CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College baseball team returns to action this weekend as it travels to Rome, Ga., to face Shorter University in a three-game, Gulf South Conference series. First pitch of the Saturday, Feb. 5 doubleheader is scheduled for 11 a.m. The series finale on Sunday is marked for a 12 p.m. start. All times are central.
Saturday's opening contest marks the fourth meeting between Mississippi College and Shorter University. The Hawks lead the series 2-1. MC claimed the series finale against the Blue and White last season in a 13-8 victory in Clinton. This weekend marks the first time that the two schools have met in Rome, Ga.
This weekend marks the first meeting between MC skipper
Jeremy Haworth and SU head coach Wes Timmons.
MC has four hitters batting over .333 in 14 games played.
Logan Ferrell leads the team with a .418 clip and is tied for third in RBI with 8.
Toler Robinson (.348) and
Blaine Crim (.333) rank second with 10 RBI each while
Caleb Upton leads the team with 11 RBI.
Austin Warkentin and
Chance Whitten have stepped up for the Choctaws in recent contests. Warkentin is hitting .417 while Whitten has a .375 average - both in 24 at-bats.
Samuel Harrison leads MC in strikeouts with 22 and is second in innings with 21.1
Jake Fraze has tossed a team-best 28.2 frames and 19 Ks - second most.
Mississippi College snapped a five-game skid on Tuesday with a 5-0 win at Spring Hill College. The shutout is the second of the season for the Navy and Gold. The first came in the series finale against North Greenville College, 4-0, on Feb. 13 to clinch the series. The Choctaws now look to snap a five-game, GSC skid. MC's last win in the conference came in a 10-4 win against West Florida on Feb. 19.
Shorter has three hitters batting over .333 this season led by Dustin Lawson's .457 clip. Lawson ranks second in RBI with 16 and has a team-best 21 hits. Blaze Vazquez is hitting .348 and paces the team with 18 RBI. Sheldon Drake has the second highest batting average at .364. On the mound, Jacob Farmer and Jacob Ramos lead the team with 2 wins as they each tossed 15.1 innings. They also rank first and second in strikeouts with Farmer leading with 24. Ramos has 19 strikeouts.
With a 7-2 loss against Georgia College on Wednesday, the Hawks are riding a five-game, losing streak. SU's last win came on Feb. 20 in a 7-5, GSC win at Union. The win came in the second game of the series. Shorter was swept by North Alabama last weekend and dropped the series with Union.
Following the weekend slate, Mississippi College returns to action on Tuesday, Feb. 8 in a single-game contest against the University of Arkansas at Monticello. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.
