CLINTON, S.C. – The Presbyterian College baseball team begins its final four-game road swing of the 2023 regular season with a trip to Montgomery to battle Alabama State at 5 p.m. on Tuesday evening.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHAT: Presbyterian (19-33) at Alabama State (37-15)
WHERE: Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex (Montgomery, Ala.)
WHEN: 5 p.m. (Tues.)
THE SERIES (Since 2008): PC Leads 1-0
FOLLOW THE ACTION
LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats
TWITTER: @PresbyterianBSB
About the Blue Hose
• The Blue Hose open their final week of the regular season on Tuesday night with a trip to Montgomery to battle Alabama State in the final non-conference matchup of the 2023 season. PC dropped two-of-three to Longwood in the final home contests of the season while the Hornets completed a three-game sweep of Alabama A&M last time out.
Scouting the Hornets
• Alabama State enters Tuesday's tilt with a 37-15 record which includes winning 24 of 27 SWAC matchups and the Hornets have claimed wins in each of the last 10 contests they have participated in which goes back to their defeat in Clinton to the Blue Hose a few weeks ago.
• Jack Hay leads the Hornets hitting at a .362 clip with nine doubles and nine homers while driving in 52 runs. Randy Flores has tallied a .356 average with nine doubles and nine homers to go along with 52 runs and a team-high 33 steals. Ian Matos leads Alabama State with 18 doubles and Ali Lapread paces the Hornets with 12 homers.
• On the mound, the Hornets are led by Omar Melendez who's 11-0 with a 2.67 ERA totaling 88 strikeouts in 81 innings. Ricardo Rivera is 9-0 with a 3.34 ERA on the season. Luis Rodriguez leads Alabama State with six saves over his 22 outings.
Head to Head vs Alabama State
• PC and Alabama State meet for the second time in the Blue Hose DI history with PC tallying a 6-2 win on April 25th over the Hornets. Ryan Ouzts and Dalton Reeves each homered in the victory as Reeves totaled three runs knocked in for Presbyterian.
Blue Hose Close Season as Road Warriors
• With the Blue Hose on the home stretch of the 2023 season, PC will have to do a majority of the work on the road as the Blue Hose are set to play 11 of their final 14 games away from Clinton.
• The final four regular season road games are set for next week beginning on Tuesday in Montgomery against Alabama State before treking to Radford for a three-game set with the Highlanders beginning next Thursday.
Smith Named to NCBWA Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List
• Presbyterian College baseball senior pitcher Tanner Smith was one of 57 pitchers named to the 2023 NCBWA Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List as announced by the association.
• The award is given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball with this being the 18th year of the award. In total 25 conferences have representation with 10 of those leagues having two representatives.
• Smith is currently 1-3 on the season with a 2.90 ERA along with an impressive 1.1 WHIP. He has allowed 10 earned runs in 31 innings of work and has totaled 42 strikeouts.
• He leads the Big South with six saves and has not allowed an earned run in 14 of his 21 outings which includes a stretch of 10.2 innings he didn't allow an earned run over six appearances. Smith earned a pair of relief pitcher honors from the league in back-to-back weeks on March 20 and 27.
Blue Hose in the Ranks
• Brody Fahr is third in the league in hits with 68 on the season. Fahr is also tied for fourth in triples with three. He also ranks sixth in the conference with a .358 batting average.
• Tanner Smith is atop the league in saves with seven as five of those have come in league play for the Blue Hose.
• Charlie McDaniel is third in the Big South with a 3.73 strikeout-to-walk ratio. McDaniel is tops in the conference with 1.88 walks allowed per nine innings. He sits among the top 10 nationally in games started with a team-high 14 starts this season.
• Tanner Smith sits in third in the conference and leads the team with 25 appearances as Colbey Klepper sits just one behind at 24 in a tie for fifth and Luke Gibson is tied for seventh with 23 outings.
• In league play, Fahr is tied for third in the league with 36 hits and is fourth in average at a .396 clip.
Deal Opening 2023 Season in Mississippi
• Former Blue Hose pitcher Hayden Deal has begun his 2023 season tossing 12.1 innings over 10 outings allowing six earned runs with 13 strikeouts for the Mississippi Braves, the AA Affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.
• As he begins his sixth year in pro baseball in 2023, Deal is 24-18 with a 3.32 ERA as over 388.1 innings pitched he has racked up 346 strikeouts. He also added five saves in his minor league career.
Fenderson Named Big South Freshman of the Week
• Presbyterian College baseball freshman Trey Fenderson (Spanish Fort, Ala.) has been named the Big South Freshman of the Week for games played April 17-23, as announced by the league office on Monday.
• Fenderson finished the week with a .313 average (5-of-16) with four runs scored along with a double and a pair of homers in a 2-2 week for the Blue Hose. The PC third baseman also tallied five runs knocked in and drew a pair of walks in the four-game week for Presbyterian.
• He got off to a quick start in the midweek battle with ETSU connecting on his second homer of the season in a six-run first that helped carried PC past the Bucs 16-3 on Wednesday night.In the series opener against Gardner-Webb he tallied another base knock before opening Saturday's tilt with a solo homer as part of a seven-run first against the Runnin' Bulldogs. He also added an RBI single that capped the 13-3 victory over Gardner-Webb. In the series finale, Fenderson added an RBI single along with drawing a bases-loaded walk that gave him his second multiple RBI contest in as many days.
