LORMAN, Miss. | Alabama State University used a balanced offensive attack and strong pitching performance to secure a 6-2 Southwestern Athletic Conference victory over Alcorn State University on Friday afternoon at McGowan Stadium.
The win gave the Hornets a 2-0 lead in the three-game series and improved Alabama State to 29-21 overall and 19-10 in SWAC play.
Alabama State grabbed the early momentum in the second inning when Trey Callaway launched a solo home run to left field to give the Hornets a 1-0 advantage.
The Hornets added to the lead in the third inning after Fabian Santana drew a leadoff walk and Devin Chandler was hit by a pitch. Niguel Jenkins followed with an RBI walk before Callaway delivered again with a two-run single to center field, extending the Alabama State lead to 4-0.
Alabama State pushed the margin to 5-0 in the fourth inning as Quentin Jenkins doubled into the gap and later scored on an RBI single by Breydon Divine.
Alcorn State answered in the bottom half of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Jaylyn Bennett that scored Rayfield Adams III to cut the deficit to 5-1.
The Hornets added an insurance run in the eighth inning when Chandler singled to center field to score Cale Clark after an Alcorn State fielding error helped extend the inning. The Braves plated their final run in the bottom of the eighth on an RBI groundout by Kanious Davis.
Callaway paced the Alabama State offense by going 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. Divine finished 3-for-5 with an RBI, while Chandler added a hit, RBI and scored twice. Quentin Jenkins added a double and scored a run.
Alabama State pitchers combined to hold Alcorn State to just three hits. Jorhan LaBoy earned the win after tossing three scoreless innings with three strikeouts to improve to 8-5 on the season. Caio Araujo worked three innings in relief, while Zane Baltz and Camden Matthews combined to close out the game. Matthews recorded the final five outs to earn his sixth save of the year.
Devin Kriley took the loss for Alcorn State after allowing five runs on five hits in 3.2 innings.
The Hornets and Braves conclude the three-game SWAC series on Saturday at 1 p.m. as Alabama State looks for the series sweep.
