Rebs Host Crimson Tide

Ole Miss and Alabama the second oldest rivalry in Rebel history

By: Adam Brown, Sports Editor of HottyToddy.com

adam.brown@hottytoddy.com

Photo by Peyton Spears

The Ole Miss baseball team returns to Swayze this weekend to host the Alabama Crimson Tide in a SEC series tilt.

Ole Miss (23-10, 4-8 SEC) currently is seated at number 18 in the nation according to the USA Today / ESPN Coaches poll. The Rebels have dropped six straight games in a row after losing in the annual Governers Cup to Mississippi State by a score of 5-1.

Sikes Orvis and Stuart Turner are heating up the plate.  In SEC play, Orvis is leading the Rebels with a .306 batting average.  Turner is connecting with a .412 overall average and is 6-for-10 at the dish in his last two games.

No. 22 Alabama (22-13, 8-4 SEC) is coming off a midweek series sweep over Alcorn State, after dropping a series at home over the weekend to the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Crimson Tide are led on offense by Brett Booth with a .293 batting average and  leads the team with three home runs. Booth has driven in a total of 24 RBI’s so far on the season.

For Alabama, this weekend’s probable pitching matchup will showcase the arm’s of senior RHP Charley Sullvian (tonight), sophomore LHP Justin Kamplain (Saturday) and sophomore RHP Spencer Turnbell (Sunday).  Coach Mike Bianco will be sending Wahl, Mayers and Smith to the hill.

Wahl will make his ninth start tonight against the Crimson Tide and is looking for his seventh victory on the season.

Alabama and Ole Miss have met on the diamond 334 times prior to this weekend, with Bama holding a commanding 190-142-2 lead on the all-time series. This series between the Rebels and the Tide is the second most played rivalry in Ole Miss’s history. Last season, the Rebels won the series two games to one in Tuscaloosa with wins of 11-7 Friday and 8-4 on Sunday.

Fans can catch all of the action between the Rebels and the Crimson Tide on the radio on Q 93.7 and watch every pitch on Rebelvision, with game times set for 6:30 p.m.(tonight) and 1:30 p.m.(Sunday) and Saturday game will be televised by CSS. First pitch is slated for 4:00 p.m.