole Miss • SEC Network+ • Listen • Live Stats
7 p.m. Saturday: vs. Ole Miss • ESPN2 • Listen • Live Stats
Noon Sunday: vs. Ole Miss • ESPN • Listen • Live Stats
Matchups
Game 1: Ole Miss RHP Dylan DeLucia (3-0, 4.40 ERA) vs. Arkansas RHP Connor Noland (5-2, 2.54 ERA)
Game 2: Ole Miss LHP Hunter Elliott (1-3, 3.19 ERA) vs. Arkansas LHP Hagen Smith (6-2, 3.83 ERA)
Game 3: Ole Miss RHP Derek Diamond (3-3, 6.29 ERA) vs. Arkansas RHP Jaxon Wiggins (5-1, 5.55 ERA)
Tune In
Friday’s game will stream on SEC Network+ with Brett Dolan (play-by-play) and Troy Eklund (analyst) on the call, while Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Kyle Peterson (analyst) will take over on Saturday and Sunday’s nationally televised broadcasts. Saturday’s contest will televise in prime time on ESPN2, while Sunday’s series finale will broadcast on ESPN.
Fans can catch all the action through the ESPN app on smartphones, computers and tablets or via Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
The entire weekend series between the Hogs and Rebels can also be heard with with Phil Elson (play-by-play) and Bubba Carpenter (analyst) on the call online at HitThatLine.com or on ESPN Arkansas radio 95.3 in the River Valley, 96.3 in Hot Springs and 104.3 in Harrison-Mountain Home.
Series History
• Since 1960, Arkansas is 54-49 overall against Ole Miss, including a 24-22 mark in games played in Fayetteville.
• Arkansas enters this weekend seeking its first home series win against Ole Miss since 2015.
• The Hogs, who won last year’s series in Oxford, have won back-to-back series over the Rebels since the 2010 and 2011 seasons.
• Arkansas has not sweep Ole Miss in Fayetteville since the 1999 campaign.
Leading Off
• For the fourth time in the last five seasons, Arkansas holds a 12-6 mark or better in SEC play.
• The Razorbacks boast an SEC-leading 11-series home winning streak headed into the weekend. Arkansas, 8-1 in conference home games this season, has won all three SEC home series this year, including sweeps of LSU and Kentucky at Baum-Walker Stadium.
• Since the start of the 2018 season, Arkansas has only lost one home SEC series, posting a 17-1 SEC home series record in that span.
• The Hogs are ranked in the top 10 nationally in four categories: fielding percentage (4th, .984), hits allowed per nine innings (5th, 7.03), earned run average (6th, 3.27) and WHIP (9th, 1.21).
• Razorback ace RHP Connor Noland will take the mound in Friday night’s series opener. The veteran right-hander has been one of the best pitchers in the conference through 10 starts, owning a 3-1 record with a microscopic 1.93 ERA over 37.1 innings. Noland’s 74 strikeouts this season are second most among all SEC pitchers.
• RHP Brady Tygart was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List earlier this week. The Razorback closer, with a 1.59 ERA over 22.2 innings to go along with six saves, is one of only three true freshmen on the list for the award given to the nation’s top relief pitcher.
Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.
