Wahl To Take The Mound Against Wildcats On Tuesday
Ole Miss (34-22, 14-16 SEC) vs. Kentucky (41-15, 18-12 SEC)
Hoover, Ala. • Regions Park
May 22 • 9:30 AM
Radio: Full Ole Miss Network
Announcers: David Kellum & Keith Kessinger
Television: SportSouth
Announcers: Dave Neal (Play-by-Play) & Larry Conley (Analyst)
Intenet Live Stats/RebelVision/Audio: www.OleMissSports.com
THIS WEEK FOR OLE MISS:
Ole Miss opens Southeastern Conference Tournament play on Tuesday morning at Regions Park with a 9:30 a.m. contest against the Kentucky Wildcats. On the Rebels’ side of the bracket will also be Arkansas, LSU and Mississippi State.
NEXT WEEK FOR THE REBELS:
The Rebels will await NCAA Tournament seedings and announcement of the 64-team field as the Rebels look to make a 10th NCAA Tournament appearance under head coach Mike Bianco in 2012.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCH-UPS:
TUESDAY, 9:30 A.M.
UK – A.J. Reed, Fr., LHP
OM – Bobby Wahl, So., RHP
NOTING WAHL: Sophomore right-hander Bobby Wahl takes the mound on Tuesday morning to open the SEC Tournament, his 15th of the season. On the year, Wahl is 6-2 with a 2.20 ERA and has posted 84 strikeouts with 29 walks in his 74.1 innings of work. The sophomore is holding opponents to a .207 batting average against and has combined for three shutouts this season. He has picked up wins over #10 TCU, UNC-Wilmington, Houston, Auburn and #1 Florida. He has twice been named the SEC Pitcher of the Week, been tabbed as the National Pitcher of the Week, has been selected to compete for the USA Baseball National Team and was named to the Golden Spikes Player of the Year watch list and National Pitcher of the Year watch list.
A LOOK AT KENTUCKY:
The Wildcats of Kentucky enter the SEC Tournament as the fourth seed and have posted an overall record of 41-15 anda an 18-12 mark in conference play. The Wildcats are coming off a series loss at Mississippi State where Kentucky was swept by the Bulldogs. As a team, the Wildcats are batting at a .298 clip on the year and are led by Austin Cousino at the plate with a .330 average. Leading the power and run production for Kentucky is Luke Maile with 12 home runs and 49 RBI to date. The Wildcat pitching staff holds a 3.62 ERA and have posted 431 strikeouts to 143 walks while holding opponents to a .265 batting average against. Tuesday starter A.J. Reed holds a 4-2 record with a 3.00 ERA through 14 appearances and will be making his fifth start in 39.0 innings of work. He has 40 strikeouts and only walked six batters in his time on the mound.
OLE MISS VS. KENTUCKY:
Ole Miss and Kentucky have met 70 times in the history of the two programs with the Rebels holding a 42-28 lead in the all-time series. The two teams first met in 1925 with the Rebels posting shutouts to win both games.
OLE MISS VS. KENTUCKY IN THE SEC TOURNEY:
Ole Miss and Kentucky have only met once in the history of the SEC Tournament, a single clash in the 2008 season. The Rebels claimed an 8-7 victory over the Wildcats when Michael Guerrero hit a two-run walk-off home run down the left field line to give the Rebels the win and send Ole Miss into the semifinals of the Tournament.
LAST TIME OUT VS. KENTUCKY:
Ole Miss and Kentucky met in a three-game series in April with the Rebels dropping the series 2-1 to the Wildcats. Kentucky rallied to claim the first game of the series 3-2 before Ole Miss responded with a 9-3 win in game two. Kentucky claimed the series with an 8-3 victory over the Rebels in the finale on Sunday.
BIANCO VS. KENTUCKY:
Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco has had success against Kentucky, posting an all-time record of 19-12 against the Wildcats as a head coach. The last series win for Ole Miss in Lexington came in the 2010 season. The two teams did not meet in 2004 or 2005.
vs. Kentucky
in Oxford: 8-4
in Lexington: 10-8
in SEC Tournament: 1-0
Series Wins: 5
Series Lost: 5
Series Sweeps: 4
Series Swept: 1
OLE MISS IN THE SEC TOURNAMENT:
Ole Miss has been successful in the Southeastern Conference Tournament since hosting the inaugural event in 1977 – claiming that first tournament over Florida after also claiming the regular season championship. The Rebels are 25-23 in SEC Tournament play and have faced all 11 SEC opponents. Ole Miss holds a .500 or better record in SEC play against Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee in the SEC event.