Red-hot Ole Miss baseball hosts one of the final undefeated teams in the nation this week

Coming out of the third weekend of the 2025 college baseball season, seven undefeated teams remain.

Just one mid-major is in that group — and they head to Oxford for a midweek clash with No. 17 Ole Miss on Wednesday night.

Sitting at 7-0, Murray State won’t be winning any awards for successfully maneuvering through its schedule to date. What the Racers have done so far, though, is win games in different ways, giving seventh-year head coach Dan Skirka and his staff hope that they can snap a Regional drought that’s now reached 21 years.

Murray State has plated double-digit runs in four of the seven games. It has also allowed five runs or less five times. The Racers defeated Western Illinois 16-0 and Little Rock 21-2 but also have a 2-1 win over Western Kentucky under their belt.

Early on, Skirka is sending out the same lineup, one that’s filled with experience. Eight players have started all seven games, with another having started six of seven. Of those nine players, seven are juniors or seniors.

First baseman Luke Mistone, a Cal State Fullerton transfer, is off to a blistering start, hitting .531 with a team-high 17 hits and 13 RBIs. He’s already managed six doubles, two triples and a home run. Center fielder Jonathan Hogart has eight doubles, a pair of homers and a .568 on-base percentage. Catcher Will Vierling transferred in from Louisville and has a team-high four home runs to go with a .500 OBP. Right fielder Dustin Mercer and left fielder Dan Tauken are hitting .412 and .370, respectively.

The Racers have won 30-plus games in each of the last four seasons but have not been able to get over the hump in the Missouri Valley in over two decades. They were picked to finish fourth in the conference by the league’s coaches this season, but early returns suggest something bigger could be on the horizon. A ranked win in Oxford is plenty to play for as they try and keep a zero in the loss column.

Ole Miss off to 10-1 start this season

Following a pair of down years that saw the Rebels miss out on the postseason and finish with a losing record, longtime head coach Mike Bianco and his squad are rolling so far in 2025.

The Rebels opened their season with a 2-1 showing at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown in Arlington, picking up a pair of ranked wins over Arizona and Clemson while losing to Texas. Following an extra-inning win over Arkansas State in its first midweek game of the year, Ole Miss has cruised, sweeping Eastern Kentucky and Wright State while also notching a ranked midweek win over Southern Miss.

Sitting at 10-1, Ole Miss moved up seven spots to No. 17 in this week’s D1Baseball Top 25. A Tuesday-night game against Southeastern Louisiana this week was canceled due to expected inclement weather. Following Wednesday’s game against Murray State, it will host Jacksonville State for three games in the final non-conference weekend of the season. The Rebels begin SEC play on March 14 at home against Arkansas.

Relative to the rest of the SEC, the Rebels aren’t blowing anybody away at the plate. A team .287 batting average ranks 13th in the league, while a majority of other stats have them in the middle of the pack. A few big bats have led the way thus far.

Junior infielder Luke Hill is slashing .421/.538/.711. He’s gotten a hit in all but one game so far and has walked more (10) than he’s struck out (seven). Senior outfielder Ryan Moerman and junior infielder Judd Utermark have provided the most pop, combining for nine home runs and 25 RBIs. Moerman is hitting .357.

“He had a tough fall, but from January on he’s swung it as well as anybody,” Bianco said of Moerman following Ole Miss’ Saturday win over Wright State. “Through the first 10 games probably our best hitter. Proud of him.”

Freshman Hayden Federico has been a welcomed surprise thus far, hitting leadoff and working his way into the everyday lineup. In eight games, the West Monroe, La. native is hitting .464 and has a .605 on-base percentage. He’s gotten a hit in every game he’s played in to date while also drawing seven walks and not striking out once. Federico, the go-to designated hitter, has also played left field and second base already this season.

LHP Hunter Elliott has been dominant for the Rebels

The first three weekends have seen the Rebels send out the same starting rotation, with ace left-hander Hunter Elliott and senior righties Riley Maddox and Mason Nichols taking the ball three times each. Elliot has been one of the top pitchers in the nation.

The redshirt junior out of Tupelo missed the entire 2024 season due to injury. He underwent season-ending elbow surgery as a sophomore in 2023 but is making up for lost time this year. Shoving in each of his first three starts, Elliott has given up just six hits in 16 scoreless innings. He’s struck out 20 and walked just eight batters. Opponents are hitting a measly .122 against a pitch-mix that features a low-90s fastball and a complimentary changeup and slider.

“He’s able to make the pitch to get off the field,” Bianco said of Elliott following his five-inning, one-hit start against Wright State last weekend. “I wish we could bottle it up. …Sometimes the difference isn’t how hard you throw or how much your breaking ball breaks. But it’s can you deliver the pitch to win the game, to get you off the field. The great ones do and he has that magic to do that.”

Elliott was on the 2022 Ole Miss team that won the College World Series. He was a big reason why the Rebels conquered Omaha, too. Tallying 80 innings across 20 appearances (12 starts), Elliott won five games and had a 2.70 ERA, striking out 102 while allowing a .201 batting average against. He fired six-and-two-thirds innings of three-hit, two-run ball in the 4-2 win over Oklahoma that sealed the CWS title.

It’s been a long road for Elliott to get back on the mound consistently, but he’s off to a flying start this year.

“It felt good. Adrenaline was flowing. Couldn’t feel the body at times. It’s been a long time out there for me,” Elliott said after making his first start of the year against Arizona on Feb. 14. He struck out three and allowed just two hits in five scoreless innings against the Wildcats. Ole Miss won 2-1. “The journey’s long and I learned a lot along the journey. I think it really hit me during the national anthem. My heart was pumping.”