CLINTON, Miss. --- Gulf South Conference Tournament seeding and in-state pride are on the lines, as the No. 13 Mississippi College baseball team hosts No. 13 Delta State University this weekend. The series opens on Saturday, April 27 with a twinbill and concludes on Sunday, April 28. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. both days.
 
Mississippi College will honor its senior class prior to first pitch on Sunday.
 
The Choctaws and Statesmen both sit in the top three in the league standings heading into the final weekend of the regular season. With a series win, the Navy and Gold secure the top seed in the GSC Tournament in Oxford, Ala., May 3 – May 7, at Choccolocco Park.

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Delta State University (Schedule | Roster | Statistics)

April 27 • 2 p.m. | April 28 • 2 p.m.

Clinton, Miss. | Frierson Field

Statistics | Video | In-Game Updates

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THE SERIES
• The series with Delta State University is the longest in Mississippi College program history. The Choctaws and Statesmen have met 165 times on the diamond entering the series on Saturday. DSU holds a 121-42-2 record in the series. The two in-state institutions faced off six times in less than a month, including three times in the postseason, and split the season series with three wins each. DSU claimed two of three in the regular season and the Choctaws claimed two of three in the postseason, including ousting their in-state neighbor from the GSC Tournament, en route to the conference title, and in the NCAA Division II South Regional in Lakeland, Fla.
 
CHOCTAWS CHECK-IN AT NO. 4 IN SOUTH REGION
• Mississippi College is ranked fourth in the first NCAA Division II South Region Poll. Eight teams make up the NCAA Division II South Region tournament field that will be held at campus sites of the top two schools on May 16-18. The winners from the two region sites advance to the NCAA Division II Super South Region on May 24-25 on the camps of the highest remaining seed.  The NCAA Division II World Series will played June 1-8 in Cary, N.C.
 
SCOUTING THE STATESMEN
• Delta State enters the weekend slate riding an eight-game win streak. The Statesmen are 32-10 overall and 18-8 in the Gulf South Conference.
• DSU is hitting .278 as a club this season - equal with the Choctaws - which is sixth in the conference. The Green and White have totaled 272 hits and drove in 238 RBI.
• The Statesmen pitching staff boasts the lowest ERA in the league with a 2.50 - the lowest in the nation. The staff have combined for 327 strikeouts and are holding opponents to a .212 batting average.
• Jacob Batlow leads the Statesmen at the plate with 54 hits and .346 average. His 43 RBI also top the team while Darek Sargent has 42 RBI. Weber Herbison is the only other Statesmen hitting .300 or better with a .307 clip.
• Hunter Riggins, Dalton Minton and Melvin Frazier have three of the lowest ERAs in the conference - all under 3.00. Frazier and Riggins are tied for eighth in strikeouts with 65 each.
• Despite some rowdy student objections, athletic programs at Delta State doesn't use the student-chosen, sub-mascot, Fighting Okra. The Fighting Okra was created by a band of students in the late 1980s and early 1990s. While on campus embrace the vegetable, DSU Athletics does not.
 
HAWORTH VS. DELTA STATE
• Mississippi College head coach Jeremy Haworth is 6-12 against Delta State in his career. He is 5-7 against the Green and White since arriving in Clinton.
 
RECORD CHASING
• Blaine Crim is second in home runs (35), RBI (194), total bases (408), runs (154) and games played (184).
• Ryan Lane moved to third in career saves with two against Shorter last weekend. Lane has 10 career saves and is four away from becoming the career leader.
• Zack Ingram is tied for sixth in starts (34), sits eighth in win (15) and ranks ninth in strikeouts (157) and innings (201.1).
• Chris Crosby ranks seventh in school history in strikeouts (160). Crosby is just outside the top 10 in innings with 180.1 and starts with 28.
• Tommy Taborda is third in saves (9) and seventh in appearances (50).
 
CHOCTAWS MOVE UP FOUR SPOTS IN NCBWA POLL
• After going 2-1 over the week, the Mississippi College baseball team moved up four spots in the latest National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 25 as the Choctaws checked in at 13th in the poll. MC is the top team ranked from the Gulf South Conference in the recent edition of the top 25. West Florida checked in at 19th while Delta State sits 23rd. The three GSC schools are joined by the University of Tampa, which is ranked third, as the only institutions from the NCAA Division II South Region in the ranking. 2019 opponents the University of Arkansas at Monticello and Quincy University are both recognized in the ranking. QU is seventh with UAM in 14th.
 
CRIM NAMED GSC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Mississippi College's Blaine Crim was named Gulf South Conference Player of the Week for his efforts during the three-game stretch last week, including a doubleheader, series sweep at West Alabama over the weekend. Crim posted a .533 batting average for the week as he went 8-for-15 with nine RBI and four extra base hits, including a double and two home runs. Crim matched a career-high with seven RBI in the series-opening win at West Alabama and collected his 18th and Gulf South Conference-leading double of the season. The program's career doubles leader stands tied for fourth in single-season doubles. His 54 doubles this season leads the GSC and ranks seventh in a single-season.
 
CHOCTAWS CLAIM TWINBILL AT WEST ALABAMA
• Mississippi College hit .314 in the doubleheader series at West Alabama. Blaine Crim led the team with five hits as he drove in a nine runs. Brandon Broussard joined Crim with two home runs in the twinbill. Zack Ingram and Chris Crosby garnered wins on the mound while Garrett Hollinghead notched his first save of the season. The two wins extended the win streak in the series to three over the Tigers and marked the first wins in Livingston since 1995.
 
CHOCTAWS CLINCH THIRD STRAIGHT, GSC TOURNAMENT BERTH
• With a doubleheader, series sweep against Shorter University, Mississippi College secured its third straight, Gulf South Conference Tournament berth and ninth in program history. Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Ala., is the host of the conference tournament. The tournament dates are set for May 3 – May 7.