No. 5 Ole Miss baseball steps out of conference this evening to face the Mississippi State Bulldogs for the annual Governor’s Cup at Trustmark Park in Pearl. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on the SEC Network.
Ole Miss (32-9) is coming off of a series win over then-No. 12 Georgia over the weekend. Junior Ryan Olenek is on a 19-game hitting streak, the longest active streak in the SEC. He’s hitting .479 in league play, the conference’s best mark. He leads the SEC in hits with 34 and is statistically the toughest player to strike out in the league.
Senior Will Golsan is now on a 10-game hitting streak for the Rebels. Over the past two weeks, the senior captain is batting .483 with an astounding OPS of 1.357, three home runs (all in SEC play), 10 RBI, 14 hits and eight runs scored.
As the Rebels take the diamond this evening, they will put a perfect 11-0 record in midweek action on the line. Ole Miss is tied for the third-most wins in college baseball, behind only Tennessee Tech (34) and Florida (33).
The Rebels have climbed back up into the top 10 in the nation in the polls.
Mississippi State (22-19) is coming off a sweep at home of then-No. 3 Arkansas in Starkville.
Junior outfielder Jake Mangum has led MSU offensively as one of only two Bulldogs hitting over .300. Mangum is slashing .337/.434/.411 with 13 doubles and two triples. He’s also 12-for-13 stealing bases and has scored a team-best 33 runs on 59 hits. His teammate Hunter Stovall is the second Bulldog hitting over .300 at .309 on the season. He boasts a team-best 14 doubles.
The Bulldogs are 7-4 in midweek games this season, having lost its last midweek contest 6-1 to Memphis at AutoZone Park.
The Rebels and Bulldogs have met for a non-conference game aside from their conference tilt at a neutral-site ever since 1980 season. The series began as the Mayor’s Trophy game but was changed to the Governor’s Cup in 2007. Started in 1980 by then Jackson Mayor Dale Danks Jr., the Mayor’s Trophy/Governor’s Cup game has been one of the most anticipated matchups of the college baseball season. Beginning in the 2007 season, the non-conference meeting between the two teams moved to Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi, and began anew as the two teams now compete for the Governor’s Cup. Throughout the history of the annual midweek rivalry game, the two in-state foes have alternated being the home team at the neutral site venue. This season, MSU will serve as the home team at Trustmark Park. MSU holds a slight lead in the rivalry matchup, 20-18, having won each of the last two meetings.
The probable pitching matchup for tonight’s game will showcase the arm of LHP Jordan Fowler for the Rebels. Fowler is 4-0 on the season with a 3.43 ERA and holding opposing sluggers to a .188 clip. Mississippi State will send to the hill RHP Denver McQuary. McQuary is 1-2 on the season with a 4.88 ERA in 24 innings pitched.
Fans can catch all the action on the SEC Network beginning at 6 p.m. or listen to the call on the Ole Miss Radio Network.
Adam Brown is the sports editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.
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