LORMAN, Miss. – The Alcorn State University baseball program will have had nine days to prepare for possibly the highest-ranked opponent its ever faced, the third meeting with the #2 Ole Miss Rebels over the past calendar year plus.
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The Braves (5-8, 5-7 SWAC) are one of the most efficient offenses in the NCAA, boasting a top-40 scoring average of 7.2 runs per game. They are also top-three in the SWAC for fielding percentage (.962), hits allowed per nine innings (10.37) and on-base percentage (.375).
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Tristin Garcia is on pace to have one of the best hitting seasons in recent memory, currently clocking in with the third-best batting average for a single season at .463 and has a cumulative average of .368 during his Braves career which would be 14th on the program's all-time leaderboard.
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Garcia's batting average is the 11th-highest in the nation and best in the league while his hits per game average (1.92) is second-best in the country, trailing only San Diego State's Jaden Fein with 1.95.
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Jose Fernandez has solidified his role as staff ace, fronting the SWAC with an ERA of 2.08 and averages just over a strikeout per inning (1.08) as he has 28 punchouts over 26.0 innings pitched.
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Khalil Smith has been a revelation at the top of the lineup for Coach Richardson, scoring the second-most runs per game in Division I (1.42) and tying with
Kyle Jenkins for 15th in the NCAA at averaging a walk per game.
Kobe Head is one of only 37 student-athletes this season to toss a complete game, tossing seven shutout innings with five whiffs and just five hits allowed in a victory over Alabama A&M on March 21. Â
Scouting the #2 Ole Miss Rebels (21-6, 7-2 SEC)
The Rebs have been tested early and often in 2021, passing every challenge with flying colors. The men from Oxford have battled six top-25 foes and won all of them, sweeping a three-game series with #23 Alabama in SEC play to go along with a season-opening three-game gauntlet inside Globe Life Field against top-ten Big 12 opponents in #10 TCU, #3 Texas Tech and #9 Texas.
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Ole Miss is a top-25 squad in eight different categories as of April 5, highlighted by the tenth-best winning percentage (.778), sixth-highest strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.87) and third-most strikeouts per nine innings (12.2).
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Tim Elko has been the offensive catalyst for OM, posting an average of .350 with 36 hits, nine home runs (12th in NCAA), 35 RBIs (5th in NCAA) and scoring 27 times on the basepaths.
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On the bump Tuesday will be Drew McDaniel who leads Mississippi with four victories, is second on the club with a 2.39 ERA and has struck out 33 batters in just 26.1 innings of work.
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Alcorn has faced 57 Southeastern Conference opponents on the diamond and have struck out in a quest for a victory, going 0-57 all-time against the powerhouse conference.
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#FearTheBrave
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