University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
This Week In Southern Miss Baseball
4/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 27, 2009
This Week's Schedule:
Monday 4/27: Practice at Pete Taylor Park
Tuesday 4/28: Southern Miss vs. No. 7 Ole Miss (Trustmark Park)- 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday 4/29: Day Off/No Practice
Thursday 4/30: Practice at Pete Taylor Park
Friday 5/1: Tulane at Southern Miss - 6:30 p.m.
Saturday 5/2: Tulane at Southern Miss - 4:00 p.m.
Sunday 5/3: Tulane at Southern Miss - 1:00 p.m.
*All practice dates and times are tentative and subject to change without prior notice
Conference USA Tournament:
The 2009 Conference USA Tournament will be held this season at Pete Taylor Park from May 20-24. Tournament Ticket books are now on sale at the Southern Miss ticket office. For complete tournament information visit: http://conferenceusa.cstv.com/championships/09-m-basebl-championship.html
Last Week in Review:
Southern Miss played four games vs. ranked teams, dropping a mid week contest to No. 11 Ole Miss and falling twice before defeating No. 24 East Carolina in C-USA play.
The team could not get the big hit when they needed it as they fell to No. 11 Ole Miss 8-4 in front of 4,705 fans Wednesday evening at Pete Taylor Park.
Ole Miss starting pitcher Brett Bukvich held the Golden Eagles hitless until the fifth inning when Southern Miss had their chance to get back into the game, trailing 5-0 the Eagles scored two runs and loaded the bases with no one out.
With the momentum starting to swing, the Rebels quickly ended the inning without allowing another runner to score on a double play and a pop up and held the Eagles off the rest of the game on their way to a 8-4 victory.
In the opener at East Carolina, Southern Miss fell behind 7-0 after four innings and fell just short in their comeback, scoring three runs in the sixth inning, one in the eighth and two in the ninth, to pull within one run, but eventually falling 7-6 to the Pirates.
In the ninth inning the Golden eagles left the tying run at third base and the go ahead run at first when the game ended.
Southern Miss rebounded from a 13-5 loss in game one to defeat No. 24 ECU 2-1 in the nightcap behind a strong pitching performance by Todd McInnis in Greenville, NC on Saturday.
McInnis was masterful in game two, holding the nations No. 2 hitting offense scoreless and to just two hits over 7.2 innings.
Leading the Nation:
Southern Miss currently leads the nation in total double plays with 52 and are third in the nation in double plays per game, averaging 1.37
The Golden Eagles also rank twelfth nationally with 195 base on balls this season.
Bo Davis is fifth in the nation in on-base percentage at .545.
** All stats are for games completed though April 19th, the last time the NCAA posted national statistics which are usually posted each Tuesday to include the previous weekend.
TWIB Notes:
· Southern Miss played their fifth double header of the season last weekend. Weather has forced the black and gold to play eight twin bill games this season and Southern Miss has won five of the eight games, sweeping double headers at Troy and UCF in the same week and splitting a DH with Houston before dropping a DH to UAB. The Golden Eagles and ECU played doubleheader on April 25 to accommodate the television needs of CBS College Sports and split.
· The Golden Eagles have scored 10 runs or more in 15 different games this season
· The Golden Eagle offense has scored 351 runs on 472 hits through 43 games this season, averaging 8.2 runs per game and 11hits per game on the season
· In C-USA play the Golden Eagles have tallied 182 hits and scored 126 runs in 18 C-USA Games against Rice, Marshal, UAB and at UCF , East Carolina and Houston for an average of 10.1 hits per game and seven runs per game this season
· Southern Miss is 153-8 over the last five seasons when they have a lead after the sixth innings, they are 21-1 this season
· Southern Miss will be forced to play the remainder of the season without shortstop Brian Dozier, who injured his shoulder vs. Jackson State on Tuesday, April 14
· Dozier joined Trey Sutton as the only members of the Golden Eagle 300 Hit Club, he picked up his 300th career hit with a sixth inning single up the middle on Sunday vs. Marshall. Sutton holds the school record with 327 hits, which he set last season
- The Golden Eagles have won three games this season in their final at bat, most recently behind Tyler Koelling's two-out walk off single in the bottom of the ninth Sunday against Marshall. Joey Archer had a walk-off single vs. Rice (3/22) and the Golden Eagles scored two in the top of the tenth at La. Monroe (3/4)
C-USA Weekend in Review
Houston continued its success on the road in conference play, sweeping three games at Marshall for its third straight C-USA series win on the road. The Cougars are now 10-5 in league play. Jared Ray started the series in fine fashion, pitching his first complete-game shutout in a 7-0 win on Friday night. Houston broke out the bats on Saturday in a 12-4 win, registering 14 hits. On Sunday, the Cougars jumped out to a 7-0 lead before allowing Marshall to tie the game in the eighth inning. Houston pushed across two runs in the top of the tenth inning and allowed one run in the bottom half of the frame before Zak Presley threw out a runner trying to advance to third base and the Cougars had a 9-8 victory.
East Carolina took two of three from Southern Miss in Greenville. In Friday night's opener, eight different Pirates produced at least one hit and Chris Heston improved to 6-0 on the season with 6.2 innings on the mound as ECU won, 7-6. On Saturday the teams played a doubleheader that was televised by CBS College Sports. East Carolina took game one, 13-5, as four different Pirates homered to support starter Seth Maness who improved to 6-0 on the season. Southern Miss won the nightcap as Tod McInnis delivered 7.2 innings of two-hit ball for this sixth win of the year.
Tulane earned a C-USA series victory for the third straight weekend by taking two-of-three from Memphis. The Green Wave posted a 12-4 victory on Friday night as Jeremy Schaffer continued his recent tear with another home run and Nick Pepitone picked up his seventh save. The Tigers bounced back with a 10-inning victory on Saturday, as Brett Bowen hit a two-run, game-winning home run in the top of the tenth to give Memphis an 8-6 win. On Sunday it was more extra-inning dramatics as Drew Allain homered in the bottom of the 12th inning to give the Green Wave a wild 12-11 win over Memphis and the series victory.
UCF posted its second straight series victory on the road in league play, winning twice at UAB. The Knights set school records for runs and hits (28) in a 29-9 win on Friday night as four different UCF players homered. The Blazers rebounded with a 12-8 victory on Saturday, as Nick Crawford went 4-for-6 with a pair of RBI. UCF junior Shane Brown tied an NCAA record by reaching base in 18-straight plate appearances in UCF's 12-6 victory over UAB on Sunday. The second baseman fell a triple short of hitting for the cycle by going 4-for-5 with three RBI and three runs scored. His streak, which started last Tuesday vs. Stetson, ended in the sixth inning when he flied out to left field.
Rice did not play this weekend due to their final exams. The Owls will return to action on Wednesday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
The Week's Opponents:
Ole Miss will be a familiar foe as the Golden Eagles played the Rebels last week in Hattiesburg, Over the weekend Ole Miss took a series from No. 1 Georgia to improve their record to 23-12 on the season.
Tulane earned a C-USA series victory for the third straight weekend by taking two-of-three from Memphis. The Green Wave posted a 12-4 victory on Friday night as freshman C Jeremy Schaffer continued his recent tear with his 10th home run of the season and sophomore RHP Nick Pepitone picked up his seventh save.
The Tigers bounced back with a 10-inning victory on Saturday, as Brett Bowen hit a two-run, game-winning home run in the top of the 10th to give Memphis an 8-6 win. On Sunday it was more extra inning dramatics as senior OF Drew Allain homered in the bottom of the 12th inning to give the Green Wave a wild 12-11 win over Memphis and the series victory.
Junior IF Josh Prince has put up incredible numbers for Tulane in recent outings. Hitting an impressive .421 (8-19) last week, the shortstop had three of his four season home runs come in last week's contests. He knocked in five runs while tallying 18 total bases with a .947 slugging percentage. Prince has been a terror on the base paths, logging 11 stolen
bases last week to give him a season total of 38, which now places him in the Tulane single-season record book at fourth all-time. Prince picked up seven walks in last week's games while not striking out in any of his plate appearances.
2010 Signees
HIGH SCHOOL SIGNEES
C Jared Bales- A 6'2" and 210 pound catcher who plays for coach Cayne Stockstill at Picayune High School in south Mississippi, where he earned All-District honors as a sophomore and junior. Last season he led his team with a .439 average, collecting 43 hits in 98 at bats including 14 doubles and three home runs while driving in 35 runners.
LHP Dillon Day- Day will join Southern Miss out of Dutchtown High School in Geismas, La. where he played for coach Chris Schexnayder. Day is a 6'1" left-handed pitcher who could also play in the outfield for Southern Miss once he arrives on campus. As a pitcher he earned first-team all district honors last season as a junior going 5-4 with two saves in 51.2 innings pitched. He struck out 79 batters and boasted an ERA of 2.98. At the plate he hit .337 with six home runs and 22 RBI.
C Chase Fowler- From South Forsyth High School in Cumming Ga., where he played for coach Jamie Corr. Fowler earned all-county honors after both his sophomore and junior season and was named one of the top underclassmen in the state of Georgia after last season. He was named the Eagles defensive player of the year, allowing only one passed ball all season and led his team to the state playoffs for the second consecutive year. He is a 6'0" switch hitter who hit .339 during his sophomore season and .278 as a junior.
RHP- Geoffrey Thomas - Thomas comes to Hattiesburg out of Stephenson High School in Stone Mountain, Georgia. He is a 6'2", 185 pound right-handed pitcher playing for coach Eric Hosie at SHS where he carries a 0.51 ERA in 27.2 innings thus far this season with 48 strikeouts and 23 walks. He is 3-2 on a team that in 3-9 overall this season. He was named the team MVP in both 2008 and 2006 while earning all-county honors in 2007 and 2008. Prior to the 2009 season he was named to the Rawlings/Perfect Game USA Preseason All-Region Team. Thomas has also participated in the Major League Baseball Inaugural Breakthrough Series and was a MLB Urban Academy All-Star selection in 2008.
RHP Chase Wroten- Wroten is a right-handed pitcher who will join the Golden Eagles from Hillcrest Christian High School in Jackson where he has played for coach Shane Kelly since his freshman season. Last year he earned All-State honors while leading his team to a Division II AAA State Championship. He was 8-0 with one save in nine starts and one relief appearance with an ERA of 1.14. He struck out 102 batters in 55.1 innings while walking only 15. in addition to All-State honors he was also earned All-District and All-Metro honors as well.
JUNIOR COLLEGE SIGNEES
OF Marc Bourgeois - Bourgeois will transfer to Southern Miss from junior college powerhouse Chipola JC in Marianna, Florida where he started 55 games for the Florida State Champion Indians last season. In addition to the state championship he helped led the Chipola to an appearance in the JUCO World Series, Region VIII Championship and the Panhandle Conference Championship in his freshman season. With the Indians last season he hit .290 with four home runs and 10 doubles while being named to the state tournament all-star team. He is a native of Montreal, Quebec where he attended Louis-Philippe Pare High School, thought he did not play baseball in high school he was a part of the Academy Baseball Canada under coach Joel Landry where he hit .380 with seven doubles and 16 stolen bases. He also played for the Canadian Junior National Baseball Team from 2006-07.
LHP Patrick Corbin - Corbin will transfer to Southern Miss from Chipola Community College, one of the nations top junior college programs. Baseball America has him as the No. 10 ranked junior college prospect in the nation. He is a 6'3" left-handed pitcher that features fast ball in the 88-92 MPH range with a plus slider, who pitched his freshman season at Mohawk Valley Community College in Rome, NY. A native of Syracuse, NY, Corbin earned first team all-state and all-league honors at Cicero North Syracuse high, which was the No.1 ranked team in the state of New York. As a senior in 2007, he was 8-0 with 76 strikeouts in 47 innings, allowing only 33 hits and 16 runs. He was 14-0 in his high school career with 139 strikeouts.
Awards and Honors:
Conference USA Hitter of the Week
Bo Davis (3/2)
Brian Dozier (3/30)
Conference USA Pitcher of the Week
Seth Hester (4/6)
College Baseball Insiders Central Region Player of the Week
Brian Dozier (3/30)
College Baseball Insiders National "All-Star Lineup"
Bo Davis (3/2)
Brooks Wallace Award Watch List
(National Player of the Year)
Preseason All-Conference USA
(Selected by C-USA Coaches)
Preseason Baseball America All-Conference Team
Preseason SEBaseball.com All-Conference First Team
Preseason SEBaseball.com All-Conference Second Team
Preseason Rivals.com All-Conference Team
Brain Dozier
Following the Golden Eagles:
WXHB The Hub, 96.5 will once again serve as the flagship radio station for Golden Eagles baseball in 2008. John Cox is in his 27th year calling Golden Eagles baseball. He will be joined in the booth this season by Jack Duggan on most home games and selected road games.
Southernmiss.com will once again stream live stats of all 52 games on a real time basis and live video will be available for all home games and selected road games through Southern Miss All-Access
Tickets:
Individual game tickets can be purchased through the Pat Ferlise Athletic Ticket Office on West 4th St., from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday, over the phone at 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or online at SouthernMiss.com. The Pete Taylor Park ticket office will open approximately two hours prior to first pitch.
Discounted group tickets are also available for groups of 15 or more. For more information on bringing your group to "The Pete" contact Brain Morrison at 601.266.6866
Game Day Weather Hotline
For the latest information on weather related issues concerning Southern Miss home events call the Southern Miss gameday hotline at 601.266.7411. The number will be updated constantly in situations where weather could affect games.
