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ATLANTA, Ga. – The 2023 Southwestern Athletic Conference Baseball Championship Game is a remix of the Florida Classic. No. 2 seed (East) Bethune-Cookman solidified the matchup following a 14-4 mercy-rule win versus No. 1 seed (West) Grambling State in the tournament semifinals at Russ Chandler Stadium. This game ended at seven innings. 
 
B-CU next faces arch-rival Florida A&M on Sunday, May 28 at 1 p.m. This will be the Wildcats first appearance in the SWAC championship game since joining the league in 2021-22. 
 
The Wildcats had back-to-back wins over Grambling State in the tournament. On May 26, they beat the Tigers 7-3 to advance to the semifinals.
 
“Our goal every year is to play for a championship. When we went down Wednesday, everybody counted us out. But the tough-minded group we have didn’t give up. We now have an opportunity to play for a championship. The job isn’t done,” B-CU baseball head coach Jonny Hernandez said.
 
Grambling State led 2-0 after the first inning. Unfortunately, this was the only joyous moment for the Tigers. B-CU turned on the heat, scoring 14 runs between the second and fourth inning. 
 
Hylan Hall and Colton Olasin were the executive producers for B-CU’s movie at the plate. Both players had four RBI apiece. Olasin had seven RBI in the two games against GSU pitching.
 
Building off the massive run support, Santiago Gomez mowed down the opposition. He was nearly unhittable after giving up two runs in the first inning. Gomez scattered three hits over five innings with three strikeouts.
 
His counterpart, Lorenzo Peterson, didn’t have the same flow from the mound. Peterson was pulled after one-and-two-thirds innings. His stat line was six earned runs, five hits and two walks on 40 pitches.
 
Sunday’s game between B-CU and FAMU marks the first time division foes are vying for the SWAC crown since 2018. That year, Texas Southern beat Grambling State 18-3 at Wesley Barrow Stadium in New Orleans.  
 
About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
 
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field and Tennis.

Women’s competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis and Volleyball.
 
Follow the SWAC
For complete coverage of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, please follow the SWAC on social media at @TheSWAC (Twitter), @TheSWAC (Facebook), and @TheSWAC (Instagram) or visit the official home of the Southwestern Athletic Conference at www.swac.org.