SSAC Archives - All Mississippi Baseball

21 Mar

name-dropping

Some names to know as Magnolia State schools head into a weekend of conference play:
Hayden Redding, Blue Mountain Christian: Leads the nation’s NAIA players in stolen bases with 37 (in 38 attempts) while batting .343 for the Toppers (17-11, 9-6 SSAC).
Drake Fontenot, Delta State: Undefeated at 6-0 with a 0.77 ERA for the Statesmen, 10th-ranked in NCAA Division II at 19-7, 12-3 GSC.
Korey Cooper, Mississippi College: Third in the GSC in batting at .414, with seven homers and 34 RBIs for the rising Choctaws (18-9, 10-5 GSC).
Rigoberto Hernandez, William Carey University: SSAC player of the week after hitting .625 with four homers, 13 RBIs and 12 runs in three games for the NAIA eighth-ranked Crusaders (23-4, 13-2).
Nick Tarantino, Millsaps: Ranks second in the nation in Division III with 52 strikeouts (in 35 innings) and sits at 4-1, 2.36, for the Majors (14-5, 2-1 SAA).
J.D. Weed, Belhaven: Raking at .441 clip with three homers, three triples, 21 RBIs and six bags for the Blazers (12-7, 1-2 CCS).
Colby Allen, Southern Miss: Has a 3-1 record, five saves and a 2.05 ERA for the Golden Eagles (15-6, 2-1 SBC).
Ryan Moerman, Ole Miss: Slugging at a .722 clip with seven homers and nine doubles among 27 hits for the Rebels (15-5, 1-2 SEC).
Noah Sullivan, Mississippi State: Batting .409 with a .522 OBP, 21 RBIs and 21 runs for the Bulldogs (14-7, 0-3 SEC).
Malik Berrien, Rust: Leads the Bearcats (10-14, 3-6 HBCUAC) with 21 steals while batting .402 with 20 RBIs and 24 runs.
P.S. Jackson State has had six players suspended — along with three from Prairie View — following an altercation during their SWAC series last weekend. The players were not identified, according to an ESPN report. The suspensions were for four games, and the schools were also fined.

07 Mar

eye on …

The most intriguing college series of the weekend might be Rust College at Wiley College, a matchup of two of the best teams in the HBCUAC (formerly GCAC). Rust, making the trip from Holly Springs to Marshall, Texas, has won five straight to reach 7-8 and 3-0 in the league. The NAIA Bearcats scored a jaw-dropping 81 runs in their win streak, albeit against overmatched competition. Wiley (13-8, 5-1), the defending GCAC regular season champ, will pose a much bigger challenge. Kyrent Cole, a sophomore from Chicago, has been the sparkplug for Rust. He is batting .333 with a .554 on-base percentage; he has more walks (16) than hits (11). He has scored 17 runs, driven in 14 and stolen 14 bags. Malik Berrien leads the Bearcats in hitting at .432. Wiley’s top pitchers, whom the Bearcats are sure to face, are Isaac Burciaga, 3-1 with a 3.77 ERA, and Keyon Guillory (3-3, 3.06). Ivan Del Villar is batting .395 with five homers and 23 RBIs for the Wildcats. … Of note: William Carey University, ranked No. 12 in the new NAIA coaches poll, hosts SSAC foe Point U. this weekend in Hattiesburg, and Blue Mountain Christian welcomes NAIA No. 13 Faulkner for an SSAC series. Carey is 15-4 and 7-2 in the league, 10-2 at Wheeler Field. Point comes in at 6-15, 3-6. BMC has won seven of its last nine to reach 12-9 overall (5-4 SSAC). Faulkner, a traditional league power, brings a 14-3 (5-1 SSAC) record to the BMC SportsPlex.

31 Jan

and the beat goes on

There are great expectations at William Carey University this season. So … what else is new? The defending Southern States Athletic Conference champs, slated to open the 2025 season at home today against Pikeville, were picked preseason No. 1 in the league by the coaches and are ranked ninth in the NAIA preseason poll. “It’s always good to receive positive accolades with regard to our program,” said Carey coach Bobby Halford, who knows about positive accolades. He was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame last fall and is about to begin his 40th season at Carey with countless coach of the year awards and 1,337 wins on his ledger. The 2024 Crusaders, 37-16, reached the NAIA World Series for the second straight year and third time overall under Halford. The team welcomes back Jerod Williams (.299, 16 steals), Bridley Thomas (.284, 48 runs), two-way standout Preston Ratliff (.316, 2-2, 1 save), Luke Lycette (7-1, 4.04) and Andrew Shirah (8-5). They’ll launch the season with a three-game series at Wheeler Field in Hattiesburg against NAIA foe Pikeville (Ky.), 30-19 in 2024. The first SSAC series is Feb. 14 at Abraham Baldwin in Georgia. P.S. Blue Mountain Christian, pegged seventh in the SSAC poll, opens this weekend with two doubleheaders against William Woods (Mo.). Back for the Toppers (31-23 in ’24) is Carson Gault, who hit .359 with nine homers and 54 RBIs. … Rust College is slated to play today against Miles (Ala.) in the Ron Washington Classic in New Orleans. The Bearcats’ Ja’Shaun Franks (.376) was pegged as a first-team HBCU preseason elite by Black College Nines. Also today, NCAA Division II Delta State opens against Palm Beach Atlantic in Florida and fellow D-II Mississippi College takes on Arkansas-Monticello in the Houston Astros Winter Invitational.

03 May

to the victors

A couple weeks ago, in Hattiesburg, Blue Mountain Christian took a regular season series from longtime rival William Carey University for the first time ever. On Saturday, in Jackson, Tenn., the two will meet again with much more on the line. With wins Thursday in conference championship pool play, Carey and BMC have clinched berths in Saturday’s Southern States Athletic Conference title game. Both also have clinched bids to the NAIA Tournament. BMC, the No. 8 seed in the league championship event, beat top-seeded Faulkner (Ala.) on Wednesday and followed that up with a win against Loyola of New Orleans on Thursday. Carey, the No. 2 seed, is 2-0 in pool play with wins against Thomas U. and Middle Georgia State. BMC plays Mobile and Carey gets Point U. in meaningless pool-play games today. For the record, Carey leads the all-time series with BMC 33-8. … BMC’s Arderrius Townsend was named the SSAC’s player of the year and was joined on the all-conference team by fellow Toppers Hayden Redding and Chris Smith. R.J. Stinson and John Snyder were first-team picks from Carey. The Toppers had two Gold Glove winners: second baseman Josiah Rivera and outfielder Tyrese Roberson.

01 May

big wednesday

The Mississippi Braves play an 11 a.m. matinee today at Trustmark Park in Pearl, the pro game against Pensacola serving as an appetizer of sorts for tonight’s Ole Miss-Mississippi State clash at the same venue. The televised non-conference game (6:30 p.m./ESPN2) between the Rebels (23-20, 27th in ncca.com’s RPI) and Bulldogs (29-15, 28th in RPI) could have implications for their NCAA Tournament chances. UM took two of three from State in their SEC series last month. … Meanwhile, in Jackson, Tenn., William Carey University and Blue Mountain Christian will begin play today in the SSAC Championship. Carey (30-14) is the No. 2 seed and will open Pool B play against Thomas U. BMC (29-19) is the 8-seed and draws top-seeded Faulkner to start Pool A play. The winners of the two four-team pools will meet for the championship, with both getting bids to the NAIA Tournament. … The Belhaven University-MUW game originally scheduled for tonight in Clinton has been cancelled. The Blazers (23-15) have finished their regular season and will compete in the CCS postseason next week. P.S. The pairings are set for the MACCC’s best-of-3 play-in series, which begin Friday: East Central, ranked No. 1 in NJCAA Division II, hosts Northeast; No. 12 Northwest hosts Hinds; No. 13 Jones hosts East Mississippi; and Meridian hosts Copiah-Lincoln. The series winners advance to the NJCAA Division II Region 23 Tournament next week in Poplarville, home of regular season champion Pearl River, ranked No. 2 nationally. … Eli Huebner of Meridian was named the MACCC hitter of the week after batting .500 with three homers, including two grand slams in one inning, in four games, while PRCC’s Caleb Dyess earned pitcher of the week honors following his six-hitter in the championship-clinching 7-1 win against Northwest on Saturday.

20 Apr

big numbers

Behind Gabe Broadus and Davis Gillespie, Southern Miss rode a 10-run third inning to a 14-3, run-rule win Friday against Louisiana-Monroe at Taylor Park. But hold on. A few miles down the road in Hattiesburg, Blue Mountain Christian put up an even bigger number, stunning William Carey 19-5 at Wheeler Field. Carey entered the game in third place in the SSAC with a 16-8 record and is ranked No. 25 in NAIA. BMC came in with a 9-15 mark in eighth place. Carey led 32-6 in the all-time series in this burgeoning rivalry. But the Toppers went off Friday, grabbing the lead with a four-run fifth and scoring eight times in the eighth to add insult to injury. BMC had 16 hits and drew 11 walks plus two HBPs. Carey used six pitchers and all of them gave up runs. The Toppers’ big bopper, Arderrius Townsend, wasn’t a factor, going 0-for-2 before being ejected in the fifth inning. Stepping up, Carson Gault went 3-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs; Josiah Rivera was 2-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs; and Hayden Redding went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs. A doubleheader is slated for today. P.S. Props to Spencer Turnbull, the Madison Central High product who took a no-hitter into the seventh inning as Philadelphia beat the punchless Chicago White Sox (and Ocean Springs’ Garrett Crochet) 7-0 in the big leagues. … Ex-Mississippi State star Brent Rooker came off the injured list Friday and homered — his third — for Oakland, but the A’s lost to Cleveland 10-2.

16 Apr

dynamic duo

A new version of “Thunder and Lightning” has emerged at Blue Mountain Christian, where Arderrius Townsend is providing the former and Hayden Redding the latter. Unlike the old Clark and Palmeiro duo, the sluggers at Mississippi State 40 years ago, the BMC pair are doing their thing a little differently. Townsend, a 6-foot, 230-pound junior from Pontotoc, has 22 home runs, ranking third in NAIA heading into a game today against Bethel. Redding, 6-2, 175, a junior from Mobile, Ala., is among the national leaders in stolen bases with 39. While those two have certainly carried their weight, the Toppers actually could use a little more power and speed. They are 24-17 overall but just 9-15 in the SSAC, with a big conference series at William Carey looming this weekend. Townsend, aka “Peeko,” who played at Northwest Mississippi Community College before a brief stop at Jackson State, is batting a robust .400 and slugging .952 with 138 total bases. His 70 RBIs ranks third in NAIA. Redding, who has been caught stealing just three times, is batting .364 with a .449 on-base percentage.

22 Mar

up and running

After stumbling out of the blocks this season, William Carey University may be hitting its stride. The Crusaders (15-9) have won five straight, including a conference sweep at Thomas University (Ga.) last weekend, and host sub-.500 SSAC foe Tennessee Southern this weekend (Saturday-Sunday) in Hattiesburg. Carey was ranked No. 4 in the NAIA preseason poll, coming off a World Series appearance, but lost its opener at home to 10th-ranked Missouri Baptist and wobbled through February. “It’s a long season and I think we’ll be fine,” longtime coach Bobby Halford said last month, acknowledging that some new faces would have to step up. The Crusaders are 7-3 in March. They fell out of the national rankings last week but appear poised to climb back in with a stretch of 10 straight games upcoming at Wheeler Field. Preseason NAIA All-America pick R.J. Stinson has played like one — batting .469 with four homers, 27 RBIs and 32 runs — and he has started to get some help from the rebuilt lineup. Bailee Hendon, a senior from Vancleave, is batting .299 with four homers and 27 RBIs, and Jerod Williams, junior from Gulfport via Southwest Mississippi Community College, is at .292 with 13 steals and 25 runs. Dario Herrera, a lefty from Panama, has posted a 4-1 record with a 4.46 ERA and 2023 ace Andrew Shirah is 3-2, 4.40. The glue of the pitching staff has been closer John Snyder, who has six saves and a 0.82 in 10 appearances. Carey is 7-5 in the SSAC. UT Southern is 5-7. P.S. Blue Mountain Christian’s Arderrius “Peeko” Townsend leads NAIA in homers (18) and RBIs (60) and ranks seventh in batting average (.484). The Toppers (20-8, 6-7) lost Game 1 today of an SSAC series against visiting Middle Georgia State. … Jackson State, coming off a rough loss at New Orleans on Wednesday, hosts rival Mississippi Valley State in a SWAC series this weekend. The Tigers are 16-5 and 2-0 in the league. … Alcorn State (1-13), which got its first win against Valley at Itta Bena on Wednesday, is playing a SWAC series vs. Southern University at Jackson’s Smith-Wills Stadium. … The state’s Big 3 NCAA Division I schools are on the road for league series this weekend: Mississippi State lost to Texas A&M on Thursday night, while tonight Ole Miss opens at Tennessee and Southern Miss at Georgia Southern.

01 Jan

here and there

One month from today, the college season gets under way in the Magnolia State when William Carey University hosts Missouri Baptist and Blue Mountain Christian welcomes Lane College. Carey went 49-11 in 2023 and reached the NAIA World Series. Crusaders coach Bobby Halford will begin his 39th season at the helm with 1,300 career victories. Blue Mountain finished 26-25 last season, qualifying for the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament, where the 6-seed Toppers beat Carey before bowing out in a rematch. … Former big leaguer Bobby Bradley, the former Harrison Central High slugger, finished 2023 with a bang, getting four hits including a home run on Saturday in the Mexican Pacific League. Bradley is batting .281 with three homers and 19 RBIs for Monterrey. He hit 30 bombs for Charleston in the independent Atlantic League last summer. Bradley played in 97 MLB games for Cleveland from 2019-22. … On the topic of slugging, DeSoto Central alum Austin Riley made mlb.com’s list of the 10 longest home runs in 2023. Riley tied for ninth with a 473-footer on April 3 at St. Louis; it was the first of his 37 homers on the year for Atlanta. The longest homer of 2023 was belted by — who else? — Shohei Ohtani, a 493-footer in June. … Ex-Ole Miss standout Chad Smith recently signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets; the right-hander posted a 6.59 ERA in 10 games for Oakland in 2023.

12 May

have a year

Has any team in the state had a better year than William Carey University? Short answer: No. While some of the traditionally strong programs in the Magnolia State have had some struggles, Carey thrived in the Southern States Athletic Conference. Bobby Halford’s Crusaders are 44-9, won the SSAC regular season title with a 22-2 mark, climbed to No. 8 in the final NAIA coaches poll and earned a regional host role in the NAIA Tournament. The Crusaders swept the SSAC individual honors, with Halford — in his 38th season — winning coach of the year, R.J. Stinson player of the year and Andrew Shirah pitcher of the year. Three other Crusaders were named first-team all-conference. Carey fell short of winning the SSAC Tournament but has a chance to make amends in the five-team NAIA Opening Round tournament it will host at Wheeler Field in Hattiesburg starting Monday. The Crusaders will open Monday night against the winner of the Union (Ky.)–Houston-Victoria game earlier in the day. Hats off to Halford, a former Carey player and assistant who has had just one losing season in his long tenure as head coach. He is approaching 1,300 career wins — and has something else to shoot for. He took his 2017 team to the NAIA World Series in Idaho, where they finished third, the school’s best finish since winning the 1969 national championship. P.S. Will Warren, the former Jackson Prep (and Southeastern Louisiana) standout, got some recognition in Baseball America’s daily prospect report. A top pitching prospect in the New York Yankees’ organization, Warren threw six scoreless innings for Double-A Somerset on Thursday to run his record to 3-0 and trim his ERA to 2.45. “Warren may be one of the more underrated pitching prospects in the game,” BA reports.