OXFORD -- Ole Miss baseball closed the regular season on a hot streak.

The No. 25 Rebels (37-18, 16-14 SEC) won two of three games over visiting No. 6 Auburn (38-17, 17-13) to notch a quality series win. Ole Miss won the opener 9-2 behind a strong start from ace pitcher Hunter Elliott. Judd Utermark hit two home runs in the next game on May 16 to lead Ole Miss to a 15-11 win. The Rebels lost 13-8 on May 17 a bid for the sweep.

Here are three takeaways.

Ole Miss baseball will be No. 7 seed in SEC tournament, will play May 21

The Rebels have secured the No. 7 seed in the SEC tournament. It means Ole Miss will not have to play on the first day of the SEC tournament on May 20

Ole Miss will face either the No. 10 Florida (37-19, 15-15) or No. 15 South Carolina (28-28, 6-24) on May 21 (4:30 p.m., SEC Network). The Rebels won two of three games at Florida in the regular season and won one of three at South Carolina.

There's a chance the Rebels go on a run. Ole Miss has exhibited an ability to beat the best teams in the country at times. Ole Miss has won games against No. 5 Arkansas, No. 6 Auburn and No. 9 Vanderbilt.

Ole Miss baseball has given itself a chance to host in NCAA tournament

The Rebels may not be done playing at Swayze Field. Winning the Auburn series will bump Ole Miss to somewhere between No. 12-18 in the RPI. The Rebels have racked up 17 Quad 1 victories.

Ole Miss can make a solid argument for being worthy of a top-16 seed heading into the NCAA tournament.

The Rebels are on the host bid bubble. Going on a run in the SEC tournament by winning two or three games would help solidify Ole Miss' argument for getting postseason baseball back to Oxford.

What is the status of injured pitcher Mason Nichols?

Ole Miss may be without one of its weekend starters as it heads into the postseason.

Senior Mason Nichols was injured in the final game against Auburn.

Nichols exited after 3⅔ innings. Coach Mike Bianco said Nichols' departure had to do with an oblique injury. Obliques are the two large muscles on either side of the abdomen.

"The doctors saw him during the game," Bianco said. "All I got back was it was an oblique. How severe? Strain? We don't know anything beyond that."

Nichols allowed three earned runs on three hits and five walks. The six pitchers who came on to relieve him also struggled. The 13 runs were the most Ole Miss has allowed since a 13-0 defeat against Vanderbilt on April 27. Four runs, though, were unearned. Ole Miss committed three errors.

Nichols has made 14 appearances this season. He is 3-2 with a 5.51 ERA.

Judd Utermark is starting to heat back up

Heading into Ole Miss' midweek game against UT Martin on May 13, Utermark had one multi-hit game in his last 11 appearances. After notching two hits against UT Martin, Utermark continued his momentum against the Tigers.

Utermark had seven hits over three games against the Tigers. The second game was the highlight. Utermark batted 3-for-5 on May 16 with two home runs. Seven of Utermark's nine total RBIs against the Tigers came in the middle game.

Utermark has tied catcher Austin Fawley for the team lead in home runs with 16.