Tag Archives: college baseball

27 Apr

around the horn

William Carey goes into the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament as the No. 3 seed, having secured that spot by taking two of three from rival Belhaven over the weekend. BU fell to the 8-seed. Carey plays sixth-seeded Bethel on Wednesday, while BU gets top seed Auburn-Montgomery at Montgomery, Ala. … Delta State, the preseason pick to win the Gulf South Conference title, goes into the GSC Tournament as the No. 6 seed and opens on Saturday with top seed West Alabama at Livingston, Ala. … Millsaps lost twice to rival Rhodes at home in its Southern Athletic Association tourney and must now wait to see if it is deemed worthy of an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III regionals. The Majors are 28-12 this year, 0-5 against Rhodes. … It should be a very competitive atmosphere when Ole Miss and Mississippi State tangle on Tuesday in the Governor’s Cup at Trustmark Park in Pearl. Both need every win they can get. … It was not a good weekend for Mississippi-connected starting pitchers in MLB. On Saturday, MSU product Kendall Graveman allowed six runs in 4 2/3 innings for Oakland (then was demoted to Triple-A on Sunday) and ex-Picayune High star T.J. House allowed three runs in just three innings for Cleveland. On Sunday, former Ole Miss star Lance Lynn yielded six runs in five innings for St. Louis and fellow UM alum Drew Pomeranz gave up three runs in five innings in a game the A’s would ultimately lose. … Props to former Rebels star Seth Smith for belting his first home run this season for Seattle on Sunday. He now has 86 for his career. … With Josh Hamilton apparently headed back to Texas, former State standout Mitch Moreland may see fewer at-bats down the road. Playing through a sore elbow, he is batting .310 with one homer. … Regardless of whether you like Buck Showalter, the former MSU star now managing in Baltimore, you’ve got to love his “These are the good ol’ days” MLB promo.

24 Apr

pick three

It’s time for the cream to rise in conference play. With Ole Miss hosting Alabama, Mississippi State visiting Arkansas and Southern Miss making the trip to Texas-San Antonio this weekend, here are three picks to click for the state’s Big 3, each of which needs to make a move. For UM: Colby Bortles, who has reached base in 19 of his last 20 games for the Rebels (21-21, 8-10 SEC). He is batting .288 with six home runs and 34 RBIs. For State: Cody Brown, who has 17 hits in his last 11 games, boosting his average 27 points to .323 for the Bulldogs (21-19, 6-12). Biloxi native Brown has 15 RBIs and 26 runs. For USM, Ryan Milton, who is 1-0 with eight saves for the Golden Eagles (22-14-1, 9-8 C-USA). The Jones County Junior College product has a 2.45 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings.

21 Apr

taking notes

Jackson State’s Melvin Rodriguez is having a season worthy of Ferriss Trophy consideration. The senior from Puerto Rico leads NCAA Division I in batting. He currently sits at .446 with five homers, 44 runs and 52 RBIs for the Tigers (25-15, 11-6 SWAC). He also has a .505 on-base percentage and 11 steals in 12 tries. … Southern Miss (21-14-1, 9-8 C-USA), leads its conference in ERA (2.82) and fielding (.974). Those stats may bode well for USM’s chances of winning in the postseason, when those aspects of the game are magnified. … Ole Miss ranks last in the SEC in hitting at .247 and 13th in runs (187). Mississippi State is ninth in batting at .273 and sixth in runs (230). The schools rank 10th and 11th in ERA, State at 4.14, UM at 4.15. It’s little wonder both have struggled to win in the league. … Delta State has 36 homers this year, its most this decade, the school reports. Ethan Gill leads the Statesmen with eight. … Millsaps (25-10 with a game tonight against Mississippi College) will host Rhodes, Hendrix and Sewanee this weekend in a Southern Athletic Association double-elimination tournament. The winner advances to the SAA’s best-of-3 championship series. The Majors are 19-4 at Twenty Field. … Belhaven University improved to 6-0 against Tougaloo this season with a 14-4 win on Monday. BU is 32-20 overall but just 10-16 in the Southern States Athletic Conference heading into a season-ending series at rival William Carey this weekend. WCU is 25-19 (heading into a twinbill at Tougaloo today) and 16-9 in the league. Tyler Richardson continues to shine for the Crusaders, with a .374 average, 43 runs and 28 RBIs in 40 games. … Hinds Community College snatched first place in the MACJC with its dramatic sweep of Northwest on Sunday. The NJCAA Division II top-ranked Eagles (31-4) are 18-4 in the league and take on Jones County JC (14-8) in Raymond on Wednesday. Northwest (16-6) visits East Mississippi (16-6) on Wednesday, and Meridian (also 16-6) has a twinbill at last-place Coahoma that day. … A bunch of Hinds players have nice numbers, but none are more impressive than Austin Sanders’. The Ole Miss signee is 3-0 with nine saves and a 1.48 ERA.

17 Apr

coming attractions

Starkville’s Dudy Noble Field is a hot spot in the state this weekend — weather permitting, as always — with Mississippi State hosting SEC foe Florida as part of Super Bulldog Weekend. At Braddy Field in Jackson, Jackson State faces a SWAC showdown with Alabama A&M. Down in Hattiesburg at Taylor Park, Southern Miss has a big C-USA series against Florida Atlantic. Up in Cleveland, Ferriss Field will fill up for Delta State’s Gulf South Conference battle with Shorter. Mississippi Valley State will host Belhaven in Itta Bena today and then travel to Jackson’s Smith-Wills Stadium on Saturday for a twinbill against the Blazers. And on Sunday at Smith-Wills, perhaps the most compelling matchup of the weekend will see NJCAA Division II No. 1-ranked Hinds Community College take on No. 16 Northwest Mississippi CC. The doubleheader begins at 2 p.m. Hinds dropped a pair to Southwest at Smith-Wills on Thursday, falling into a tie atop the MACJC standings with Northwest at 16-4. Hinds (29-4 overall) has gotten prolific production from Jonathan Washam (.402 entering the Southwest set), Madison’s Matt Jones (.394, 34 runs), Cleveland’s Marshall Boggs (.349) and Clinton’s Chase Lunceford (.353, five home runs). Randy Bell (7-0, 2.36 ERA) of Woodville and Houston Case (6-1) of Brookhaven are the top winners on the mound for the Eagles, and Madison’s Austin Sanders has nine saves. Northwest (25-8) has won 12 straight games, including a sweep of Northeast on Tuesday in which the Rangers scored 21 runs on 29 hits. Clay Casey, the former DeSoto Central star, has swung a mighty bat, with a .358 average, eight homers, 28 RBIs and 30 runs. Ole Miss transfer Dalton Dulin leads the Rangers with a .382 average and has a school-record 36 stolen bases. Coldwater’s LeeMarcus Boyd is batting .320 with 30 runs. Myrtle’s Colt Smith is Northwest’s ace, having posted a 6-0 record with a 0.54 ERA, and Tupelo’s J.G. Lipscomb is 4-1, 1.48.

14 Apr

state of the state

Both Mississippi State and Ole Miss popped up in various national preseason polls. Then the games started. Since winning its first 13 (all at Starkville) and rising in some polls, State has gone 9-16, a tailspin that seemed to start with a home loss to Arkansas-Pine Bluff on March 3. The Bulldogs are 6-9 in the SEC West, a game back of Ole Miss (7-8). State has won just one SEC series (South Carolina), UM two (Florida and Vanderbilt). The Rebels, playing one of the toughest schedules in the nation, are just 18-18 overall, apparently missing the eight MLB draftees taken from last year’s College World Series club more than some people thought they would. There is, of course, lots of baseball still to be played in the SEC. But State and Ole Miss have lots of work to do to get back in the polls and, more importantly, back in the NCAA regionals. … Southern Miss is 20-12-1 (2-0 in the Trustmark Park College Series) and 8-6 (fifth) in Conference USA. The Golden Eagles, who have the league’s top hitter in Taylor Braley (.398), have won two straight C-USA series. … In the SWAC, Jackson State is 10-5 and third in the East, with Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State tied in the cellar at 3-14. JSU, the defending league tournament champ, is 21-14 overall. … Delta State is 17-13 and 12-8 (t-fifth) in the Gulf South Conference. The Statesmen celebrated Mike Kinnison’s 800th career win last week and then took two of three from Mississippi College in the renewal of their old rivalry. … MC, ineligible for the GSC title as it transitions to NCAA Division II, is 12-27, 4-22 in what will be coach Brian Owens’ final season in Clinton. … Millsaps, 25-7 and ranked 10th in NCAA D-III, is first in the Southern Athletic Association standings at 15-3. … In the NAIA Southern States Athletic Conference, William Carey (15-9) is third, Belhaven (10-16) seventh and Blue Mountain (7-18) 10th. Carey (24-19 overall) swept league foe Martin Methodist over the weekend. BU celebrated another Maloney Trophy Series championship by beating Millsaps last week, then got swept by No. 1-ranked Faulkner in the SSAC. … NAIA Tougaloo, under first-year coach Earl Sanders, is 5-30. … In the jucos, No. 1-ranked Hinds Community College (29-2) is tops in the MACJC at 16-2, having won its showdown with East Mississippi CC last Saturday. Northwest has moved to No. 2 in the league at 14-4, and EMCC is third at 13-5.

06 Apr

weekend warriors

There was no shortage of step-up performances over the weekend by Mississippi college players. On Friday, Jake Vickerson banged out three hits, scored a run and drove in two as Mississippi State clinched its SEC series against South Carolina with a 7-5 win. Jovany Felipe drove in eight runs in a Friday doubleheader and Sam Campbell picked up six RBIs in a Saturday twinbill as Jackson State swept four games from Alcorn State, scoring 48 runs in the process. Ben Pickard hit a grand slam, drew two walks and scored twice to pace Delta State to a Gulf South Conference-series clinching 11-2 win over Lee University on Saturday. Also on Saturday, James McMahon (6-0, 1.22 ERA) went 6 1/3 innings to beat UAB 3-2 and give Southern Miss a C-USA series win. But the top performer award goes to Millsaps’ Keith Shumaker, who went 5-for-5 with four runs and an RBI AND pitched eight innings to get the W in a 9-8 victory over Birmingham-Southern in the opener of a Saturday doubleheader. The Majors clinched the Southern Athletic Association series with that win and are now 22-4, 12-2. Shumaker is batting .451 with 40 runs and 20 RBIs and has a 7-0, 2.17 pitching ledger. P.S. Watch for it: DSU coach Mike Kinnison may have a chance to pick up his 800th career win when the Statesmen visit Mississippi College for a three-game GSC series next weekend.

02 Apr

numbers of note

4 – Wins in five decisions for Ole Miss’ Brady Bramlett, who also has a 1.79 ERA as he comes back from arm surgery.
5 – Home runs by Mississippi State’s Reid Humphreys, a third of the team’s total.
6.07 – ERA of Jackson State’s pitching staff. The Tigers (16-11) are batting .300 as a team, led by Melvin Rodriguez at .411.
8 – Hits in his last five games for Mississippi College’s Caleb Upton, who leads the Choctaws in hitting at .355.
11 – Shutout innings posted last week by Southern Miss’ James McMahon against nationally ranked foes Rice and Mississippi State. He is 5-0 with a 0.99 ERA.
32 – Runs scored by Delta State in a win over Mississippi Valley State on Wednesday. Trent Giambroni drove in five and hit one of the Statesmen’s four homers.
37 – Runs scored by William Carey’s Tyler Richardson, who also leads the team in hits (45), average (.398) and on-base percentage (.481).
37 – RBIs for Millsaps’ Isaac Glenn, including 12 last week. He ranks No. 2 in the NCAA Division III.
51 – RBIs for Belhaven’s Adam Kowalczyk, who is batting .362 with 11 homers.
796 – Wins at Delta State for coach Mike Kinnison.

02 Mar

jury’s still out

College baseball’s new ball hasn’t made a big difference — at least not yet — in the power numbers at the state’s Big 4 NCAA Division I schools. Mississippi State, off to a 13-0 start, has been scoring runs aplenty but has belted only six home runs. Brent Rooker is the team leader with two. The Bulldogs hit 16 bombs in 63 games in 2014, with Wes Rea hitting five of those, so they are ahead of that pace. Ole Miss (6-4) has just five homers. Sikes Orvis has hit three, but he hit 14 last year with the old ball. UM hit 42 as a team in 69 games. Southern Miss (5-4-1) has rapped seven homers, on pace to hit more than last year (25 in 60). Connor Barron and Matt Durst have three bombs each for the Golden Eagles. Barron hit four last year, Durst six. Jackson State (5-5) has four homers in its 10 games. Warmer, drier weather, whenever it sets in, would figure to help the hitters, from a comfort standpoint if nothing else.

22 Feb

heat check

No college team in the state is hotter at the moment than Mississippi State. While the weather of late has been anything but consistent, the Bulldogs (6-0 as of this morning) have been steadily pounding the ball, scoring 72 runs all told, including 18 in a rout of overmatched Alabama State on Saturday. State is batting .343 as a team, led by Jacob Robson, whose .667 mark leads the regulars.
Also hot: Ole Miss’ J.B. Woodman (.429) and Christian Trent (2-0, 1.64 ERA in two starts) have carried the Rebels to a 3-1 start. … William Carey had a 10-game win streak stopped on Saturday in a loss to Loyola of New Orleans. The Crusaders are 10-1 and 5-1 in the Southern States Athletic Conference, led at the plate by Tyler Richardson (.435, 20 runs). … Keith Shumaker, Millsaps’ NCAA Division III All-American, is 2-0 with a 1.38 ERA in his two starts for the 3-1 Majors. Shumaker beat D-III No. 8 Webster on Saturday. … Southern Miss has three players hitting over .350 — Dylan Burdeaux, Connor Barron and Tim Lynch — and a staff ERA of 2.29, but the error-prone Golden Eagles are 0-3-1 after a 3-0 start.
Also not-so-hot: Mississippi College coach Brian Owens notched career win No. 200 on Thursday in a 16-inning battle against Union, but the Choctaws dropped the last two games of that Gulf South Conference series. MC is 7-4 and 2-4 in the conference. … Belhaven was swept by Mobile in a three-game SSAC series at home this weekend, scoring only eight runs. Ranked No. 14 in the NAIA preseason poll, the Blazers (10-7) have a staff ERA of 5.08. … Pitching has also been an issue for Delta State, which is off to a 2-5 start. The Statesmen’s ERA is 6.38. DSU, 1-2 in the Gulf South, will try to play a home-opening doubleheader today against GSC foe North Alabama at Ferriss Field in Cleveland. … Jackson State has lost three of four after a 3-1 start. The Tigers also have had pitching issues: 6.24 ERA. … Blue Mountain pitchers yielded eight home runs in a doubleheader against NAIA No. 5 Faulkner on Saturday and were swept in the SSAC series by a 32-7 margin. The Toppers are 7-7, 1-5.

16 Feb

number crunching

1 — Career wins for Aaron Stevens, the new Mississippi Valley State coach who notched his first on Saturday, an 8-7 defeat of Illinois-Chicago in the Delta Devils’ second game of the year.
2 — Career wins for Earl Sanders, the new Tougaloo coach whose Bulldogs swept Rust on Friday after dropping their first seven games.
2 — Wins shy of 1,000 career for William Carey coach Bobby Halford, whose Crusaders have won six straight after an 0-5 start. They play a doubleheader today against Saint Joseph in Hattiesburg.
3 — Hits in each of Southern Miss’ first three games, all wins, by Dylan Burdeaux, who is batting .692.
4 — RBIs apiece by Jackson State’s Tilur Smith, Dylan Parker and Jovany Felipe in the Tigers’ 20-10 win over UT-Martin on Saturday.
5 — RBIs apiece by Millsaps’ William Chenowith and Isaac Glenn in a 16-3 victory over Schreiner on Saturday.
7 — Home runs by Belhaven hitters in 12 games, matching the Blazers’ total from all of 2014.
8 — Strikeouts, in six innings of work, by Ole Miss’ Brady Bramlett, in a 16-2, series-clinching victory over William and Mary on Saturday.
9 — Hits in four games, all wins, by Mississippi State’s Seth Heck, who is batting .563.
12 — Hitting streak for Belhaven’s Adam Kowalczyk, a junior transfer from Delaware Tech.
14 — Runs, in eight games, scored by Mississippi College’s Colton Johnson, a freshman from West Jones High.