Baseball Finishes C-USA Slate at Florida Atlantic This Weekend
5/12/2021
Southern Miss (33-15, 20-7 C-USA) at Florida Atlantic (27-21, 16-12 C-USA)
Games 49-52 | May 14-16, 2021 | FAU Stadium | Boca Raton, Fla.
| Upcoming Games | Time (CT) | Probable Pitchers | Radio & Webstream |
| Fri., May 14 | 4 p.m. | RH Hunter Stanley, Sr. (5-2, 2.42) vs. LH Hunter Cooley, So. (7-3, 3.82) | Southern Miss Network/C-USA.TV |
| Sat., May 15 | 1 p.m. | RH Walker Powell, Sr. (8-2, 2.69) vs. LH Matt Sparling, RJr. (2-4, 3.76) | Southern Miss Network/C-USA.TV |
| Sat., May 15 | Game 2 | RH Ben Ethridge, Fr. (6-1, 2.25) vs. RH Brock Helverson, RSo. (1-0, 7.36) | Southern Miss Network/C-USA.TV |
| Sun., May 16 | 11 a.m. | LH Drew Boyd, So. (4-2, 3.63) vs. RH Javi Rivera, So. (6-0, 4.78) | Southern Miss Network/C-USA.TV |
| Live Stats | Game Notes |
Moving Up in the Rankings: The Golden Eagles climbed their way up the polls this week, earning a No. 19 spot by D1Baseball.com, at No. 17 by USA Today, in the Baseball America poll at No. 20 and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association poll at No. 20, moving up in all four polls. The Golden Eagles also made their season debut in the Collegiate Baseball poll at No. 29.
Last Weekend: Southern Miss outscored Middle Tennessee 26-6 over the weekend behind four strong starting pitching performances that included 29 innings of work, allowing one run (earned), on seven hits and one walk with 33 strikeouts. The starts included a nine-inning performance with no runs allowed and 16 strikeouts, a seven-inning no-hitter, another seven-inning complete-game shutout and a strong six-inning outing. Southern Miss has now beaten Middle Tennessee 21-straight times and is 21-1 all-time in C-USA games against the Blue Raiders.
Co-Pitchers of the Week: Southern Miss senior right-handed pitchers Hunter Stanley and Walker Powell each earned Conference USA Pitcher of the Week honors, Monday, for outstanding starting performances last weekend against Middle Tennessee. Stanley, opened the Middle Tennessee series last Friday night by limiting the Blue Raiders to three base runners over nine scoreless innings, which included two hits and one to reach via a throwing error. Stanley, who recorded a career-high 16 strikeouts, which also is tied for second most in a C-USA contest, retired the first 16 batters he faced. In the game, Stanley only had one 3-ball count and that was to the second hitter of the game, which he struck out. Stanley’s strikeout total tied for the fourth best in school history. The nine-inning outing was the longest by a Golden Eagle this season, but he did not record a decision in the contest as the Golden Eagles won 2-1 in 10 innings.
As for Powell, he threw the first no-hitter at the school since the trio of Gabe Shepard, Cody Carroll and Hunter Stanley tossed one against Rice in the 2019 Conference USA Tournament. It also marked the first Southern Miss complete-game no-hitter since Cliff Russum accomplished that feat against Eastern Illinois on March 13, 2004. Powell allowed just a leadoff walk to start the second and stranded that runner at second base. His 12 strikeouts established a career high for him, coming on the team’s senior day. Powell ranks as the Division I career active leader in victories with 28. He also ranks No. 3 on the school’s career charts for wins, trailing only Todd McInnis (33) and Darrell Lindsey (29).
For the first time in league history, two baseball players from the same school shared the weekly honor. It is the second time this season that both Stanley and Powell have each earned the award. For his career, Powell has now won the award six times. Stanley has earned both of his awards this season.
The Owls: Florida Atlantic enters the weekend with a 27-21 overall record and a 16-12 in C-USA East Division play, holding down third place. The Owls have won two straight and seven of their last nine games under John McCormack, who is in is 13th season at the school and has compiled a 438-270-2 record.
| Series (2014-2019) | |
| All-Time | 12-9 |
| In Hattiesburg | 5-5 |
| In Boca Raton | 5-4 |
| Neutral | 2-0 |
| Since Joining C-USA (2014) | 12-1 |
| C-USA Series records | 3-3-0 |
| Streak | Won 2 |
| Last 10 | 7-3 |
Twinbill Tally: Southern Miss has played in nine doubleheaders this season and have won four and split five, posting a record of 13-5 when two games are played on the same day.
Consecutive 30 Win Seasons: The Golden Eagles clinched their 19th consecutive 30-win season in 2021. They are one of only five Division I programs to collect at least 19-straight, 30 or more wins seasons. Here is a look at the top five programs that have won 30 or more games in a season (* Reached 30 wins in 2021):
School - Seasons (2021 Record thru 5/10)
Florida State - 55 (25-17)
Clemson - 45 (22-21)
Ole Miss - 24 (33-14)*
North Carolina - 22 (21-21)
Southern Miss - 19 (33-15)*
In Conference USA Play: Southern Miss has opened its 25th season of Conference USA in 2021 - last year’s schedule was canceled due to COVID-19 - and the Golden Eagles have posted a 428-245 (.636) and are 143-77-4 in league series over that time. The Golden Eagles have won 20 league games now eight times, including in each of the last five years.
Winning at Home: Since utilizing Pete Taylor Park as its home facility in 1984, the Golden Eagles are 834-347-2 (.706) at their venue, having won at least 20 or more home games in 31 of the 38 campaigns played at the park, having posted 22 wins in 2021. During the 1985 and 1986 campaigns, Southern Miss played a handful of home games at Smokey Harrington Park, which is currently the home of Hattiesburg High School.
National Statistics: Here is a look at the Golden Eagles among the nation’s leaders both as a team and as individuals. Here is a look at the team’s Top 20 leaders for all categories (through May 5 games):
Team
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio: 1st (4.53)
Walks per 9 Inns.: 2nd (2.20)
Shutouts: 4th (7)
WHIP: 5th (1.11)
ERA: 11th (3.35)
Individual
Doubles: Gabe Montenegro, 4th (18)
Victories: Walker Powell, 6th (8)
Saves: Garrett Ramsey, 8th (9)
Complete Games: Walker Powell, 9th (4)
Strikeouts: Hunter Stanley, 10th (96)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio: Ben Ethridge, 11th (8.33)
WHIP: Ben Ethridge, 12th (0.86)
On-Base Percentage: Charlie Fischer, 8th (.526)
Walks Allowed per 9 Inns.: Ben Ethridge, 20th (1.27)
Back to the NCAAs in 2019: Southern Miss appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-straight year and the 16th time overall, playing in the Baton Rouge Regional to complete its 2019 season. The Golden Eagles made their first-ever appearance in the postseason in 1990, with a trip to Baton Rouge, and at one point, reached regional play nine-straight seasons, from 2003-11.
Golden Eagles Take C-USA Title: Southern Miss captured the last Conference USA tournament title in 2019 and have won three of the last four events - making the championship game in all four seasons. The Golden Eagles also captured the 2018 C-USA regular season and tournament titles, marking the second time Southern Miss had won both C-USA championships in the same season with the other time coming in 2003. Four of the school’s five C-USA regular season titles have come under current head coach Scott Berry, while he has also led Southern Miss to four of their five tournament titles.
The Schedule
