Ole Miss Welcomes LBSU for a Three-Game Tilt

By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com

Thomas Dillard waits on the pitch. Photo by Steven Gagliano. 

The No. 10 Ole Miss baseball team steps back onto the diamond this evening as they take on the Long Beach State Dirtbags in a three-game series. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.

Ole Miss (5-2) is coming off of a 12-6 victory over UT Martin on Tuesday night. Rebels Tyler Keenan, Cole Zabowski and Thomas Dillard each belted a home run. 

Dillard, a junior, has continued his hot attack at the plate this season. The Oxford native won several accolades after his performance at Tulane including SEC Player of the Week and National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball. 

Ole Miss is one of two teams in the SEC with two players in the top 50 in the nation in batting average. Dillard and Ryan Olenek are tied for 41st in the nation, hitting .481 going into the weekend.

Ole Miss ranks fourth nationally in home runs with 15 on the season. The Rebels are averaging 2.14 home runs per game, good for second in the nation and first in the SEC.

Long Beach State arrives in Oxford 0-7 to start their season. The Dirtbags opened the season against the Florida Gators. Last weekend, LBSU was swept by Nevada.

Ole Miss has met Long Beach State five times in program history, including a three-game series last season. The Rebels took that series at Blair Field in Long Beach, California. After falling 4-3 in game one, the Rebels battled back for a 4-3 win in game two before decisively taking the three-game set with a 12-1 win on Sunday.

Long Beach State projects to send southpaw Zak Baayoun to the mound this evening. Baayoun enters the game 0-1 on the season with a 3.75 ERA. The Dirtbags have not announced a starter for games two and three of the doubleheader. Coach Bianco will go with Will Ethridge to take the mound tonight. Ethridge is 1-0 on the season with a 0.00 ERA. In the first game on Saturday left-hander Zack Phillips will take the mound. Freshman right-hander Gunnar Hoglund will face LBSU in the third game of the series with a 0-0 record and a 6.00 ERA.

Fans can listen to the action on the Ole Miss Radio Network or watch the games on SEC Network +. Game times are set for 6:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m. and the third game will begin 45 minutes after the last out.