Tag Archives: Millsaps

19 Jul

quick pitches

Friday’s best: Former Mississippi Braves star Ronald Acuna’s throw. From the right field corner to third base — on the fly — to complete an Atlanta double play. ‘Nuff said. … JoJo Parker, the ex-Purvis High star, reportedly has agreed with Toronto on a $6.2 million bonus as the eighth overall draft pick. … Former Mississippi State standout Brent Rooker hit his 100th career MLB homer for the A’s. … MSU product Adam Frazier hit a two-run pinch double in his first at-bat for his new team, Kansas City. … Veteran right-hander Spencer Turnbull, Madison Central High alum, signed a major league contract with the Chicago Cubs as a free agent. … Khal Stephen, 2024 draftee out of MSU, was promoted to Double-A New Hampshire by Toronto after going 9-1, 1.75 ERA, in A-ball. … Dakota Jordan, another 2024 draftee out of MSU, was placed on the 7-day injured list at Low-Class A San Jose (San Francisco), where he is batting .302 with 10 homers and 27 steals. … Former Jackson Prep star Konnor Griffin, hit in the right hand by a pitch in the All-Star Futures Game last Saturday, did not play Friday for High-A Greensboro (Pittsburgh). … Batesville native Emaarion Boyd stole his 32nd base and scored the game’s lone run in a win for High-A Beloit (Miami). … Davis Bradshaw, McLaurin High and Meridian Community College product, came off the IL and went 2-for-2 in his first game since May 31 for the independent Mississippi Mud Monsters. … Bradley Pelle, the SAA player of the year at Millsaps, has signed with Ogden of the indy Pioneer League and went 1-for-4 in his pro debut. … Ex-Southern Miss slugger Christopher Sargent is hitting .383 with 17 homers and 76 RBIs for Ogden.

12 May

smalls world

Seeking a third straight trip to the NAIA World Series, William Carey University takes on Indiana Southeast today at Wheeler Field in Hattiesburg. British Columbia plays Oklahoma Wesleyan in the other Opening Round game in this four-team, double-elimination regional. The Crusaders, who won the regular season title in the SSAC, are 38-12 and ranked 10th in the nation. Carey won an NAIA national title in 1969. It’s a busy week for Mississippi’s small schools: Delta State and Mississippi College each received at-large bids to the NCAA Division II Tournament; Millsaps and Belhaven made the NCAA D-III field as at-large teams; and Pearl River Community College and East Central CC will face off in a best-of-3 series for the NJCAA D-II Region 23 championship. … Delta State (32-18), regular season champion in the Gulf South, will play West Florida on Thursday at Lakeland, Fla., in a four-team bracket in the South Region. MC (33-21), which last made the NCAA field in 2018, is in the other South Region bracket at Tampa, Fla., and will play Lynn on Thursday. Tampa is the No. 1 seed in the region, MC No. 4 and DSU No. 6. … Millsaps (29-13), regular season champ in the Southern Athletic Association, heads for the East Texas Baptist Regional at Marshall, Texas, to play the host school in the first round. Belhaven (31-13) plays Rhodes in the Webster (Mo.) Regional. Only 23 at-large bids are awarded in the 64-team D-III Tournament. … On Wednesday at Poplarville, juco juggernauts Pearl River, ranked No. 2, and East Central, ranked seventh, will clash for a trip to the NJCAA World Series in Enid, Okla. PRCC, regular season champ in the MACCC, is 48-7, and ECCC is 41-12. Both have been ranked No. 1 in the country this season. ECCC went to the World Series in 2023 and ’24. PRCC won the national title in 2022. They split their regular season meeting this spring. P.S. It already has been a banner year for the state’s small schools. Along with the three conference titles, three coaches won coach of the year awards: Bobby Halford at Carey, Rodney Batts at DSU and Jim Page at Millsaps. Carey’s Josh Alexander was named the SSAC player of the year; DSU’s Drake Fontenot won GSC pitcher of the year honors; and Millsaps’ Bradley Pelle (player) and Nick Tarantino (pitcher) swept the SAA’s top awards. In addition, MC had four GSC first-team picks, and Belhaven had four named in the Collegiate Conference of the South. Carey had three All-SSAC picks in addition to Alexander, and DSU’s Brett Burrell made All-GSC along with Fontenot.

11 May

three stars

Ryan McPherson: The Mississippi State freshman right-hander entered Saturday’s game in the ninth inning with the tying and go-ahead runs on base, got a double-play ball and another ground-ball out to preserve the Bulldogs’ 6-5 win over Ole Miss in the rubber game of the series in Starkville. It was the second save of the season for McPherson. State (31-20, 12-15 SEC) improved to 6-1 under interim coach Justin Parker. Nationally ranked Ole Miss is 34-17, 14-13.
Drey Barrett: The Southern Miss freshman third baseman doubled, tripled and drove in four runs as the Golden Eagles won their 11th straight game, whipping Louisiana-Lafayette 15-5 in Hattiesburg. Barrett is hitting .261 with 27 RBIs on the season for USM (37-13, 20-6 Sun Belt)
Jacob Keys: The Pearl River Community College sophomore catcher, from Brandon via USM, hit a grand slam and knocked in five runs all told as the Wildcats (48-7) routed Northeast 17-2 in the Poplarville bracket and advanced to the NJCAA Division II Region 23 Championship Series against East Central.
Worth noting: Ole Miss product Tim Elko became the fifth Mississippian (native or school alum) to debut in the big leagues this season. The Chicago White Sox broadcasting crew sung the praises of Elko’s storybook career in Oxford, interviewed his parents in the Rate Field seats and played a video clip of his Triple-A manager, a very emotional Sergio Santos, informing Elko of his call-up. He played first base and went 0-for-3 in a 3-1 loss to Miami. … Ex-State standout Brent Rooker hit his 10th homer of the year — 89th career — as the A’s took down the New York Yankees 11-7. … Jurrangelo Cijntje, the switch-pitcher out of MSU, won his second straight start for High-Class A Everett (Seattle system), allowing one run in five innings vs. Tri-City. … Former Mississippi Braves star C.J. Alexander hit for the cycle, including his eighth homer, for Triple-A Las Vegas (A’s system). … Rhodes was declared the Southern Athletic Association Tournament champion as rain washed out Saturday’s schedule at Millsaps’ Twenty Field. Rhodes went 2-0 with wins over Millsaps and Centre, who were set to play a losers bracket game. Millsaps, SAA regular season champion, is hopeful of an NCAA Division III regional bid.

21 Apr

who’s in first?

As the college season roars down the home stretch, three Mississippi schools are cruising in first place in their respective conferences. Delta State leads the Gulf South Conference standings, William Carey the Southern States Athletic Conference and Millsaps the Southern Athletic Association. All three are nationally ranked in their divisions, as well. Powering this run by the Statesmen — 31-13 overall, 23-7 GSC — is senior right-hander Drake Fotentot, who is 9-0 with a 1.37 ERA and seemingly bound for NCAA Division II All-America honors. Brett Burrell tops DSU hitters with a .401 average. Carey is back in the chase for another NAIA World Series berth, with a 32-11 record, 21-6 SSAC, despite losing a series at Blue Mountain Christian over the weekend. (BMC is 23-23, 12-15). The Crusaders’ 2025 charge has been led by DeeJay Booth (.429) and Josh Alexander (14 homers). On the bump, Matthew Davis is 5-1, 2.72 ERA. Millsaps, on a roll in D-III, is 27-11, 13-5 SAA, fueled by Nick Tarantino (9-1, 2.78) and Gray Berry (.424, 61 runs). Worth noting: Belhaven sits second in the D-III Collegiate Conference of the South standings with a 13-5 mark (27-11 overall), and Southern Miss is tied for second in the Sun Belt Conference race at 12-6 (27-13 overall). Also worth noting: USM’s Ben Higdon hit a school record-tying three homers in Saturday’s win over Georgia State. … In the state juco ranks, Pearl River Community College has a solid lead in the MACCC at 20-2; the NJCAA Division II No. 2 Wildcats are 40-6 overall. Jacob Johnson, who is 9-1, 1.95, and K.K. Clark, 7-2, 1.64, have been driving forces for The River. … In the high school ranks, Magnolia Heights, at 26-4, tops the latest (April 17) MaxPreps Mississippi Top 25 poll, with Hartfield (22-3) at No. 2 and Purvis (19-6) No. 3. P.S. In MLB, Toronto has put ex-USM star Nick Sandlin on the injured list, where he joins fellow Mississippians Justin Steele, Matt Wallner, Nick Fortes, Brandon Woodruff, Kendall Graveman, J.P. France and James McArthur. Ouch.

26 Mar

three stars

J.T. Vance, Mississippi College: In a slugfest at Wheeler Field in Hattiesburg, Vance stood out, belting three home runs Tuesday night to power the Choctaws to a 16-11 victory over William Carey University. Vance, from Union via East Central Community College, now has seven homers for the season. He and Logan Shurden combined to drive in 11 runs for MC (22-9). Carey (26-5), which had a 12-game win streak snapped, hit four homers.
Jackson Ware, Millsaps College: Ware, a grad student, went 3-for-5 and knocked in three runs as the Majors beat Belhaven University 7-3 in the first game of the Maloney Trophy Series at Twenty Field. The Majors moved to 17-6, while Belhaven dropped to 14-9 in the battle of NCAA Division III neighbors.
Harper Jordan, Nicholls State: The Hattiesburg native and ex-Pearl River CC star pitched 2 2/3 innings (one hit, one run) in relief to notch the win as the Colonels beat Southern Miss 7-3 at Keesler Federal Park in Biloxi. Jordan is 3-2 for 11-15 Nicholls. Matthew Russo hit two bombs — one off Jordan — for nationally ranked USM (18-7).
P.S. Brayden Randle, a Texas native, drove in three runs as nationally ranked Ole Miss (19-5) beat Memphis 7-5 at Swayze Field in Oxford, spoiling a homecoming of sorts for the 10 Mississippi prep alums on the Tigers’ roster. The Tigers are coached by Matt Riser, a Picayune Memorial High alum and Pearl River CC product who is in his second year there after a successful run at Southeastern Louisiana. Memphis slipped to 11-13 with Tuesday’s loss.

23 Mar

runs-apalooza

It’s officially spring, and runs are in bloom in college ballparks all over the place. At Columbia, Mo., Ole Miss belted six homers Saturday to overpower Missouri 17-10 in Game 2 of their SEC series. The Rebels (17-5, 3-2) have 46 homers on the season; seven players have four or more, led by Judd Utermark with nine. … At Wilberforce, Ohio, Rust College’s Shamaar Stapleton, an Olive Branch native, had a day: 5-for-6 with nine RBIs in a 27-7 win Saturday that completed a three-game sweep of the HBCUAC series. … In Hattiesburg, William Carey’s array of mashers put up 57 runs in a three-game sweep of Mobile. Josh Alexander drove in 11 runs and Rigoberto Hernandez 10 for the NAIA No. 8 Crusaders, 26-4 (16-2 SSAC) with 12 straight wins. … At Clinton, Mississippi College scored 37 times in a series sweep of Trevecca Nazarene. J.T. Vance went 6-for-13 with a homer, five RBIs and four runs on the weekend for the Choctaws (21-9, 13-5 GSC). Of note: MC coach Jeremy Haworth notched his 300th career victory. … In Jackson, Millsaps (16-5, 4-2 SAA) clinched its series victory over Hendrix with a five-run sixth inning in an 11-10, seven-inning win in Game 2 of a Saturday twinbill. E.J. Ousley drove in three runs and scored the go-ahead tally in that rubber game. … Mississippi State (15-8, 1-4 SEC) was on the short end of a 13-11 game at Oklahoma; the Bulldogs got two homers from Ace Reese and another from Hunter Hines (No. 58 career) but couldn’t hold a late lead. … At Goodman, No. 1-ranked Pearl River Community College swept No. 24 Holmes CC 16-1 and 10-3 in a big juco showdown. The Wildcats (25-5, 5-1 MACCC) blasted four homers on the day, and Jaxon Milam went 4-for-6 with a homer, three RBIs and five runs. P.S. Something completely different: Run prevention was the story for Delta State, which swept a Gulf South series at West Alabama, getting shutouts from the amazing Drake Fontenot (7-0, 0.64) and Logan Eldridge (3-2, 5.88) in Games 1 and 3. The Statesmen, ranked 10th in NCAA Division II, are 22-7 and 15-3 GSC.

17 Mar

digging the long ball

Brewton-Parker Field in Mount Vernon, Ga., isn’t especially small, but for William Carey University’s hitters, it played like a bandbox over the weekend. The Crusaders hit 19 home runs and scored 75 runs all told — 31, 11 and 33 — in a three-game sweep of the Southern States Athletic Conference series. “(P)laying in some of the smaller parks really plays into our power throughout the lineup,” Carey coach Bobby Halford said in a school release. Carey, ranked 12th in NAIA, is 22-4 and 13-2 in the SSAC with eight wins in a row. Brewton-Parker fell to 9-15, 4-11. High-scoring games aren’t uncommon at BP Field: Four times previously visiting teams had scored 13 or more runs in 2025. The host scored a season-high 17 in Game 1 vs. Carey. But still, the Crusaders’ show of power was jaw-dropping. Jayden Mark had a three-homer game, his first three of the season. Josh Alexander, Carey’s homer leader at 10, had two two-homer games, and Preston Ratliff and Rigoberto Hernandez each produced a two-homer game. The Crusaders entered the series with 17 homers over 23 games. … Of the state’s big four NCAA Division I schools, only one came out of the first weekend of conference play feeling very good. Southern Miss (14-6) took two of three from visiting Old Dominion to start Sun Belt play, though the Golden Eagles lost Game 3. Ole Miss (15-4) dropped two of three at home against Arkansas, Mississippi State (13-7) was swept by visiting Texas and Jackson State (12-6) went 1-2 at Prairie View A&M. … Millsaps College rallied from four runs down to beat Centre 5-4 at Twenty Field to split a Sunday doubleheader; Charles Hunt, a pinch hitter, knocked in the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh. The Majors are 12-5, 1-1 Southern Athletic Association. Centre, nationally ranked in Division III, is 12-2, 4-1. P.S. In MLB, ex-State star Hunter Renfroe hit two doubles and a triple and drove in five runs for Kansas City in a Cactus League game. Veteran outfielder Renfroe is batting .348 with a homer and nine RBIs this spring. … Brandon Woodruff, former Bulldogs pitcher, threw a scoreless inning for Milwaukee in his first MLB game action since 2023. “It was a big day for me,” a beaming Woodruff, coming off shoulder surgery, told reporters. … Right-hander J.T. Ginn, another MSU product, was optioned to Triple-A by the A’s; Ginn made his MLB debut last season.

16 Feb

what’s that sound?

Before the big storms rolled through Mississippi on Saturday night, there was thunder emanating from Trustmark Park in Pearl. Belhaven University blasted Mount Saint Mary 27-3 and 12-0 in a doubleheader, completing a sweep of the series between NCAA Division III schools. The Blazers (3-0) banged out 36 hits, nine for extra bases, including two home runs at the spacious park. In the opener, Blake McCarthy homered and drove in six runs; Owen Abney went deep and knocked in three runs while scoring three times; and Hunter Harrell picked up four RBIs. In Game 2, Abney — a former Jackson Prep star — went 3-for-6 with four RBIs and Cole Fletcher drove in a pair of runs. The pitching victories went to Gunner Staten and Kade May. Mount Saint Mary, down from New York to start its season, is now 0-3 and coming off a couple of rough years (11-29 and 13-27). … At Twenty Field in Jackson, D-III Millsaps flashed some power, as well, getting homers from Gray Berry and Evan Scott in an 11-8 win against Edgewood (Wisc.). Berry and Scott drove in three runs apiece for the Majors (3-0). … Down in Hattiesburg, Southern Miss (3-0) put up 25 runs in a sweep of Lafayette (Pa.). Davis Gillespie homered and smacked a walk-off sac fly in a 7-6, 10-inning win in the opener, then homered again and drove in four more runs in an 18-4 romp in Game 2. Ozzie Pratt, Matthew Russo and Tucker Stockman had three hits each in an 18-hit attack in the nightcap. Pratt and Drey Barrett contributed homers Saturday for the Golden Eagles, who’ll wrap up the four-game series with the Leopards today at Taylor Park. P.S. Here’s a name to know: Pablo Roque, a Dominican Republic native and transfer from Miami (Ohio), is batting .524 with a homer, five doubles, a triple, nine RBIs, 11 runs and three steals for East Central Community College. The Warriors, ranked No. 2 in NJCAA Division II, are 6-0. … Ex-Mississippi State standout Nathaniel Lowe lost his arbitration case with the Washington Nationals and will have to “settle” for a $10.3 million contract for 2025. Lowe, who hit .265 with 16 homers for Texas last season, had asked for $11.1M.

27 Apr

right place, right time

Adam Frazier doesn’t always play right field, but when he does … well, on Friday, the former Mississippi State star made one of the best plays of the year in MLB. Starting in right for the first time this season for Kansas City, Frazier took a home run away from Detroit’s Parker Meadows with a leaping snag at the wall, stuck the landing and fired a throw to first base to double off a runner. It was a big momentum play in the third inning of the Royals’ 8-0 win at Comerica Park — and even drew raves (on X) from Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. “He wows me sometimes,” Frazier told mlb.com, “so to wow him, that’s pretty cool.” Frazier, batting just .207 this year, went 1-for-3 Friday with an RBI and two runs for the 17-10 Royals. Typically a second baseman, the 5-foot-10 Frazier was making just the 33rd start of his nine-year career in right field. P.S. The struggling Houston Astros (7-19) sent struggling MSU product J.P. France (0-3, 7.46) to the minors. France won 11 games for Houston in 2023. … Ex-Ole Miss standout Chris Ellis, who last pitched in the majors two years ago, has signed a minor league deal with Arizona. He had previously inked with the independent Long Island Ducks. … Ex-Mississippi College star Blaine Crim, playing at Triple-A Round Rock in the Texas system, smacked a double and two home runs, driving in seven runs for the Express on Friday night. Crim is batting .231 with five homers. … Blaze Jordan, the DeSoto Central High product, hit his second homer and extended his hitting streak to seven games for Double-A Portland (Boston). Jordan is batting .237. … Southern Miss alum Hurston Waldrep allowed just one run in six innings in his second straight quality start for the Double-A Mississippi Braves. After a rocky start this season, Waldrep has allowed just two runs in 12 innings with 10 strikeouts in his last two outings. The 2023 first-round pick by Atlanta is 0-3 with a 5.68 ERA. … In the college ranks: Rust will play an elimination game today (3:30 p.m.) in the GCAC Tournament at Smith-Wills Stadium. The Bearcats will meet the winner of an earlier elimination game between Wiley and Dillard. Unbeaten Talladega awaits in the championship round. Tougaloo was eliminated on Friday. … Millsaps College fell to top-seeded Centre (Ky.) 4-3 in the opener of their SAA best-of-3 playoff series. Majors ace Wil Wood let a 3-0 lead get away in the sixth and seventh innings; Will Norris took the loss.

10 Feb

tagging up

Bradley Pelle and his Millsaps College teammates hit the ground swinging on Friday. The NCAA Division III Majors opened their season with an 8-7, 17-8 sweep at LeTourneau (Texas). Pelle went 6-for-8 with three RBIs and six runs to pace the Millsaps attack. Jim Page, a recent Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inductee, now has 839 wins over his 36 seasons. … Elsewhere in the small college ranks: Mississippi College (4-2) blasted visiting Miles 6-0 and 21-5 Friday in Clinton. J.T. Vance drove in seven runs and Cole Drake six in Game 2. Vance, a transfer from state champion East Central Community College, leads the Division II Choctaws with a .409 average. … Delta State, which yielded 32 runs in a 1-2 start against Harding last weekend, beat host Spring Hill (Ala.) 6-0 behind Drake Fontenot’s pitching and homers by Hayden Cooper and Taylor Woodcock in the opener of a Friday twinbill. The D-II Statesmen lost Game 2 9-5. … William Carey University, ranked No. 4 in NAIA, improved to 3-2 with a 6-5 win over Talladega in Hattiesburg. Preston Ratliff’s eighth-inning sac fly was the game-winner. … NAIA Blue Mountain Christian is off to a 5-1 start, led by Chris Smith, who’s hitting .556 with eight RBIs and four runs. … Belhaven dropped a pair of one-run games (to Hendrix and Westminster) at Conway, Ark., in new coach Andrew Gipson’s debut. Noah Foster was 4-for-9 in the two games for the D-III Blazers. … Rust College, defending regular season champ in the GCAC, is 0-7 after a 17-0 loss to Jarvis Christian. Jalin Thomas, an NAIA honorable mention All-America pick last year, has not played for the Bearcats. … Tougaloo, also a GCAC member, is 0-3 heading into weekend games against Tuskegee. The Bulldogs visit Blue Mountain on Tuesday. … Southeastern Baptist (of Laurel) lost its first two games last week at Southern-New Orleans, which is playing its inaugural season. … MUW opens Feb. 16 at Huntingdon (Ala.). P.S. Third-ranked Pearl River Community College (6-1) swept Baton Rouge 10-0 and 3-0 on Friday and made ESPN’s Top 10 plays. The Wildcats’ highlighted double play was started by second baseman Jeff Ince, who made a diving stop, then fed shortstop Creek Robertson, who fired to first baseman Hollis Porter, who scooped a low throw. Ince also hit a homer Friday and Porter belted a pair.