The Alabama State baseball team begins Southwestern Athletic Conference play in a three-game weekend series at Alcorn State.
The Hornets (8-2) and Braves (0-9) will play a Saturday doubleheader beginning at Noon and a single game Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be broadcast live at bamastatesports.com
Alabama State has rode outstanding pitching to its best start in school history. As a staff, the Hornets have a 2.63 ERA and have already thrown a pair of shutouts while allowing four or fewer runs in nine of 10 games this season.
“I think they have done a great job,” head coach
Mervyl Melendez said. “They've kept us in almost every game, and that's the key of winning ball games. You have to be able to stay within distance of the opponent if they score. You can't allow the big inning. I think our pitchers have done a great job minimizing the damage when our opponents have rallied to score runs and I'm very pleased with that.”
Now the 'new season' begins – conference play. And while the importance of the games increase, Melendez believes the approach his team takes should remain steady.
“The mindset should not change; we should approach the game the same way every single time,” Melendez said. “Of course we have to put a lot of emphasis on winning conference games. Our emphasis and focus from here on out is going to be on taking care of business on weekends. I believe if the same approach is taken on weekends, we should hopefully play the same caliber of baseball.”
The Hornets and Braves split six games last season, with each team winning two of three at home as they tied for second with identical 14-10 records. Melendez knows Alcorn State is a much better team than the record indicates.
“We all understand how good Alcorn State is,” Melendez said. “They've played a tough schedule so far (Wake Forest, Oklahoma State, Southern Miss), so the record is deceiving. They have played good competition, so we all know they are going to be ready. They're playing at home, they won the conference title a few years ago, so they know what it takes. Nevertheless, we need to concentrate on what we do, and what we're about. We need to put every effort into being the best team we can and execute our game plan.”
