Raiders Head Back South for Series at #24 Ole Miss

Friday, February 28

Oxford, Miss / Swayze Field

5 PM ET

Wright State University

Ole Miss

Photo by: Jordan Wommack

2/27/2025 3:00:00 PM | Baseball

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DAYTON – The Wright State baseball team will travel back south, taking on nationally ranked No. 24 Ole Miss. The three-game series will open on Friday, February 28 at 5 p.m. ET and will conclude on Sunday, March 2 at 2:30 p.m. ET. All three games will stream on SEC Network+ and will have live stats provided.

Game 1 - Friday, February 28 – 5:00 p.m. ET – Live Stats – Watch
Game 2 - Saturday, March 1 – 5:00 p.m. ET – Live Stats – Watch
Game 3 - Sunday, March 2 – 2:30 p.m. ET – Live Stats – Watch

LAST TIME OUT
Wright State is coming off a midweek win, defeating Miami (OH) 11-10. The win was secured by JP Peltier's two-run homer in the seventh inning.

Wright State finished with 11 runs on 11 hits with seven walks while striking out 12 times. Cam Gilkerson led the team with three hits, followed by Hunter Warren and Peltier, who added two hits each. The Raiders had five extra-base hits, as Peltier went yard twice and Gilkerson once, while Luke Arnold had a triple and Conlan Daniel a double.

Noah Williamson (1-0) earned the win after pitching one and a third innings, allowing no runs or hits. Williamson walked two batters while striking out two. Garrett Peters secured his second save of the season, allowing one hit and striking out one in the final inning.

SCOUTING THE REBELS
Under 25th-year head coach Mike Bianco, Ole Miss is currently 7-1 on the season, ranked No. 24 in the nation by D1 Baseball. The Rebels opened the 2025 season going 2-1 in the Shriners Children's College Showdown in Arlington, Texas, defeating No. 21 Arizona (2-1) and No. 15 Clemson (15-5) before falling to No. 19 Texas (10-0). The Rebels defeated Arkansas State 4-2 in their home opener, followed by a series sweep against Eastern Kentucky (8-0, 9-4, 9-3). Ole Miss recently took on #22 Southern Miss, beating the Golden Eagles 15-8 on Tuesday evening.

As a team, Ole Miss is currently batting .279 on the season, led by Luke Hill's .448 batting average. The Rebels rank eighth in the nation with 15 home runs on the season, No. 12 with 1.88 home runs per game. Hill ranks No. 15 nationally with 14 runs and No. 17 in runs per game (1.75). Ole Miss is No. 16 nationally in base on balls (57) and No. 31 in hit by pitch (17).

The Rebels' pitching staff holds a 3.67 ERA, as projected Friday starter Hunter Elliot leads the team with a 2-0 record and a perfect 0.00 ERA. Elliot has appeared in two games, starting both, pitching 11 innings with 13 strikeouts and only three walks, allowing five hits. Mason Morris and Connor Spencer each have a save under their belt. Spencer, a right-handed senior, earned the save in the season opener, pitching one and a third innings against Arizona. Morris earned his save in the series opener against EKU, putting in three innings of work while allowing just one hit and striking out three batters.

HISTORY VS. OLE MISS
Ole Miss holds the all-time series record over the Raiders 10-4. The teams last met in the 2020 season opener, with the Rebels sweeping the three-game series. The all-time series dates back to 2007, when the Raiders won the season-opening series 2-1.

SWEEPING THE HORIZON LEAGUE AWARDS
Wright State baseball's Boston Smith and Garrett Peters swept the first week of Horizon League awards, the conference office announced Tuesday afternoon. Smith was named the Horizon League Batter of the Week and Peters the Pitcher of the Week.

A senior catcher, Smith slashed .500/.667/1.250 with four hits, three walks, and one hit by pitch, driving in six runs batted in. Smith homered twice in the season opener—first a solo shot in the fourth inning, then a two-run homer in the eighth—helping the Raiders to a 12-1 win in game one of the doubleheader against Longwood.

Peters earned Horizon League Pitcher of the Week honors after securing the save in game two of Friday's doubleheader. The senior left-hander pitched the final three innings at Longwood, securing a 14-8 win while facing the minimum nine batters and allowing no runs, hits, or walks. Peters struck out five batters—two swinging and three looking.

HORIZON LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
Wright State was picked atop the 2025 Horizon League preseason poll, receiving 33 points and three first-place votes from the conference's head coaches. Northern Kentucky followed, voted to finish second with 29 points and one first-place vote. Coming in third was Oakland with 19 points and one first-place vote, closely trailed by Milwaukee with 18 points. Rounding out the poll were Youngstown State (14) and Purdue Fort Wayne (13).

PRESEASON ACCOLADES
In its season preview, D1Baseball selected six Raiders as top prospects for the 2025 and 2026 Major League Baseball drafts. Smith was ranked as the top 2025 draft prospect in the Horizon League, with Joey Valentine and Griffen Paige ranked fourth and fifth, respectively. Right-handed pitchers Allen and Brayden Schoetzow were selected as the first and second top prospects for the 2026 draft, respectively, while Conlan Daniel was picked fourth. Daniel, a freshman outfielder, was also named the number two impact freshman in the league by D1Baseball.

Beyond D1Baseball's rankings, Cam Allen and Garrett Peters were named to the National College Baseball Writers Association Preseason Stopper of the Year Watch List. Now in its 20th year, the award recognizes the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I Baseball each season.

SMITH'S A TOP 50 CATCHER
Boston Smith, a catcher from Arcanum, Ohio, was the only Raider to earn recognition in the D1Baseball Preseason Player Rankings, being named one of the top 50 catchers in the nation. Last season, the senior slashed .307/.403/.698 with 10 doubles, 19 home runs, and 47 RBIs, earning him the No. 14 ranking among catchers.

STUDENT-athletes
Wright State posted a team grade point average of 3.543 for the Fall 2024 semester, and a 3.495 cumulative grade point average. 35 athletes finished with a GPA higher than 3.00, 26 with a GPA over 3.5, and 15 earned a 4.0 or higher. The Raiders have maintained a team GPA above 3.00 in 24 of the past 25 semesters. Twenty student-athletes were added to the Spring 2024 Horizon League Academic Honor Roll, which requires a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or higher with at least three semesters at the same institution.

HEAD COACH – ALEX SOGARD
Leading the charge for Wright State is head coach Alex Sogard, who has built a powerhouse program during his tenure. After leading the Raiders to a 32-24 overall record, earning their sixth HL Regular Season title, Sogard earned his fourth Horizon League Coach of the Year honor in 2024, becoming the first to do so in program history.

His Coach of the Year awards are not the only accomplishment Sogard achieved at WSU. In 2019, Sogard took the Raiders to a 42-17 record, tallying the most wins by a first-year head coach in program history. Sogard led the Raiders to three consecutive NCAA Regional appearances, 2021-2023, being named the 2021 ABCA/ATEC East Coach of the Year. In June 2021, Sogard was named to the 2021 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team coaching staff.

DRAFT TALENT
Two Raiders were selected in the 2024 MLB Draft. Centerfielder, Andrew Patrick, was the first Raider picked in the 2024 MLB Draft, being selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the 504th pick in the 17th round. Patrick started 147 of his 150 games over three seasons at Wright State, recording a .288 career batting average with 36 doubles, 37 homers, and 120 RBI. The outfielder collected multiple Horizon League All-League honors in his time as a Raider, being named to the All-Freshman Team in 2022, followed by earning a spot on the All-Horizon League First Team as a sophomore. In 2023, he earned a spot on the East-ABCA/Rawlings All-Region First Team.

Similarly, senior right-handed pitcher Jake Shirk was the next Raider drafted, chosen by the Pirates with the 534th pick in the 18th round. Shirk appeared in 58 games in his four years at Wright State, sitting fifth in program history with 45 games started. After making all 12 appearances from the bullpen his first year, the right-handed pitcher primarily served as a starter for Wright State the following three seasons. His 22 career wins tie him for eighth in program history. In his 270 career-innings pitched, Shirk struck out a total of 214 batters, a rate of 7.13 per nine innings. He was awarded All-Horizon League honors twice, first earning a spot on the Second Team (2022) then being named to the First Team (2023).

BACK IN THE NISCH
The Raiders return to Nischwitz Stadium on Tuesday, March 4, for their 2025 home opener against Miami (OH). The game is set for a 3 p.m. first pitch with free admission and a poster giveaway. Fans can keep up with the game virtually via live stats.