If you think the SEC is the benchmark for college basketball this season, you’d be correct. But another sport is being dominated far more by the league.
As SEC baseball teams open conference play this weekend, the league boasts nearly half of the teams in the D1 Baseball Top 25 rankings.
That includes:
- The top four teams
- Eight of the top 13
- A dozen of the top 25
Arkansas is No. 3 in that poll, and also third in the Baseball America rankings, where Ole Miss checks in at 13th and 15th. LSU is No. 1 in the D1 poll with Tennessee second, they switch places in the Baseball America list.
In the Baseball America rankings, the SEC boasts:
- The top three teams
- Seven of the top nine
- An amazing 13 of the top 25
So, as SEC basketball coaches were fond of saying this season, “the gauntlet” begins this weekend on well-groomed diamonds throughout the league.
The three-game series between Arkansas and Ole Miss begins today with a 2 p.m. game at Swayze Field. Gates will open at noon.
First pitch for Saturday and Sunday games will be at 1:30 p.m. All three games will be streamed on SEC Network+.
Ole Miss is a bit of a surprise this season with a 14-2 record. The Rebels suffered consecutive losing seasons in 2023 and ’24 for the first time in more than two decades.
The two-year slump was especially surprising since it was on the heels of Ole Miss winning the national championship in 2022.
After last season, the Rebs had a lot of players leave via the convenient transfer portal, which suggested a rebuilding year for coach Mike Bianco, who’s in his 25th year with Ole Miss.
The red-hot Hogs (16-1) have won 12 straight and come into the series brimming with confidence under the direction of coach Dave Van Horn, the three-time SEC Coach of the Year.
Kuhio Aloy leads Arkansas with a .460 average, 31 RBIs and seven home runs. Brent Iredale also has seven homers, a .431 average and 30 RBIs. Shortstop Wehiwa Aloy, Kuhio’s older brother, is at .400 with six homers and 18 RBIs.
Ryan Moerman is the Rebs’ top hitter and he’s on a tear with an 11-game hitting streak. The Illinois transfer has a .457 average during the streak with six home runs, 21 RBIs and 17 runs.
Trying to slow Moerman down is a staff that’s been effective but not overpowering. Zach Root gets the ball in the opener, followed by Gabe Gaeckle and Landon Beidelschies.
Ole Miss pitchers have a combined 3.08 ERA led by junior lefty Hunter Elliott, today’s starter in the opener. He has a 1.86 earned run average through 19.1 innings.
Friday starter Hunter Elliott was the Dick Howser Trophy National Pitcher of the Month by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association for the month of February.
The southpaw has a sparkling ERA of 1.86 and leads the Rebs with four pickoffs of opposing baserunners. Ole Miss has picked off eight runners in 16 games, already exceeding the team’s total for the two preceding seasons.
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS Game 1: LHP Zach Root (2-0, 2.11 ERA) vs. LHP Hunter Elliott (3-0, 1.86 ERA) Game 2: RHP Gabe Gaeckle (1-0, 6.16 ERA) vs. RHP Riley Maddox (3-1, 3.44 ERA) Game 3: RHP LHP Landon Beidelschies (3-0, 2.37 ERA) vs. Mason Nichols (1-0, 4.20 ERA)
- For today’s game, ticket holders will use their current tickets for the rescheduled game time. New tickets will not be issued, and mobile tickets will update automatically to reflect the new game time.
