The Golden Tigers have plenty of fresh faces and top returning players and some of them are already making an impact this fall. With their help, Tuskegee will get a much needed boost for the 2019 season.
Coach Reginald Hollins is excited to build the line-up around these returning student-athletes.
Top Returners:
Ryan Green – .302 batting average swiped 13 stolen bases in 16 attempts last season.
Matthew Reed – 2 home runs and 25 runs batted in.
Elgin Woodside – .280 batting average, 6 home runs and drove in 35 runs
They have a mix of speed and gap power that improved as the season progressed in 2018 and Coach Hollins expects each of them to pick up where they left off. Tayari Albright and Ronald McGhee will also be key contributors in the lineup.
Returning Pitching:
Tuskegee returns right-handed starters Christian Marshall and Nytorious Cooler. With the loss of Trey Nelson and Jordyn Thomas, Tuskegee looks to replace these two key starters. The Golden Tigers took a hit in the bullpen last year and struggled to finish games late. They are excited for the return of RHP Darien Brown from injury. Darien was key to success out of the bullpen, giving major innings during the 2017 season.
Coach Hollins, “Christian Marshall was huge for us last season, giving us an consistent outing each time. With Marshall and the late 2018 emergence of Cooler they give us and opportunity to win each game they start. Extremely excited to see them in action this Spring.”
Tuskegee looks to add production to its lineup and rotation from a group a sophomores who are showing major progression this fall.
Players making an impact this fall:
Joshua Lewis and Corey Stallings came on strong during the back half of the 2018 season. They both took in the 2018 experience and gained tremendous confidence and knowledge. Coach Hollins stated, “you can notice that both Lewis and Stallings have made the adjustments necessary to play at the college level. They are definitely playing at a new speed and I am excited for what they will bring to our line-up and pitching staff.”
Recruiting efforts signed four student-athletes to addresses some losses Tuskegee had on defense and holes they had in the bullpen last season. Relief pitching struggled to maintain the lead going into late innings of games. Golden Tigers have to finish and that was a main focus with the 2018 recruiting class.
New Recruits to look out for:
Shortstop/ Pitcher – Caleb Cobb
Pitcher – Savontae Williams
Pitcher – Hunter Hudson
Pitcher – Tyler Baker
Outfielder – Caleb Nelson
Coach Hollins Overview:
During the regular season last year, “we showed inconsistency early on. We look to start fast and maintain consistency all year. This year we will have games in conference play so it will be extremely important that we stay healthy and deliver from the bullpen.” Hollins added, “I feel that the strong point of this year’s team is the senior leadership. That is something we have lacked. It’s best stated that on bad teams…. no one leads; on average teams… the coach leads; but on championship minded teams…..the players lead.” Hollins is enjoying coaching this team and can’t wait to go to battle with the squad.