LITTLE ROCK - Little Rock concludes its five-game road swing, playing its fourth game in as many days when it tangles with 12th-ranked Ole Miss Tuesday, April 20. First pitch against the Rebels is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Swayze Field in Oxford, Mississippi, airing live on SEC Network +.
Road Warriors
Little Rock is getting use to playing away from Gary Hogan Field as this week's game in Oxford concludes a five-game road swing and is part of a tough stretch where the Trojans will play 12 of 15 away from Little Rock. From March 5 through May 14, Little Rock is scheduled to play 26 road games with just 10 home dates at Gary Hogan Field during that stretch.
Struggles in Monroe
Little Rock earned a hard-fought win over ULM in game one of its weekend series, but couldn't hold the lead in games two and three, dropping the weekend series at Warhawk Field. The Trojans scored first in all three games, using a strong pitching effort to take game one 2-0, but struggled to score late in a 5-3 loss Sunday and a 5-4 10th-inning defeat Monday afternoon. The series loss moves the Trojans into a three-way tie for first in the Sun Belt West Division.
Not Shying Away
Ole Miss is the last of four teams on the slate for Little Rock in that reached either the NCAA Super Regionals or College World Series in 2019. The Trojans have already faced Oklahoma State (Super Regional), Auburn (College World Series) and Arkansas (College World Series) this season, posting a 1-6 record in those games. Tuesday's game is the first of two this season between the Trojans and Rebels, meeting again on May 11 in Oxford.
Scouting the Rebels
Ole Miss enters Tuesday's game at 26-10 on the year and 9-6 in SEC play, ranked 12th in this week's D1Baseball Top-25 poll. The Rebels are coming off a rivalry weekend against third-ranked Mississippi State, dropping two of three in Starkville. Ole Miss is batting .299 as a team with a .466 slugging percentage, boasting seven starters that are hitting .300 or better on the season. On the mound, the Rebels have a 3.95 ERA and are allowing the opposition to just a .232 batting average, striking out 412, which ranks fourth nationally.
Series History
Tuesday is the 22nd all-time meeting between Little Rock and Ole Miss, with all 21 previous meetings coming in Oxford. The Rebels are 16-5 all-time against the Trojans and have won the last six gamess between the two, dating back to Little Rock's 9-6 win on April 7, 2010. Head coach Chris Curry is 0-3 all-time against Ole Miss, including the 11-8 defeat on March 5, 2019.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. Little Rock's long ball came awake in the series at ULM as the Trojans hit five home runs, accounting for seven of Little Rock's nine runs in the series. Tyler Williams leads the way with seven, including a pair against the Warhawks, with Kenny Rodriguez and Nathan Lyons both going deep five times.
2. Heading into Tuesday's game at Ole Miss, Little Rock has played 27 games against ranked opponents during head coach Chris Curry's tenure, posting an 8-19 record, including a 2-1 series victory at 22nd-ranked Southern Illinois earlier this year. Tuesday's game is the seventh against a ranked opponent for the Trojans this year, going 2-4 in the previous six (0-1 vs. #17 Oklahoma State, 2-1 vs. #22 Southern Illinois, 0-2 vs. #2 Arkansas).
3. Since entering the lineup in the final game of the Auburn series, Kenny Rodriguez has been an offensive spark for the Trojans. Rodriguez has been the Trojan's most productive bat in Sun Belt play, batting .364 with a .682 slugging percentage with five doubles and three home runs in league play. Rodriguez leads the team in slugging percentage (.603), is tied for second on the team with five home runs and is second in RBI (20), despite playing in roughly 10 games less than the rest of the starters.
4. Ole Miss will be the third different team from the SEC Little Rock will have faced this season, playing a weekend series at Auburn March 12-14 and a two-game midweek series at Arkansas April 6-7. Little Rock is 10-39 all-time against the league with its last win the 12-6 victory over the Tigers on March 14.
5. Little Rock is 2-4 in midweek games in 2021, coming off a 4-2 loss at Central Arkansas last Tuesday. The Trojans will only have one more midweek remaining this season - the May 11 game against Ole Miss in Oxford.
#LittleRocksTeam
