Three things to know about OU baseball's College World Series finals opponent, Ole Miss

OMAHA, Neb. — The Sooners are two wins away from the NCAA baseball title.

OU has reached the College World Series finals, where it'll face Ole Miss in a best-of-three series that begins 6 p.m. Saturday. The Sooners are in search of their first title since 1994.

OU (45-22, 15-9 Big 12) went undefeated in its bracket and capped off the run with a 5-1 win over No. 5-seeded Texas A&M on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Ole Miss (40-23, 14-16 SEC) reached the finals with a 2-0 win over Arkansas on Thursday in an elimination game.

Here are three things to know about Ole Miss.

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David versus David

All the Rebels wanted was a chance.

When the NCAA announced its college baseball bracket on May 30, Ole Miss' players didn't know if they had already played their last game. The team was on the bubble after going 32-21 (14-16 SEC) in the regular season followed by a first-round exit in its conference tournament.

But the Rebels got their chance and made the most of it.

After being picked as one of the last four teams to make the cut for the tournament, Ole Miss went undefeated in both the Coral Gables Regional and the Hattiesburg Super Regional to secure a spot in the College World Series for the first time since 2014.

"One of the challenges we talked about is to not just come here but to win," Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco said on Thursday. "I'm just proud that they continued to believe in one another. They've played well."

OU can relate to Ole Miss' journey.

The Sooners were picked to finish sixth in the Big 12 preseason poll but ultimately won their conference tournament. They then won the Gainesville Regional and the Blacksburg Super Regional to punch their ticket to the big dance for the first time since 2013.

OU head coach Skip Johnson has continuously called his group "a bunch of Davids," referring to the underdog story of David and Goliath. The Sooners have defeated plenty of Goliaths in their postseason run, but they must now defeat a fellow David for the title.

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Tim Elko's last unchecked box

Tim Elko didn't have anything left to prove at the end of last season.

The senior earned an ABCA All-South Region selection for his play on the field, which marked a first in program history for Ole Miss first basemen. He also made program history for his work off the field by being named the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Despite having nothing left to prove, Elko still had something that he wanted to accomplish. He wanted to play in the College World Series.

That goal got checked off the list this season during Ole Miss' storybook postseason run, and Elko has been a driving force. The fifth-year senior has a team-high 23 home runs in his final season, which is tied for 15th in the nation.

"I've always dreamed of playing in Omaha, and I finally got here my last year," Elko said on June 16. "It paves the way to show people that are thinking about coming to Ole Miss that we are a really good baseball program."

Elko continued his personal home run derby during Game 1 of Ole Miss' CWS semifinals game against Arkansas on Monday.

Elko delivered a two-run homer in the top of the second inning that gave the Rebels a 4-1 lead, and they ultimately earned a 13-5 victory.

Now just two wins away from a national championship, Elko isn't done striving.

"It feels like a good accomplishment to get here," Elko said. "It's not our goal just to get to Omaha. It's to win a national championship. And we're ready to do that and play well."

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Dylan DeLucia's marathon on the mound

Dylan DeLucia wanted to finish what he started.

Ole Miss reached the CWS finals thanks in part to the junior, who pitched a shutout in the team's 2-0 win over Arkansas on Thursday. DeLucia went the distance in the elimination game despite a late scare in the bottom of the seventh inning.

After a fielding error placed Razorbacks on first and second with two outs, Bianco walked out to the mound to check on DeLucia.

"I'm fine," DeLucia told him.

Bianco kept DeLucia in the game, and DeLucia got out of the jam two at-bats later to preserve his team's 2-0 lead.

Now just six outs away from completing his marathon of a night, DeLucia sprinted toward the finish line. He retired the last six batters he faced to secure Ole Miss' spot in the CWS finals.

"I just stayed with it," DeLucia said. "I just looked up and saw all those zeros going into the eighth, and I was just like it's my time to finally finish this game."

It's unclear how much DeLucia can contribute this weekend on short rest, but Ole Miss has another standout in its bullpen.

Hunter Elliott (5-3) is a freshman who has a 2.70 ERA this season. He last pitched on Monday against Arkansas.

"We'll meet as a staff tomorrow and kind of game plan how to navigate through the three days," Bianco said. "Proverbial one game at a time, and you try to win the first one and go from there. You're playing for a national championship, so you don't want to leave anything on the table."

Justin Martinez can be reached at jmartinez@oklahoman.com or @JTheSportsDude on Twitter. Make sure to subscribe to The Oklahoman to stay up to date with all local sports.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU baseball: Meet Sooners' College World Series foe, Ole Miss Rebels