Diamond Rebels and Tigers Collide in the Bluff City

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

Ryan Olenek is on fire at the plate to start the 2019 season. Photo by Steven Gagliano.

The No. 21 Ole Miss Rebels travel to the Bluff City of Memphis this evening to take on the Memphis Tigers on the banks of the Mississippi River at AutoZone Park. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m. on the Memphis Tigers Network.

Ole Miss (17-8) looks to bounce back after dropping its first SEC conference series on the road to the Missouri Tigers over the weekend. The Rebels won game two of the series on Saturday 3-0 as Doug Nikhazy and Parker Caracci tag-teamed to throw a two-hit shutout.

Head Coach Mike Bianco’s club ranks No. 10 in the nation and second in the conference in home runs with 30 so far on the season.

Third baseman Tyler Keenan leads the league in RBIs with 39 and is No. 3 in the country.

Senior Ryan Olenek comes in with a .423 average and ranks second in the SEC in both hits and batting average.

Memphis enters the game 11-11 to start the year. The Tigers picked up a win on Sunday at Wichita State after dropping the first two games of the series.

The Tigers have three sluggers in their lineup batting over the .300 mark. The trio is led by sophomore Ben Brooks with a .352 average.

The Rebels will send southpaw Jordan Fowler to the bump. Fowler is 1-0 on the season with a 5.17 ERA in 15.2 innings worked. Opponents are batting .185 against the sophomore who has recorded 13 strikeouts.

When the Rebels and Tigers step between the chalk this evening it will be the 149 all-time meeting in the series. Ole Miss holds the advantage in the series that dates back to 1916 at 95-53. The Rebels swept Memphis last season with an 8-6 win in the first midweek game of the season in Oxford and had a 12-0 victory April 4 at AutoZone Park.

Fans can listen to every pitch of the game on the Ole Miss Radio Network.