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Ole Miss baseball's Hayden Dunhurst and Jacob Gonzalez named to Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List

11by:Jake Thompson•02/15/22•

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Hayden Dunhurst
Hayden Dunhurst

The college baseball season begins on Friday but Ole Miss is still getting preseason accolades in the days leading up.

On Tuesday, USA Baseball announced 55 players who were named to the 2022 Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. Rebels catcher Hayden Dunhurst and shortstop Jacob Gonzalez are two of those players landing on the list.

The announcement makes it a second-straight season multiple Rebels have made the list. Pitchers Doug Nikhazy and Gunnar Hoglund were named to the 2021 list. The Rebels are also one of eight teams to have multiple players on the 2022 list.

Tapped as a Preseason All-American by D1Baseball, Dunhurst became the second Rebel ever to win an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Award. The Rebel backstop was named a semifinalist for the Buster Posey Award after starting 65 games, 59 behind the plate. In addition to a second team all-conference nod, Dunhurst also received All-Newcomer and All-Defensive Team recognition from the SEC.

Dunhurst batted .280 for the season, racking up 11 doubles, a pair of triples and seven home runs, posting 43 RBIs with 40 runs scored. One of the most feared arms behind the dish in the country, The junior threw out six runners on the year, registering a .996 fielding percentage with just three errors.

On the shortlist for the nation’s premier shortstop, Gonzalez adds this honor to a host of preseason All-American nods reeled in this season. The sophomore became the second player in Ole Miss history to be named an All-American as a freshman, earning the distinction from both the National College Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and D1Baseball, Gonzalez led the Rebels in batting average (.355), runs scored (73) and hits (93) in 2021.

The California native started at shortstop in every game for the Rebels, setting single-season freshman school records in games played (67), runs scored, RBI (55), total bases (147), and walks (38). Ranking fifth and sixth in the nation, respectively, in runs scored and hits, Gonzalez was college baseball’s leader in both categories among true freshmen.

Ole Miss hosts Charleston Southern for a three-game opening weekend series. Derek Diamond takes the mound in the season opener on Friday at 4 p.m. CT. All three games will air on SEC Network+

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