NAIA/Others/Baseball
By Michael Coker/Black College Nines
Selma University baseball program hopes to set themselves apart when the 2016 baseball season starts scheduling to play more nonconference games against Power opponents. The Bulldogs has turned strength of schedule into a constant talking point, with each year claiming its road to the postseason is most encouraging.
College Baseball scheduling guidelines are not a mandate, though they will make an impression on the playoff selection committee. But this is the template that Selma Head Baseball Coach Adrian Holloway thinks is best going forward from a variety of perspectives.
Judging by Selma’s postseason berth in the last five years and considered one of the strongest small schools in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) baseball program over the last 10 years. So good that its game schedule is more challenging than other conferences.
Salma has scheduled Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) powerhouse Southern University. Coach Holloway said recently in an interview with Black College Nines that a tougher schedule is best.
“As we prepare for the upcoming baseball season, I felt it was important for us to step up our strength of schedule. I want to give our program exposure and compete against top-level competition.
This upcoming season we will face Division I Southern University on March 18 and 19, 2016 in Baton Rouge, LA. This game will be good for HBCU baseball, being that both Universities are top-rated programs.
We also have an agreement to play Eastern New Mexico in a neutral site game in Peachtree City, GA. Clark-Atlanta University will be the host team for the series which will take place February 14, 2016. Games like these will help us prepare for a run at the NCCAA national title.”
The Bulldogs completed the 2015 baseball season ranked No. 6 in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) Black College Nines (BCN) baseball poll. They also finished this past season No. 10 in the NCCAA poll.
Salma has a string of tournament history having played in successive United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) tournaments. The NCCAA Tournament this past May 2015 marked as the fifth straight playoff appearance for the Bulldogs.