Alabama State steps out of conference play for a midweek contest on the road Tuesday, facing Troy at Riddle-Pace Field with first pitch set for 6 pm. The meeting will be the first of two this season between the two schools, with the latter coming late in the season at Riverwalk Stadium.
Alabama State (11-9) enters the weekend fresh off a three-game sweep of Florida A&M in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) play and has won five of their last six games. Meanwhile, Troy (14-5) has won eight consecutive games including a weekend sweep of Louisiana in Sun Belt Conference play over the weekend. The last loss for the Trojans came against Kennesaw State back on March 5.
The two teams last met on March 24 with the Trojans winning their 10th consecutive game in the series, with the last Alabama State win coming on March 31, 2015 (the second of back-to-back wins in the series). Tickets are still available for the contest by clicking here.
Follow The HornetsFans can follow this week’s games via the below outletsTwitter: @BamaStateBBWatch Live: ESPN+Listen Live: TroyTrojans.comLive Stats: TroyTrojans.com
Probable Starting Pitching MatchupsTUESDAY: ALST – Kevin Matos (RHP, Fr.) vs. TROY – Rigsby Mosley (LHP, Sr.)Leading Off
- Alabama State enters the weekend off a three-game sweep of Florida A&M in their conference-opening series, scoring 30 runs in three games. Meanwhile, Troy won their three-game set over Louisiana, scoring 19 runs in the process
- Troy leads the all-time series 20-4 with the last win coming last March.
About the Hornets
- Alabama State has won their last three games, and five out of their last six. In those games, Alabama State has outscored their opponents 55-21.
- Kevin Matos (San Juan, PR) will get his second start of the season when he toes the rubber on Tuesday. The freshman is 0-1 on the season with his last start coming against Samford in a walk-off win for the Bulldogs. Matos did not figure into the decision of that game.
- Hunter May (Slidell, La.) enters the game a week after being named to the 2022 Buster Posey Watch List and after a weekend series in which he had a pair of home runs and 10 RBIs against Florida A&M. On the year, May is hitting .353 with nine doubles and four home runs.
- Angel Jimenez (Santo Domingo, DR) leads the team in hitting at .423 with six doubles and three home runs with 21 RBIs, while Corey King (Lithonia, Ga.) is hitting .383 with a team-high five home runs and 22 RBIs.
- Christian Lopez (San Diego, Calif.) is hitting .333 in his first season at Alabama State, while Dilan Espinal (Canovanas, PR) is hitting .325. Ian Matos (Toa Alta, PR), returning after missing all last season, is hitting .315 with 13 runs scored while Chris Lewis (Alabaster, Ala.) is hitting .313 with 18 runs scored.
- Payton Harris (Hattiesburg, Miss.), named to the Preseason Stopper of the Year Watch List, has one save on the season and logged 15.2 innings out of the bullpen. Meanwhile, Osvaldo Mendez (Carolina, PR) has a 2.76 ERA out of the bullpen and is 2-0 on the season while Luis Rodriguez (Canovanas, PR) has a 3.18 ERA and is 1-0 with one save.
- Breon Pooler (Huntsville, Ala.), the SWAC Preseason Pitcher of the Year, is 4-0 with a 0.90 ERA. He has logged 30.0 innings and struck out 35 batters. He is currently 16th in the nation in earned run average, 18th in games started and 48th in hits allowed per nine innings.
About the Trojans
- Troy has reeled off eight consecutive victories including a conference series against Louisiana. During the streak, the Trojans have wins over Kennesaw State and Jacksonville State, while also sweeping Indiana at home last weekend.
- Easton Kirk leads Troy in hitting at .327 with five doubles and three home runs, while also driving in 13 runs and scoring 10 more. Donovan Whibbs is hitting .309 on the season with three doubles, a triple, and a home run for the Trojans.
- As a team, the Trojans are hitting .273, while opponents are hitting just .244.
- Marquez Oates leads Troy on the mound with a 0.84 ERA in eight games, while Grayson Stewart and Garrett Gainous are each 3-1 on the year.