Ole Miss Takes on Arkansas State

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

Ole Miss baseball travels to Jonesboro, Arkansas this evening to take the diamond against the Arkansas State Red Wolves in a mid-week matchup. The first pitch is set for 6 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

Ole Miss (20-16, 3-12 SEC) is coming off a hard-fought weekend series loss at in-state rival Mississippi State over the weekend. The Rebels won the opening game of the series on Friday (3-2), before the Bulldogs took the backend.

The Rebels left fielder Kemp Alderman is currently riding a 31-game on-base streak dating back to February 25, the longest streak of the season. Alderman has hit a career-best 15 home runs so far, fifth-most in the SEC and 11^th in the NCAA.

As a club, the Rebels are second in the SEC and 35^th in the nation in doubles with 77. Only Auburn has hit more doubles in the conference with 80.

Arkansas State comes into the game with a 12-20 overall record and a 3-10 mark in the Sun Belt Conference. The Red Wolves dropped a series over the weekend to Georgia State.

Arkansas State is led at the dish by Wil French with a .333 average and 41 hits.

Coach Mike Bianco will send right-hander Jordan Vera to the mound to face the Red Wolves. This season, Vera has a 2-1 record with an 8.88 ERA with 17 strikeouts and 14 walks.

Arkansas State has not named a starter for the game.

This is the second matchup between the two programs this season, Ole Miss won 11-3 back in February. The Rebels have won the last three matchups against Arkansas State and six of the last seven.