NCAA Oxford Regional Opens Friday versus Florida State
6/3/2021
No. 3 Florida State (30-22) vs. No. 2 Southern Miss (37-19)
Game 57 | June 4, 2021 | Oxford-University Stadium | Oxford, Miss.
| Upcoming Games | Time (CT) | Probable Pitchers | Radio & Webstream |
| Friday, June 4 | 2 p.m. | LH Parker Messick, Fr. (7-2, 3.32) vs. RH Hunter Stanley, Sr. (6-3, 2.42) | Southern Miss Network/ESPNU |
| Live Stats | Southern Miss Game Notes | Regional Website |
Back to the NCAAs: Southern Miss appears in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth-straight year and the 17th time overall, playing in the Oxford Regional this weekend. The Golden Eagles made their first-ever appearance in the postseason in 1990, with a trip to Baton Rouge, and at one point reached regional play nine-straight seasons, from 2003-11. The team also has been to Oxford two previous times, making trips to Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field in 2005 and 2007. The Golden Eagles are 1-4 in NCAA tournament games played in Oxford (for a full breakdown of the Golden Eagles in the NCAA Tournament, please go to page 3).
In the NCAA Tournament: The Golden Eagles are 22-33 (.400) in NCAA Tournament play after going 2-2 in the 2019 Baton Rouge Regional. The program has won one regional, one super regional and have appeared in the CWS once, all three coming during the 2009 campaign.
Magical CWS Run in 2009: The Golden Eagles’ postseason run to the 2009 College World Series started at Russ Chandler Stadium at Georgia Tech where Southern Miss went 3-1. Southern Miss defeated Elon 17-15 in the opener, before defeating the host Yellowjackets two of three times, including 12-8 in the championship game to advance to the Super Regionals in Gainesville, Fla. Southern Miss then went on to win both games against Florida (9-7, 7-6) before earning its only berth in the College World Series. Former Golden Eagle player, B.A. Vollmuth, was an integral cog in that magical run, with a double, five homers and 14 RBI in that tournament.
As the No. 2 Seed: This will be the ninth time Southern Miss has held a No. 2 seed in this event (2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2016, 2018), also holding a No. 1 seed once (2017), a No. 3 seed five times, once as a No. 4 (1991) and once as a No. 5 (1990). The Golden Eagles are 8-16 overall as a No. 2 seed.
Against The Regional Opposition: Southern Miss has played all three other teams in the Oxford Regional in its history. Here is a breakdown of the record between Southern Miss and those teams:
| Opponent | Overall Record | In NCAA Tourney | Last 10 Games | Streak |
FSU | 12-38 | 0-1 | 3-7 | L1 |
Ole Miss | 55-83 | 0-1 | 3-7 | L1 |
SEMO | 6-3 | Never Met | 6-2 | W2 |
Steady in the Rankings: The Golden Eagles remain in at least one national ranking for the sixth-straight week, earning a No. 20 spot by D1Baseball.com, as well as at No. 20 by USA Today, No. 22 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and No. 23 in the Baseball America poll. Southern Miss appeared in all the major polls at least once this season.
All-Tournament Team Performers: First baseman Christopher Sargent (Wilmer, Ala.) and right-handed pitcher Hunter Stanley (Hammond, La.) each secured a spot on the 2021 Air Force Reserve Conference USA All-Tournament team. Sargent registered at least one hit in all four games, finishing 6-for-19 (.353) with three home runs and nine RBI. He blasted an eighth-inning grand slam in the opening game versus WKU to end the contest in an 11-1 run-rule decision. For Stanley, he threw eight innings against WKU. He allowed just three hits and one walk while fanning 14 in the contest. It was his second highest strikeout performance of his career and third double-digit strikeout performance.
National Statistics: Here is a look at the Golden Eagles among the nation’s leaders both as a team and as individuals. Here is a look at the team’s Top 20 leaders for all categories (through May 30 games):
Pitching
Team
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio: 1st (4.28)
Walks per 9 Inns.: 2nd (2.36)
WHIP: 6th (1.17)
Shutouts: 8th (7)
ERA: 15th (3.59)
Individual
Complete Games: Walker Powell, 7th (5)
Doubles: Gabe Montenegro, 10th (21)
Strikeouts: Hunter Stanley, 13th (119)
WHIP: Hunter Stanley, 14th (0.89)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio: Hunter Stanley, 13th (7.44)
Ben Ethridge, 15th (7.36)
Victories: Walker Powell, 15th (9)
On-Base Percentage: Charlie Fischer, 20th (.505)
Walks Allowed per 9 Inns: Ben Ethridge, 20th (1.39)
Consecutive 30 Win Seasons: The Golden Eagles clinched their 19th consecutive 30-win season in 2021. They are one of only five Division I programs to collect at least 19-straight, 30 or more wins seasons. Clemson’s string of 45-straight 30-win seasons was ended in 2021. Here is a look at the top four programs that have won 30 or more games in a season:
School - Seasons (2021 Record thru 6/2)
Florida State - 56 (30-22)
Ole Miss - 24 (41-19)
North Carolina - 22 (27-25)
Southern Miss - 19 (37-19)
Four-Straight 40 Win Seasons: The Golden Eagles are one of five Division I baseball programs that have accumulated 40 win seasons in at least each of the last four seasons (not including the 2020 season that was cut short due to COVID-19). The Golden Eagles have won 40 or more games 12 times in their history. USM first won 40 games in 1990. Southern Miss set its school record for victories in 2017 with 50, surpassing the previous best of 47 in 2003. Here is a look at those schools heading into the 2021 season:
School - Consecutive 40-Win Seasons (2021 Record thru 6/2)
Florida State - 42 (30-22)
Dallas Baptist - 6 (37-15)
Louisville - 5 (28-22) - Season Ended
Southern Miss - 4 (37-19)
Texas Tech - 4 (36-15)
In Conference USA Play: Southern Miss played its 25th season of Conference USA in 2021 - last year’s schedule was canceled due to COVID-19 - and the Golden Eagles have posted a 430-247 (.635) record and are 143-77-5 in league series over that time. The Golden Eagles have won 20 league games now eight times, including in each of the last five years.
Against the 2021 NCAA Tournament Field: Southern Miss holds a 7-12 record against five teams that they have played to reach this postseason’s 64-team field, including Louisiana Tech (4-7), UCONN (2-1), South Alabama (0-3), Alabama (1-0) and Mississippi State (0-1).
