2015 Baseball Championship Preview
SWAC.org
Tournament Central
NEW ORLEANS, La. – The 2015 Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball championship features a big west division rivalry between No. 2 Southern University and No. 1 Texas Southern University. The contest will be broadcast live on ESPN3 at 2 p.m. CT from Wesley Barrow Stadium in New Orleans, La.
This will be the sixth meeting of the teams this year. TSU took all six games, outscoring the Jaguars 28-13.
#2 Southern (20-22)
Southern swept through the winners bracket to make their first championship game appearance since 2011. The Jaguars have gone 3-0 in the tournament with two wins over Jackson State (10-5, 6-5) and a 10-inning win over Alabama State (13-12). As a team, they lead the tournament in several categories, including batting average (.364), slugging percentage (.495), RBI (27), and stolen bases (8).
They are led by Marcus Tomlin at the plate. He is hitting .538 including a triple, five runs and three RBI under his belt. DJ Wallace and Robinson Mateo have also been effective offensively for Southern. The pair are hitting .500 and combine for six runs, six RBI and three doubles.
The Jaguars defense has been paced by starters J’Markus George and Harold Myles. Both have pitched eight innings. George has a team-high 10 strikeouts this tournament and has walked just one batter. Myles has allowed just two earned runs while striking out eight. Reliever Santos Saldivar has been crucial to Southern’s success. He made two appearances this week, striking out five and earning a win in five innings on the mound.
#1 Texas Southern (30-17)
Texas Southern’s road to the title was a little rougher. The Tigers are playing in their first championship since 2008 after going 4-1 this week in New Orleans. They currently lead the tournament in hits (45) doubles (9), triples (2), and home runs (2). TSU’s defense has been outstanding. They lead all teams with a 1.71 ERA and an opponent batting average of .207. The Tigers have allowed a tournament low 13 runs across.
They are led by Blake Hicks and Zach Welz offensively. Hicks is batting a team-best .444 with two doubles, two runs, two RBI and a home run. Welz started every game and has earned a team-high nine hits with five runs, three triples, a double and three RBI.
Ryan Rios has been the most effective on the mound for the Tigers. He went seven scoreless innings with a team-best seven strikeouts in the 10-0 win over Alcorn State (May 14). It marked his first complete game shutout of the season and he has a team-low 2.92 ERA for the year. Devin Konarik and Seth Oliver have been their ace relievers. Konarik has pitched 5.1 scoreless innings, giving up just two hits. Oliver has given up just two earned runs in seven innings of work this tournament and is second on the team in strikeouts with six.
Fans can follow all the action live at tournament central and listen live online here.