ITTA BENA, Miss. --Sophomore Jamal George drove in six runs to help the Alabama State University baseball team sweep a doubleheader from Mississippi Valley State University on Friday at Magnolia Field.
George finished 6-for-9 with a double, two home runs and six RBI in the doublheader.
GAME 1 | Alabama State 16, Mississippi Valley State 6
Senior Luis Rodriguez (3-3) started on the mound and picked up the win for Alabama State in game one. The right-hander went four innings, giving up six runs, all of them earned, on seven hits, allowing four walks and striking out five. Sophomore Austin King also made an impact on the mound for the Hornets, throwing three shutout innings while allowing one hit, with no walks and five strikeouts.
In addition to his four hits, George had a double, a home run and two RBI to lead the Hornets. Senior Randy Flores put together a noteworthy effort as well, going 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBI. Freshman Quentin Jenkins also chipped in for Alabama State, putting together two hits in four trips to the plate while adding a home run and three RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Hornets got the scoring started early, putting one run on the board in the top of the first inning. Alabama State hit two home runs in the inning on the way to scoring nine runs.
The Delta Devils then gained ground, narrowing the lead to 9-6 until the Hornets expanded their advantage in the fifth. Alabama State scored once on an RBI single off the bat of Jenkins, which brought the score to 10-6 in favor of the Hornets.
Alabama State kept Mississippi Valley State scoreless before expanding their lead to 13-6 the following inning.
Alabama State held the Delta Devils scoreless before their offense got back to their scoring ways the next inning. The three-run fram for the Hornets was puncuated by a two-run homer from Flores. bringing the Alabama State advantage to 16-6. The score remained 16-6 for the rest of the game, as the Hornets coasted to the win.
GAME NOTES | GM 1
» George compiled four hits on the day for Alabama State.
» King struck out five Delta Devils hitters and Rodriguez fanned five for the Hornets.
» The Hornets had both senior Cristian Lopez and George crush multiple extra-base hits in the ballgame.
» Every Alabama State starter reached base safely in the win.
» Alabama State's highest scoring inning was the first, when it pushed nine runs across.
» Alabama State grabbed a 9-2 lead in the top half of the first and didn't surrender that lead for the remainder of the game.
» Seven Hornets had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» Alabama State hitters hit three dingers in the ballgame.
» The Hornets had a total of 20 hits.
» The Hornets out-hit the Delta Devils at a 20-8 clip.
» Flores stole two bases in Friday's game.
» Alabama State went 8-for-13 (.615) with runners in scoring position.
» Alabama State pitchers faced 32 Mississippi Valley hitters in the game, allowing four ground balls and six fly balls while striking out 10.
» George led the Hornets at the plate, going 4-for-5 with a double, a home run and two RBI.
» Mississippi Valley State was led offensively by senior D. Holmes, who went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and two RBI.
» Junior B. Eftink led the Delta Devils pitching staff, throwing 0.2 shutout innings.
GAME 2 | Alabama State 9, Mississippi Valley State 4
Sophomore Jorhan Laboy (3-2) started on the mound and picked up the win for Alabama State (12-12, 4-3). The left-hander went 7.2 innings, giving up three runs, all of them earned, on seven hits, allowing two walks and striking out four. Junior Will Smith also made an impact on the mound for the Hornets, throwing one inning, giving up one run on no hits, with one walk and two strikeouts.
George went 2-for-4 with a home run in addition to his four RBIs for the Hornets. Senior Ali LaPread put together a standout performance at the plate as well, going 1-for-2 with a home run, two walks and an RBI. Senior Randy Flores also helped out for Alabama State, putting together one hit in four trips to the plate while adding a home run, a walk and an RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GM 2
The Hornets put runs on the scoreboard first, starting the scoring in the second inning. Alabama State's offense started clicking and put up five runs, including a three-run home run off the bat of George.
The Delta Devils failed to push any runs across before the Hornets built on their lead in the fourth inning. Alabama State picked up a run on LaPread's two-out solo home run off of junior M.Ramirez, which brought the Hornets lead to 6-0.
Mississippi Valley State narrowed Alabama State's lead to 6-1 before the Hornets stretched the advantage to 7-1 in the seventh inning. The Hornets scored a run on Flores' leadoff home run off senior M.Fleming.
The Delta Devils gained ground, closing the gap to 7-2 until Alabama State added some insurance in the eighth. Freshman Isaiah Landry and LaPread each scored a run for the Hornets in the inning, bringing the Alabama State advantage to 9-2. Mississippi Valley State put two runs on the scoreboard before the game was over, but the Hornets still coasted to the 9-4 win.
GAME NOTES
» George drove in four runs for Alabama State.
» Every Alabama State starter reached base safely in the win.
» Alabama State's highest scoring inning was the second, when it pushed five runs across.
» The Hornets had control of the rest of the game after moving ahead of the Delta Devils 5-0 in the top of the second.
» Four Hornets had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» Alabama State hitters hit three homers in the ballgame.
» The Hornets out-hit the Delta Devils at a 10-8 clip.
» The Hornets drew seven walks from Mississippi Valley State pitching.
» George led the Hornets at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI.
» Mississippi Valley State was led offensively by senior A.Phillips, who went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
» Senior H.Victor led the Delta Devils pitching staff, throwing 1.1 shutout innings.
UP NEXT: Alabama State and Mississippi Valley wrap up the three-game series with a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.
