15 is an important number today. The Rebels are welcoming the #15 Kentucky Wildcats to Swayze this weekend where Ole Miss just so happens to be 15-0.
After dropping the last two games of the series on the road against second ranked Texas, Ole Miss bounced back on Tuesday, knocking off Austin Peay 9-5. The biggest storyline for Ole Miss as conference play ramps up is around their Saturday starter, Cade Townsend, who left his start early against Texas with shoulder discomfort. He will be fine in the long
run, but as of now, the pitcher for Friday’s game is listed as TBD.
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
Thursday: LHP Hunter Elliott (2-0, 4.38 ERA) vs. LHP Ben Cleaver (1-0, 1.84 ERA)
Friday: TBA vs. RHP Jaxon Jelkin (4-0, 3.38 ERA)
Saturday: LHP Wil Libbert (2-2, 5.96 ERA) vs. RHP Nate Harris (3-1, 4.03 ERA)
Hunter Elliott will hopefully round into his ace form soon and the Rebs will need it tonight as they take on the Cats’ ace in Ben Cleaver. Fortunately for the Rebs, Kentucky’s best player, Tyler Bell, has been limited due to injury. Nevertheless the duo of Jayce Tharnish and Ethan Hindle on offense have led Kentucky to their 18-2 start.
For Ole Miss, they will need the hot sticks of Tristan Bissetta and Judd Utermark to stay hot. Both are sporting 9+ game hitting streaks and Bissetta is well on his way to the best season of his life. If the Rebels can jump out to an early lead and let Elliott settle in, it would be a good start to an important early conference series.
Viewing Options
Thursday: 7:00 pm on SEC Network
Friday: 6:30 pm on SEC Network+
Saturday: 1:30 pm on SEC Network+
