Who’s Hot In HBCU Baseball reports on baseball programs and players who stood out in their mid-week and weekend series. For this past week, we recognized the top performers…
Xavier University of Louisiana
Baseball returned to Xavier for the first time in 61 years. In the first game since 1960, The Gold Rush in doubleheader action, lost 5-3 to Bryant & Stratton College in game one, then earned a 4-1 victory in game two for the programs first win in six decades.
Co Co Simoneaux, outfielder and Xavier leadoff batter, tripled in the bottom of the first inning in both games, hit his first-game triple to right-center field and the other to left-center.
Albany State University
The Albany State baseball team completed a three-game sweep hosting Lincoln University (Pa.) In its 25-8 Friday win, Albany State’s Lachlan Ross pulled off a collegiate baseball rarity hitting for the cycle and posted some big stats during the series.
Lachian Ross, 3B, in game one, was 4-for-6, belted a double, added a triple, smacked a grand slam home run and added a single while he drove home seven runs. In game two, Ross went 2-for-4 at the plate and in the series finale, he went 2-for-2 with 2 doubles and 2 RBIs.
In the first game, Albany State RHP starter Malik Barrington pitched five innings for Albany State to pick up the win and improve to 1-1 on the season. He had 10 strikeouts.
In the second game, Golden Rams RHP Michael Reddick (2-0) hurled 6.1 innings, allowing just 3 hits, no runs and struck out 10 batters in Albany’s 8-2 victory.
*Albany State pitching staff recorded 48 strikeout in four mid-week and weekend games.
North Carolina Central University
Eagle junior RHP flame thrower Austin Vernon (1-1) fanned a career-high 12 batters in the game one opening series loss to Norfolk State. His strikeout total tied for the second-most by an NCCU pitcher in a single game in the modern era! Vernon, in 5.1 innings, allowed 2 hits and 2 runs.
Game two starter, RHP Ryan Miller (2-0) had a commanding performance as he went the distance with a seven-inning shutout and struck out 10 with just two walks and four hits allowed.
Jackson State University
The Tigers defeated its SWAC conference foe Arkansas-Pine Bluff sweeping the three-game series 9-5, 13-2, and a 17-11 game 3 slugfest.
Freshman outfielder Hassan Standifer finished the series batting 4-for-8 with 1 triple, 1 home run, four RBI and three runs scored. He also stole a base.
Norfolk State University
Right-hander Justin Walton struck out a career-high nine batters over six strong innings, and Norfolk State won its first weekend series of the season with a 10-5 victory over North Carolina Central on Sunday at Marty L. Miller Field.
The only game that Bryant & Stratton has won was vs. XULA. XULA’s sweep of Stillman was noteworthy. Their games tomorrow vs. Mobile (6-4) and Friday-Saturday vs. Loyola-New Orleans (8-7) should give us a better idea of how good the Gold Rush is.