The No. 5 Arkansas Razorbacks (25-6, 8-4 SEC) came to Oxford and defeated Ole Miss (18-13, 2-10) two games to one in a three-game series.
Game 1 was no contest, as Arkansas won 11-2. But the Rebels bounced back quickly and won the next game 7-4. Game 3 was really anyone’s game to win, but the Razorbacks proved to be too much for Ole Miss and they ended up winning 6-4.
The Rebels’ struggles in conference play continue and they have yet to find that level of consistency.
Here are three takeaways from the series.
Xavier Rivas, JT Quinn make solid starts
Rivas got the start for Ole Miss in Game 2 and it was probably his most productive and impressive game of the season.
The left-hander pitched in six innings, allowed five hits, two earned runs, four walks and struck-out seven batters. He also threw a total of 109 pitches, a season-high.
The only inning where Rivas faced some trouble came in the second when he allowed a couple of walks and singles. One of those hits was an RBI-single from Arkansas first baseman Brady Slavens.
But Rivas managed to retire the next three Arkansas batters to limit the damage and get out of the inning.
“I thought the biggest thing I did was minimize the damage, especially in that second inning,” Rivas said after the game. “Really needed that as a team to not let that fold over and have another rough game.”
In Game 3, Quinn got the start for the Rebels and pitched well.
The right-handed freshman pitched five innings, gave up three hits, three runs (one earned), two walks and collected eight strikeouts.
“I felt pretty good,” Quinn said after Game 3. “…Just didn’t make enough big pitches. Didn’t put up enough zeroes and that’s kind of the outcome of the game.”
Hits kept coming for Ethan Lege
Lege had a great three games against the Razorbacks at the plate.
The third baseman was 7-for-10 (.700 BA) with four RBIs, a double and a home run which came in the bottom of the sixth inning of Game 2.
“He threw me a slider (the) first pitch, fouled it off,” Lege said about his home run in Game 2. “Then he threw me the same pitch and I saw it really well (and) got a good swing on it.”
Lege’s batting average climbed up from .222 to .277 after the three games against Arkansas which shows the amount of production he had in the lineup for the Rebels.
The struggles continue against SEC opponents
Ole Miss hasn’t played well against SEC teams this season and are just 2-10 in conference play.
Granted, they haven’t had the easiest schedule as they’ve faced No. 4 Vanderbilt, No. 3 Florida, Texas A&M and now No. 5 Arkansas. But, this series could’ve easily gone the Rebels’ way, especially in Game 3.
The pitching was actually quite good in the series, other than the first game. But the Rebels need to be more consistent at the plate, especially against conference opponents.
Against SEC teams this season, Ole Miss is batting .236 and has an OPS of .720. Also, the Rebels have been outscored 96-60 in conference play. There just needs to be consistency on both sides of the ball because it’s been very up-and-down all year.
Ole Miss will face Memphis on Tuesday, April 11. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. CDT on SEC Network+.
