Game Notes

OXFORD, Miss. - Winthrop baseball will open the 2018 campaign with a three-game series on the road at No. 9 Ole Miss, Feb. 16-18. First pitch is set for 4 p.m., 1:30 p.m. and 12:30 p.m., Friday through Sunday respectively. Each game will be available for live stream via SEC Network+.
 

Winthrop (0-0) at Ole Miss (0-0) - Swayze Field, Oxford, Miss.
Date	Friday, Feb. 16	Saturday, Feb. 17	Sunday, Feb. 18
First Pitch	5 p.m. ET/4 CT	*7 p.m. ET/6 CT *Original 2:30 p.m. time delayed, Follow @WinthropBasebal on Twitter for updates	1:30 p.m. ET/12:30 CT
Live Stats	OleMissSports.com	OleMissSports.com	OleMissSports.com
TV/Live Stream	SECN+	SECN+	SECN+

 












PROBABLE ROTATION
Friday – RHP Zach Peek (0-0) 
Saturday – RHP Colten Rendon (0-0) 
Sunday – RHP Nate Pawelczyk (0-0)  

PRESEASON FAVORITES
Winthrop opens the season after being predicted to win the Big South Conference by the league's coaches and D1Baseball.com. 

EXPERIENCE RETURNING
Winthrop returns eight of its top 10 batters from 2017, including Mitch Spires who led the Eagles in batting average (.345), hits (76) and runs (49). 2017 RBI-leader (60) Hunter Lipscomb also returns. Lipscomb's .292 average was good for third on last year's squad. 

Winthrop loses only one pitcher who took the mound for 10 or more appearances in 2017, returning seven of its top eight pitchers. The Eagles boast two pitchers named Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year by various publications, Nate Pawelczyk and Zach Peek.

Junior Nate Pawelczyk was voted Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year by the league's coaches and D1Baseball.com. Pawelczyk was a 2017 First-Team All-Big South honoree, ranked first in the league with a 2.23 ERA, first in the league with seven wins, first in the league in opponent batting average (.192), first in the league in runs allowed with 23, second in the league in earned runs with 19, third in the league in hits allowed with 53, led the team in strikeouts with 69, third on the team in innings pitched (76.2) and starts (11). 

Sophomore Zach Peek (2017: 5-1, 3.70 ERA) was also named Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year by Perfect Game. Peek is ranked 49th overall in PG USA Top 100 draft prospects for 2019. The Eagles also return 2017 Big South Freshman of the Year and Freshman All-American Colten Rendon (2017: 7-5, 4.19 ERA) on the mound. Rendon was second on the team in innings pitched (86.0) in 2017.

Winthrop has won its past five-straight season openers and is 25-13 all-time.

FACING THE SEC
Ole Miss and Arkansas are the only two SEC programs Winthrop has not faced. The Eagles have faced in-state foe South Carolina (23 contests) and border opponent Georgia (22) most frequently. Winthrop's overall record vs. the SEC is 28-70.