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Koenigsfeld Named GSC "Top Ten"

2009-06-23

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State junior baseball player Jon Koenigsfeld has received the second-highest honor awarded by the Gulf South Conference as the shortstop was named to the GSC's "Top Ten" list as one of the league's 10 best all-around student-athletes. The GSC "Top Ten" Award recognizes the top five male and top five female student-athletes in the conference, based on athletic, academic and extracurricular achievement. As one of the "Top Ten," Koenigsfeld, who was the only non-senior male and one of only three non-seniors to make the list, becomes eligible for the Commissioner's Trophy as the top male student-athlete in the Gulf South Conference. Koenigsfeld batted .328 with 33 runs batted in and 50 runs scored during the 2008 season while starting 62 of the Blazers' 63 games. He helped the Diamond Blazer squad to a 43-21 record and an appearance in the NCAA South Regional, where he was named to the All-South Region Tournament squad. Koenigsfeld was a second-team All-GSC team member in 2007 after leading VSU with a .349 batting average. A native of New Port Richey, Fla., Koenigsfeld is even more spectacular in the classroom where he holds a perfect 4.00 grade point average as a Middle Grades Education major. He has earned VSU Male Student-Athlete Academic Award winner honors in both of his years with the Blazers and is also a two-time member of the GSC All-Academic team, including a unanimous selection in 2009. "Simply put, Jon is a model scholar-athlete," said Scott Grubbs, Program Coordinator in the Department of Middle, Secondary, Reading and Deaf Education at Valdosta State. "Not only does he demonstrate outstanding performance academically, Jon leads both inside and outside of the classroom by modeling the high standards expected by the department and the university. In addition to his academic and athletic activities, Jon is involved in helping others through his community service and I feel that I may speak for my colleagues when I say that we in Middle, Secondary, Reading and Deaf Education are very proud of all that Jon accomplishes." Koenigsfeld is also active in community service as he tallied nearly 20 hours during the 2008-09 school year. In addition to helping with the Annual Blazer Build for Habitat for Humanity, he has also volunteered at the Valdosta State baseball Special Needs Awareness Day and helped assemble a new playground at Crossroads Baptist Church. "Jon embodies all the qualities that we think of with a student-athlete," said Blazer head coach Greg Guilliams in learning of the honor. "He excels in the classroom with a 4.00 GPA while also excelling on the field in his play and as a role model for his peers. His leadership and work ethic are unmatched." The Commissioner's Trophy winner will be announced at the Gulf South Conference's Annual Award's Banquet Thursday evening at in Pensacola. Koenigsfeld competition for the GSC's Top male student-athlete includes: Christian Brothers cross country runner Stephen Hill, West Florida soccer player Nolan Intermoia, Southern Arkansas baseball player James Schroeder and North Alabama basketball player Kenny Johnson.

Pair of Blazers Taken in MLB Draft

2009-06-11

VALDOSTA, Ga. - A pair of Valdosta State Blazers were selected in the 35th round of the Major League Baseball draft Thursday. Brandon Graves, a left-handed pitcher from Crawfordville, Fla., was taken with the 1,047 overall pick by the San Francisco Giants. Graves led Valdosta State in wins (11), earned run average (3.04), saves (7) and strikeouts (85) during the 2009 season. A senior, Graves held opponents to a .260 batting average as he allowed 81 hits in 80.0 innings pitched on the season. After beginning the year as the VSU closer, he moved into the starting rotation and recorded two complete games and tallied an 11-2 record on the year. He was honored as the Gulf South Conference's top relief pitcher at the end of the season while also earning All-America honors from Daktronics. Matt Costello, also a left-handed pitcher, was taken with the 1,066 overall pick by the Milwaukee Brewers. Costello, who was named the South Region Player of the Year while earning first-team All-America honors from Daktronics and second-team recognition from both Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. The West Barnstable, Mass. Native was 9-3 on the mound during the year while tallying a 3.67 ERA. He recorded two complete games on the year while allowing 98 hits and striking out 83 batters in 98.0 innings. Costello was just as affective at the plate as he batted .462 on the year while scoring 65 runs and driving in 69. Costello collected 22 doubles, a triple and 11 home runs on the year for a .733 slugging percentage and tied a NCAA Division II record by hitting safely in 13 straight at-bats in March. Graves and Costello are the first Blazers to be selected in the MLB draft since Robert Wachman was taken by the Cincinnati Reds in 2004.

Blazers Earn All-America Honors

2009-06-04

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State Blazers Matt Costello, Brandon Decker, Brandon Graves and Chase Blackwood were recognized for their outstanding play during the 2009 baseball season as the quartet received a variety of All-America honors Thursday. Costello, who batted a team-high .462 while driving in 69 runs, earned first team honors from Daktronics, as voted on by sports information directors, as a utility player while also being named to the organization's honorable mention list as a starting pitcher, where he compiled a 9-3 record and a 3.67 earned run average. Likewise, the junior earned second team honors on the Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association All-America teams. Costello counted 22 doubles, a triple and 11 home runs among his 97 hits while also scoring 65 runs. Decker earned a pair of first team nods as he was recognized as one of the nation's best outfielders by Daktronics and Rawlings/ABCA. The junior, who batted .402 while hitting a team-best 21 home runs, also earned second team honors from the NCBWA. Decker led VSU with 75 runs scored and 84 RBI while hitting six doubles and three triples on the season. Graves Earned third team All-America honors from Daktronics, the second straight season a VSU reliever has been honored. The senior tallied an 11-2 record and seven saves while leading Valdosta State with a 3.04 earned run average on the year. He led the Blazer squad with 85 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .260 batting average. Blackwood rounded out the honors by earning Honorable Mention All-America honors from the NCBWA. The senior endured a two-month slump during the season that limited his batting average to just .258, but tied with Decker with 21 home runs, the fourth-best total in the nation. He scored 61 runs on the year while driving in another 56. In order to be named to receive All-America recognition, a player must receive first-team All-Region honors from the respective organization. VSU's three All-America honorees and one honorable mention this season marks the schools most since the 1983 season, when four Blazers earned the recognition.

Blazers Fall 12-5 to Southern Arkansas

2009-05-17

MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Southern Arkansas scored five runs in the first inning and five more in the second as the Muleriders defeated Valdosta State 12-5 in an elimination game of the 2009 NCAA South Region Tournament Sunday afternoon at Mulerider Field. The Muleriders (52-10) wasted little time in getting on the board as Dane Lucas reached on a one-out single in the first and safely advanced to second when VSU third baseman Austin Smith committed a throwing error on a James Schroeder fielder's choice. Cannon Lester and Brandon Graves followed with back-to-back doubles that scored three runs while Jeffrey Meadows doubled two batters later to plate Graves. Nick Paschal closed out the first inning scoring with a single to left, scoring Meadows for a 5-0 SAU lead. Valdosta State (43-21) got two runs back in the top of the second as Clayton Cain and Smith opened the frame with base hits while Blaine Wilson was hit by a pitch to load the bases. After a fielder's choice erased Cain, Jon Koenigsfeld singled up the middle to score both Smith and Wilson, cutting the VSU deficit to 5-2. Southern Arkansas sent nine more batters to the plate in the bottom of the frame to build a 10-2 lead. Lester, Graves, Patrick Johnson and Meadows all collected running scoring hits in the frame as five straight Mulerider players reached base in the inning. Neither team scored over the ensuing four innings before Wilson hit his 14th home run of the year in the seventh to pull VSU to within 10-3. The home run was the 113th of the year for Valdosta State, giving the Blazers sole possession of fourth place in the NCAA Division II single season record book. SAU responded with runs in the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings while the Blazers tallied their final two in the ninth. Koenigsfeld and Chase Blackwood each tallied run scoring singles in the frame to close out the scoring. Nick Starrett (2-2) took the loss for Valdosta State as he allowed five hits and five runs, only two of which were earned, in an inning of work. Thomas Tripp surrendered five hits and five runs in the second before Shawn Keill went five inning for the Blazers and surrendered four hits, three over the course of the last two innings, and two runs. Brian Bird improved to 9-1 as he gave up 11 hits and five runs in nine innings of work. The righthander walked none and struck out three in the game. Cain collected three hits to lead VSU offensively while Koenigsfeld finished with two hits and three RBI. Graves and Meadows each tallied two hits for Southern Arkansas while three more batters finished with two each.

Blazers Eliminate Tampa 10-5

2009-05-16

MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Jon Koenigsfeld fell a home run shy of hitting for the cycle in leading No. 19 Valdosta State to a 10-5 victory over No. 10 Tampa in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at Mulerider Field Saturday afternoon. Tampa (39-17) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning when Mike Schwartz hit his 14th home run of the year. After a pair of ground outs to open the frame, Jose Jimenez drew a walk and scored as Schwartz hit a three-ball, two-strike pitch over the wall in right field to give the Spartans a 2-0 advantage. Valdosta State (43-20) got a run back in the bottom of the frame as Chase Blackwood singled with one out and moved to third on a Brandon Decker ground out. Matt Costello hit the first pitch he saw down the left field line for a single to plate Blackwood, cutting the UT lead to 2-1. Austin Smith's 15th home run of the year in the bottom of the second evened the game at 2-2 as the Blazers wasted a chance to take the lead in the frame. After Smith's home run, Logan Pierce reached on a single up the middle before Koenigsfeld sent the first pitch he saw into the left-center gap. Pierce rounded third on the play and fell while trying to hold up on the base. The throw to third on the play beat the VSU centerfielder to the bag for the second out in the frame. Decker tallied his first hit of the tournament in the bottom of the third as he greeted Tampa reliever Carmine Giardina with his 22nd home run of the year to put VSU in front 3-2, only to have the Spartans even the game in the top of the fourth. Devin Gonzalez doubled to right to open the frame and moved to third on a Jared Simon fly ball out before coming home when Garrett Maines singled down the left field line to knot the game at 3-3. Valdosta State scored in its fourth straight inning as it plated a two-out run in the fourth. Smith drew a walk to open the inning, but was erased when Blaine Wilson grounded into a force out. Wilson stole second and broke for third on a hit-and-run attempt by Koenigsfeld. The VSU leftfielder was forced to stop as Koenigsfeld delivered a sharp ground ball through the left-side of the infield, but was still able to easily score to put the Blazers back in front 4-3. The Blazers added three more runs in the fifth inning to push their advantage to 7-3. Sho Kohata singled to open the frame and two batters later moved to third when Decker singled up the middle. A Costello base hit to second scored Kohata and moved Decker to third. Costello advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored along with Decker as Clayton Cain singled through the left-side of the infield. Koenigsfeld pushed the Blazer lead to 10-3 in the bottom of the eighth as he tripled with the bases loaded. Costello singled to open the frame before being lifted for pinch runner Chaz Bagwell. Shawn Keill singled on a bunt to put two runners on before Smith laid down a sacrifice bunt to put both runners into scoring position. Pierce was intentionally walked to load the bases with two outs in the frame. Koenigsfeld sent the first pitch he saw from UT pitcher into the right-center gap to plate all three runners. Koenigsfeld singled, doubled and tripled while driving in four to lead Valdosta State at the plate. Costello also finished the contest with three hits while Decker recorded two. Ross Gusky (6-4) picked up the victory as he allowed six hits and three runs in five innings of work. Jeremy Forbus allowed seven hits and two runs over the final four innings to earn his first save of the season. Schwartz finished with two of Tampa's 13 hits while Jesus Barroso, Gonzalez and Simon all tallied two each. Giardina fell to 5-1 as he allowed five hits and five runs in two innings of relief. Valdosta State advances to Sunday's elimination game against the South Region's and nation's top-ranked team, Southern Arkansas. SAU defeated West Alabama 10-6 in the first game on Saturday to set up Sunday's 1:00 p.m. tilt.

Blazers to Hold Open Tryouts

2009-05-16

The Valdosta State baseball squad will hold open tryouts on Saturday, Maay 30 at Billy Grant Field. The tryouts will begin at Noon and is open to anyone wishing to try out for the VSU team. All participants in the baseball tryouts will be required to bring a copy of a physical that has been completed in the last six months. All four-year college students looking to transfer will also need a signed release from their current institution.

Blazers Fall 6-3 to Florida Southern

2009-05-15

MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Florida Southern used a six-run sixth inning to defeat Valdosta State 6-3 in the second round of the NCAA South Region Tournament at Mulerider Field Friday evening. After the two starting pitcher dominated the first five innings of the game, the Mocs (40-14) got on the board with one out in the bottom of the sixth when Zach Maggard hit a home run over the wall in centerfield, scoring Nick Stanley who had walked. Blazer starter Brandon Graves got a ground out for the next out in the frame, before FSC strung together three straight hits to score its next run. Andrew Grutka started the string with an infield single and moved to second when Braxton Chisholm singled through the left-side of the infield. Colin Kaline proceeded to collect a base hit to center to plate Grutka before Trae Gore walked to load the bases. Wade Kirkland followed with a single to right-center that scored Chisholm and Kaline to post Florida Southern to a 6-0 advantage. The Blazers (42-20) responded with three runs in the top of the seventh. With two outs in the frame, Brandon Decker was hit by a pitch and advanced to second as Blaine Wilson doubled down the left field line for VSU's second hit of the game. Jon Koenigsfeld drove both base runners home with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a Sho Kohata walk. The next batter, Robby Kuzdale, singled to left, scoring Koenigsfeld for the final run of the game. Florida Southern threatened early in the contest as it loaded the bases against Graves in the first inning and had a runner on third in the third, but came up empty both times. Meanwhile, VSU managed just three base runners through the first three innings as Kuzdale drew a pair of walks and Chaz Bagwell singled in the third. Valdosta State was held to just four hits in the game, its third-lowest total of the season as FSC starter Matt Zoltak also walked three while striking out 10 in six and two-thirds to improve to 2-4 on the year. Daniel Tillman recorded the final five outs, four via strikeout, to earn his 11th save of the year. Graves surrendered nine hits and walked five batters while striking out six in five and two-thirds to fall to 11-2 on the year. Gore, Robbie Shields and Kaline each tallied two hits to lead the Mocs at the plate. Valdosta State advances to Saturday%u2019s elimination game against Tampa. The game, which was originally scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Eastern, has been moved to 1:00 p.m. due to rain that is supposed to move into the Magnolia area later in the afternoon.

Blazers Down Barry 8-3

2009-05-14

MAGNOLIA, Ark. - Matt Costello was dominant on the mound and Valdosta State hit a pair of home runs as the seventh-seeded Blazers defeated second-seeded Barry 8-3 in the opening round of the NCAA South Region Tournament Thursday afternoon at Mulerider Field. Costello allowed eight hits and three runs, only two of which were earned, while walking none and striking out two in seven and two-thirds innings to improve to 9-3 on the season. The junior kept the Buccaneers (44-10) at bay as he allowed just one lead-off hitter to reach base, on a single in the second inning. Valdosta State (42-10) opened the scoring in the top of the second as Costello led off with a single and scored two batters later on Clayton Cain's 12th home run of the year that posted VSU to a 2-0 lead. VSU, ranked 19th nationally, pushed its lead to 3-0 in the third when Sho Kohata led off with a double. Chase Blackwood proceeded to hit a foul ball down the first base line that was caught by BU first baseman Yudelmis Hernandez, but Kohata was able to move to third on the play. Hernandez throw to third on the play got by Yan Gomes, allowing Kohata to score. The two teams traded runs in the fourth as Costello singled off the bag at first to open the frame and scored on a Blaine Wilson ground out while Hernandez hit his 22nd home run of the year to get Barry, the nation's third-ranked squad, on the board. The Blazers busted the game open in the seventh as they plated four runs, three coming on Blackwood's 22nd home run of the year. Wilson singled to open the frame and moved to second on a Jon Koenigsfeld single. Kohata collected a base hit up the middle to plate Wilson before scoring along with Koenigsfeld when Blackwood hit a line drive over the wall in left. The home run moved the Blazer catcher to within one of the VSU single season record of 23, which was set by Bobby McDonald in 1997. Gomes closed out the scoring with his 20th home run of the year in the eighth, a two-run shot that scored Danny Lima, who had reached on a Kohata error with one out in the inning. Kohata, Costello and Koenigsfeld all had two hits to lead Valdosta State. The Blazers two home runs in the game gave them 110 on the season, moving them into sixth place on the NCAA Division II single season record list. Brad McAllister took the loss as he allowed eight runs, seven of which were earned, and 10 hits in six and a third innings of work. Hernandes finished with three of BU's eight hits while Joel Keefe tallied two. Valdosta State advances to Saturday's winner's bracket game and will play the winner of the game between No. 3 West Alabama and No 6 Florida Southern. The game will be held at 8:30 p.m.

NCAA South Regional Central

2009-05-14

Check here throughout the weekend to follow the Blazers as they compete in the 2009 NCAA Baseball South Region Tournament. Saturday's Schedule Changed: Due to threatening weather that is due to hit the Magnolia, Ark. area during the late afternoon hours, Saturday's game times have been changed. See below for the updated times.

Tournament Schedule: (all times Eastern)

Thursday, May 14

Game 1 - No. 5 Lynn 11, No. 4 Tampa (10 inn.) Game 2 - No. 7 Valdosta State 8, No. 2 Barry 3 Game 3 - No. 6 Florida Southern 14, No. 3 West Alabama 7 Game 4 - No. 1 Southern Arkansas 14, No. 8 Stillman 1

Friday, May 15

Game 5 - West Alabama 14, Barry 9 Game 6 - Tampa 21, Stillman 8 Game 7 - Lynn 5, Southern Arkansas 4 Game 8 - Florida Southern 6, Valdosta State 3

Saturday, May 16

Game 9 - Southern Arkansas 10, West Alabama 6 Game 10 - Valdosta State 10, Tampa 5 Game 11 - Lynn 7, Florida Southern 3

Sunday, May 17

Game 12 - 1:00 pm: Southern Arkansas vs. Valdosta State Game 13 - 4:30 pm: Winner Game 12 vs. Florida Southern

Monday, May 18

Game 14 - Noon: Winner Game 13 vs. Lynn Game 15 - 3:30 pm: Winner Game 13 vs. Lynn (if necessary) Follow the Blazers on the Internet: Blazer fans can follow Valdosta State Fans throughout the tournament via the internet in three distinct ways. The entire 2009 NCAA South Region Tournament will be webcast over the internet, AT NO CHARGE TO THE VIEWER. In order to watch the webcast, visit the Southern Arkansas athletics website and click on the "Broadband" link next to the game currently in progress. All VSU games can also be heard live over the internet by visiting www.talk921.com and clicking on the "on air: Listen Live" link. Finally, fans can follow the play-by-play by clicking on the Live Stats link next to each game on the Southern Arkansas athletic website.

Blazers Earn Regional Recognitions

2009-05-13

VALDOSTA, Ga. - After leading Valdosta State to its first NCAA Regional appearance since 2002, four Blazers have received regional honors according to announcements made by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Wednesday. Three of the Blazers have been named to the Daktronics All-South Region team, led by pitcher/designated hitter Matt Costello, who was named the South's Player of the Year. Costello has batted .474 and counts 22 doubles, one triple and 11 home runs among his team-high 92 hits. The junior, who was named first-team All-South Region as a utility player and a starting pitcher, has scored 62 runs and driven in 67 on the season while holding a .768 slugging percentage. On the mound, Costello has tallied an 8-3 record and a 3.79 earned run average while striking out 81 batters in 90.1 innings. Costello was joined on the All-South Region first-team by outfielder Brandon Decker and relief pitcher Brandon Graves. Decker owns a .416 batting average and is tied for fourth nationally with 21 home runs. He has driven in a VSU single season record 83 runs while scoring a team-high 72. Graves is tied for second nationally with 11 victories, against just one loss, on the season and has also recorded seven saves. The senior leads Valdosta State with a 2.54 earned run average and has struck out 79 batters in 74.1 innings. Junior shortstop Jon Koenigsfeld was the final Blazer to earn regional honors as he was named to the South's ESPN the Magazine All-Academic team. Koenigsfeld has tallied a 4.00 grade point average as a Middle Education major and has batted .314 while starting 58 of VSU's 60 games this season. He has scored 47 runs while driving in 24 on the season. Both the All-Region and Academic All-District squads are voted on by the Sports Information Directors. By winning South Region honors, all four Blazers now move on to the national ballot. The Blazers open play in the 2009 NCAA South Region Tournament Thursday at 2:15 p.m. when they face Barry at Mulerider Field in Magnolia, Ark.

Blazers Repeat as GSC All-Sports Champs

2009-05-12

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Valdosta State repeated as the Gulf South Conference All-Sports Champions. West Florida took the women's award while the Blazers claimed the men's spot. Both teams were the first to repeat since Jacksonville State in 1992-93. Valdosta State is the first men's team to repeat since North Alabama in 1994-96. The Blazers are only the sixth men's team to repeat since the inception of the award. This marks VSU's sixth time to win the award. The red and black finished with 60 points while Harding came in second with 50. No other team broke the 50-point barrier. Men's tennis won the Gulf South Conference Championship to help the Blazers earn the award while basketball and baseball both finished second in the GSC. Football was third while golf finished fourth. The Lady Blazers finished fifth in the running for the All-Sports award.

Valdosta State Continues National Play

2009-05-12

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Lady Blazer tennis and softball along with Blazer baseball will all compete in national tournaments this weekend. Valdosta State's softball team travels to Huntsville, Ala. to face Alabama-Huntsville in a best two out of three series for the NCAA South Regional Championship and the right to go to the eight-team national tournament in Virginia. The games are scheduled for Friday at 4:30 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. if the third game is necessary. The Lady Blazers split with the Chargers in the only two games they played this season. Valdosta State won the first, 4-2, while UAH came back in the second to win 9-4. Lady Blazer tennis travels to Orlando this weekend for nationals. There are only 16 women's tennis teams left, and Valdosta State will start the tournament against Northwood at 4 p.m. Wednesday. If the red and black win, the Lady Blazers will face the winner of Montana State-Billings and Hawaii Pacific at 1 p.m. Thursday. In the case VSU wins that match as well, the team will compete against an opponent to be determined at 1 p.m. Saturday. The Lady Blazers have already beaten Hawaii Pacific, 6-3, March 29, but have yet to face any of the other teams. Blazer baseball will begin South Regional play against Barry, the Sunshine State Conference champion and second seed in the region, at 2:15 p.m. on Thursday. Southern Arkansas will host the tournament as the top seed in the region while VSU is the seventh seed. The tournament will run through Monday. Be sure to follow your Blazer and Lady Blazer action at www.vstateblazers.com or on Talk Radio 92.1.

Baseball Earns South Regional Bid

2009-05-10

VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State baseball will make its first appearance in the NCAA Region Tournament since the 2002 season, according to an announcement made by the NCAA Sunday evening. The Blazers, who finished the 2009 season with a 41-19 record, enter the NCAA South Regional as the No. 7 seed and will face No. 2 seed Barry, the Sunshine State Conference winner, Thursday at Mulerider Field on the campus of Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, Ark. The remainder of the South Regional field includes No. 1 Southern Arkansas, the Gulf South Conference champion, No. 3 West Alabama, No. 4 Tampa, No. 5 Lynn, No. 6 Florida Southern and No. 8 Stillman, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champion. The double-elimination tournament runs Thursday, May 14 through Monday, May 18. With a victory on Thursday, the Blazers will face the winner of the UWA-FSC contest while a loss will pit VSU against the loser of the game between the Tigers and Mocs. Game times for Thursday's opening round have yet to be set. Valdosta State and Barry played one time during the regular season, with the Blazers claiming a 7-1 victory in Winter Park, Fla. on February 3. The game was just the third of the year for VSU and was the first of the season for the Bucs. Valdosta State features one of the top offenses in the country as the Blazers bat .335 as a team and lead the nation with 108 home runs, the seventh-best total in NCAA Division II history. Not to be outdone, the Barry offense batted .348 during the 2009 season and finished the year tied for second in home runs with 105. The baseball team's invitation to NCAA Regional Tournament play marks a milestone for Valdosta State as 10 of its 11 sports have competed in NCAA Regional play during the 2008-09 school year.

Blazers Fall in GSC Championship Game

2009-05-08

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Hayden Simpson limited Valdosta State to just three hits to lead Southern Arkansas to a 5-0 victory over Valdosta State in the championship game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Friday at USA Stadium. Southern Arkansas (49-9) scored the game's first runs in the top of the fifth as it utilized the speed of rightfielder Patrick Johnson. Johnson drew a one-out walk in the frame and stole second to move into scoring position. Jeffrey Meadows proceeded to single through the right-side of the infield to score Johnson. After a flyout, Gavan McCauley doubled down the left field line to drive home Meadows for a 2-0 SAU lead. The Muleriders added their third run in the sixth as Dane Lucas led off with his third hit of the game. Two batters later, Cannon Lester single to right to move Lucas to third, allowing him to score on a Johnson sacrifice fly to give Southern Arkansas a 3-0 lead. Southern Arkansas closed out the scoring with a pair of runs in the eighth inning. Valdosta State (41-19) threatened in the fourth inning, but saw a double play end the threat. Logan Pierce reached on an infield single, moved to second on a wild pitch and third on a throwing error on the wild pitch. Brandon Decker proceeded to draw a walk, but Matt Costello hit into a first base to short stop double play to end the inning. The victory marked the second of the tournament for Simpson over the Blazers as the righthander improved to 11-1 on the year. Simpson, who was named tournament Most Outstanding Player, walked three and struck out six VSU batters in eight innings of work. Ross Gusky allowed eight hits and four runs while striking out four in seven innings to fall to 5-4 on the year. Chase Blackwood, Clayton Cain and Austin Smith were all named to the All-Tournament team. Valdosta State now awaits word on if the Blazers will advance to the NCAA South Regional. The NCAA announcement on the 2009 regional play will be made Sunday between 5:00 and 8:30 p.m.

Eighth Inning Rally Equals VSU Victory

2009-05-07

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Valdosta State scored three runs in the top of the eighth inning to defeat West Florida 7-6 in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament at USA Stadium Thursday afternoon. Valdosta State (41-18) trailed 6-4 entering the eighth before Sho Kohata drew a walk to open the frame. After a fly out, Chase Blackwood hit a low line drive over the wall in left to even the game, his fifth home run of the tournament and 21st of the year. After a strike out for the second out of the frame, Matt Costello singled up the middle and scored from first when Austin Smith hit a single to right. Greg Pron, the UWF rightfielder overran the ball, allowing Costello to score for the winning run. West Florida (33-22) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it plated a pair of runs. Kyle Brown drew a walk to open the Argonaut half of the frame and moved to second on a Pron ground out. Tyler Hastings proceeded to deliver a two-out single through the right-side of the infield before VSU starter Tanner Fudge balked Hastings to second. Reliever Shawn Keill came on and surrendered a single to Cody Campbell that scored Hastings for a 2-0 UWF lead. Campbell pushed the West Florida lead to 3-0 in the third inning as he doubled with two out to score Pron, who had singled to open the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, before Brandon Decker got the Blazers on the board in the fourth as he led off with his 21st home run of the year, a shot off the scoreboard in left that cut the Argonaut lead to 3-1. The Blazers evened the game at 3-3 in the top of the fifth on Clayton Cain's 11th home run of the season. Robby Kuzdale doubled to open the frame and two batters later scored when Cain hit a round tripper over the wall in right-center. The Argonauts regained the lead in the bottom of the frame as it plated a pair of runs. Hastings doubled with one out in the frame and Campbell drew a walk before Jack Materne doubled to left to plate Hastings. Zach Cates proceeded to ground out to first to score Campbell to give UWF a 5-3 lead. Valdosta State got a run back in the top of the seventh on a Smith run-scoring single. Blackwood singled to open the frame and moved to second when Cain reached on a catcher's interference call. Two batters later, Smith singled through the right-side of the infield to score Blackwood. The Blazers proceeded to load the bases, but were unable to score another run as West Florida maintained a 5-4 lead. UWF immediately pushed its lead back to two runs in the bottom of the seventh as Lee Huggins led off with a triple down the right field line and scored on a Hastings single to give West Florida a 6-4 advantage. Smith recorded three hits to lead VSU offensively while allowing three hits and striking out four in three innings of work to earn his second victory in as many days to improve to 2-3 on the year. Blackwood, Cain, Costello and Wilson all recorded two each. Valdosta State advances to Friday's championship day and will play at 10:30 a.m. VSU's opponent in the game will be determined by the winner of Thursday's contest between Southern Arkansas and Delta State. If Southern Arkansas wins Thursday's game, the Blazers and Muleriders will play for the championship on Friday, with VSU needing to defeat SAU in a doubleheader. If Delta State wins, the Blazers and Statesmen will play at 10:30 a.m., with the winner playing Southern Arkansas at 2:00 p.m.

Blackwood Home Run Propels VSU

2009-05-06

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Chase Blackwood's 20th home run of the season propelled Valdosta State to a 9-8 victory in 10 innings over Harding in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Wednesday. After Harding (32-25) evened the game with three runs in the bottom of the ninth, Bison reliever Dakota Garnder recorded the first two outs of the 10th inning, bringing Blackwood to the plate. The senior took a high curveball for a ball one before sending the next pitch deep over the fence in left field for his second roundtripper of day and fourth in the last two days. For the second straight day, Blackwood got Valdosta State (40-18) on the board in the first inning with a two-run home run. Sho Kohata led off the contest with a walk and scored as Blackwood hit his 19th home run of the year and third of the tournament. Harding starter Troy Keith proceeded to walk Brandon Decker and induce a fielder's choice by Matt Costello before walking Clayton Cain as well. Cain was thrown out trying t advance to second on a wild pitch, but Keith walked Austin Smith and Blaine Wilson to load the bases. However, a Logan Pierce ground out ended the inning without any further damage. The Bison got a run back in the bottom of the second on a two-out single by Will McDonald. With one out in the frame, Tyler Thompson singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. After a strikeout, McDonald delivered a single up the middle to score Thompson and cut the VSU advantage to 2-1. The Blazers stranded base runners at third base in both the third and fourth innings before scoring five runs in the fifth. Decker walked to open the frame and moved to third as Costello singled to right before coming home on a Cain single up the middle. A Smith ground out scored Costello, who had advanced to third on the Cain base hit, while Cain scored as Wilson doubled to left to chase Keith from the mound. Pierce greeted D.A. Kremer with a single to left to score Wilson before using his speed to manufacture the final VSU run of the frame. The centerfielder stole second, advanced to third on a Jon Koenigfeld ground out and stole home to give Valdosta State a 7-1 lead. Wildness by Kremer led to VSU's eighth run in the sixth. With two out, Costello doubled before Kremer hit Cain and Smith. The Bison reliever proceeded to throw a pitch over the head of Wilson, allowing Costello to score for an 8-1 Blazer lead. Alex Darby hit his 16th home run of the year in the bottom of the sixth while Harding got two more runs in the seventh. Kevin Ganus singled to open the inning and moved to second two batters later when Charles Bradley reached on a bunt single. J.D. Glenn proceeded to hit a ground ball to short, but Koenigsfeld was unable to handle the ball, allowing Ganus to score. Chase Presley followed with a double down the left field line to plate Bradley. Ross Gusky came on for the Blazers and walked Ryan Moody and Darby to force home Glenn, cutting the VSU advantage to 8-5. The Bison evened the game with three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Glen and Presley singled to open the frame before Moody drew a walk to load the bases. Darby followed with a single to center to score Glen and Presley. A sacrifice bunt moved both base runners into scoring position before Thompson was intentionally walked. Smith, who relieved Gusky after the Moody walk, induced a ground ball, but Ganus beat the throw to first to avoid the double play and allow Moody to score the tying run. Smith, in his first appearance on the mound since March 14, allowed one hit and struck out two in two innings of work to improve to 1-3 on the season. VSU starter Jeremy Forbus allowed four hits and a run in four innings of work. Gardner (1-3) took the loss as he allowed three hits and one run in three and two-thirds innings. Valdosta State's 40 victories marks the first time the Blazers have won 40 games in a season since 2002 and just the third time since VSU joined the GSC prior to the 1983 season. The Blazers advance to tomorrow's elimination game against West Florida to be played at 2 p.m.

Blazers Pound Ouachita Baptist 16-1

2009-05-05

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Valdosta State hit five home runs, including three in a 10-run fifth inning, to defeat Ouachita Baptist 16-1 in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Tuesday at USA Stadium. Chase Blackwood got Valdosta State (39-18) on the board first as he hit his 17th home run of the year in the top of the first inning. Robby Kuzdale drew a walk to open the frame and scored as Blackwood followed with a towering shot over the wall in left-center for a 2-0 Blazer lead. Ouachita Baptist (37-20) got a run back in the top of the second when Derek Dibbens led off with a double to left-center and moved to third on a Rudy Jovanovski ground out. A wild pitch allowed Dibbens to score to cut the VSU lead in half while a great relay throw later in the inning preserved the Valdosta State advantage. After Dibbens scored, Kevin Bird reached on an infield single and Luke Hardcastle doubled down the left field line. However, Blaine Wilson got the ball in quickly and Austin Smith delivered a perfect throw home to retire Bird. The Blazers quickly got the run back in the bottom of the second when Chaz Bagwell reached on a bunt single and scored on Kuzdale triple to right-center before a record-breaking home run by Smith in the third posted VSU to a 5-1 advantage. With one out in the frame, Matt Costello singled through the right-side of the infield, snapping a 0-for-12 slump, and scored as Smith hit a shot deep over the wall in left. The home run was Valdosta State's 100 round-tripper of the season, establishing a new Valdosta State record for home runs in a season. A Clayton Cain double that scored Kuzdale pushed the Blazer lead to 6-1 in the fourth before VSU sent 14 batters to the plate and added 10 more runs in the fifth. Wilson singled with one out and moved to second on a passed ball before scoring on a Brandon Decker single to right. Decker moved all the way to third on the play as Bird let the ball get by him and stole home for the second Valdosta State run of the frame. Jon Koenigsfeld followed with a single through the right-side of the infield and scored as Sho Kohata followed with a triple off the wall in right. A Kuzdale double plated Kohata before Blackwood hit his second home run of the game, again a shot to left-center. Cain followed with a single and scored when Costello hit his 11th home run of the year while Decker also hit a two-run homer in the frame to give VSU a 16-1 advantage. Brandon Graves allowed five hits and one run to improve to 11-1 on the season. The senior walked one and struck out eight in recording his second complete game in as many outings. Will Gowdy allowed six hits and five runs, all of which were earned, in three innings to fall to 10-3. Kuzdale and Cain recorded three hits each to lead Valdosta State offensively while Blackwood finished the contest with two hits and four RBI. Costello, Smith and Decker also tallied two hits each. Valdosta State advances to Wednesday's 1:00 p.m. elimination game against Harding.

Blazers Fall 8-6 to Southern Arkansas

2009-05-04

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Southern Arkansas broke a late inning tie with a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to defeat Valdosta State 8-6 in the first round of Gulf South Conference Tournament at USA Stadium Monday. Southern Arkansas (45-9) jumped to an early lead as it plated a run in the bottom of the third inning. Nick Paschal singled to open the frame and appeared to give the Muleriders the lead as Gavan McCauley followed with a double to right. However, Sho Kohata took a relay from Brandon Decker and threw a strike to home plate that beat Paschal to the bag. McCauley moved to third on the throw home on the play and scored a batter later when Andrew Whittington singled up the middle, giving SAU a 1-0 advantage. Valdosta State (38-18) evened the game at 1-1 in the top of the fourth without the benefit of a hit. Logan Pierce drew a walk to open the frame and moved to second as Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch. After a Decker strikeout, Matt Costello loaded the bases with a free pass, allowing Pierce to score on a Blaine Wilson ground out. Brandon Graves' seventh home run of the year in the bottom of the fourth put Southern Arkansas back in front by a run while a Paschal two-out single in the frame posted the Muleriders to a 3-1 advantage. With two out in the frame, Jeffrey Meadows reached on an infield single and stole second, allowing him to score as Paschal blooped a base hit to shallow right. VSU answered with two runs in the fifth to once again knot the game. Austin Smith walked to open the frame and advanced to second as Kohata followed with VSU's first hit of the game. A Jon Koenigsfeld sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base, allowing Smith to score on a wild pitch. Kohata came home as Pierce reached on a fielding error by James Schroeder at third. Blackwood and Decker proceeded to tally base hits, but Pierce was thrown out at home on the Decker hit to end the inning with the scored tied at 3-3. The Blazers threatened in the sixth as they loaded the bases with only one out, but came away without a run as a double play ended the inning, and stranded a runner at third in seventh before Southern Arkansas regained the lead in the bottom of the seventh. With one out in the frame, McCauley reached on a fielding error by Koenigsfeld. After a fly out, Dane Lucas singled to chase Costello from the mound. Schroeder proceeded to hit his 19th home run of the year, an opposite field shot over the wall in right, to give the Muleriders a 6-3 lead. VSU again left the bases loaded in the eighth as it stranded 11 base runners in the game. The Muleriders plated their final two runs in the eighth while the Blazers got a three-run home run from Clayton Cain in the top of the ninth to close out the scoring. Costello allowed eight hits and five runs, three of which were earned, while striking out five in six and two-thirds innings to fall to 8-3 on the season. SAU's Hayden Simpson allowed six hits and three runs while striking out six and walking six in seven and a third innings to improve to 10-1. Blackwood tallied two of VSU's eight hits in the game to lead the Blazers offensively while four different SAU players tallied two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, May 5 when it plays Ouachita Baptist at 6:15 p.m. in a tournament elimination game.

Six Blazers Named All-GSC

2009-04-30

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Six Valdosta State baseball players have been named to the 2009 All-Gulf South Conference team in a vote of the league coaches, according to an announcement made by the league office Thursday. Junior Matt Costello led the Blazers as he became just the fourth Blazer to earn East Division Player of the Year. Costello currently leads the nation with a .494 batting average and is tops in the conference in on-base percentage with a .580 on-base percentage. Costello counts 21 doubles, one triple and 10 home runs among his 85 hits on the season and has scored 56 runs while driving in 65. The West Barnstable, Mass. native also tallied an 8-2 record and a 3.76 earned run average on the mound. He struck out 76 batters while allowing just 82 hits in 82.3 innings. Costello became the first GSC East Player of the Year to earn All-GSC honors at two positions as he was a unanimous choice at designated hitter while also earning first-team honors as a starting pitcher. Junior Brandon Decker joined Costello as a unanimous choice the first team squad after leading the conference with 19 home runs during the season. Decker batted .429 on the year while setting a Valdosta State single season record with 79 runs batted in. He scored a team-high 67 times and counted six doubles and three triples among his 87 hits. Senior Blaine Wilson earned first-team All-GSC honors in the outfield for the second straight year after batting .337 with 13 home runs. The Santa Maria, Calif. native scored 32 times on the season and drove in 45 runs. Senior relief pitcher Brandon Graves rounded out the VSU first-team honorees after tallying a 10-1 record and saves on the season. Graves had a team-low 2.67 earned run average and struck out 71 batters while allowing 69 hits in 67.1 innings. Two Blazers earned second-team All-Gulf South Conference, led by catcher Chase Blackwood, who earned the honor for the second straight-year. Blackwood endured a month long slump during the year and batted just .255 during the regular season, but was second on the squad with 16 home runs and scored 53 runs while driving in 43. He was joined by third baseman Austin Smith, who batted .344 while counting 14 doubles, a triple and 14 home runs among his 66 hits. Smith scored 35 runs and drove in 48 more on the year.

Blazers Down No. 13 Georgia College 15-5

2009-04-28

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. - Valdosta State closed out its 2009 regular season with an upset of No. 13 Georgia College as the Blazers defeated the Bobcats 15-5 in non-conference baseball action at John Kurtz Field Tuesday evening. Valdosta State (38-17) used a pair of first inning home runs to grab the lead. Sho Kohata led off the game with a single to left before Chase Blackwood got the Blazers on the board with his 15th home run of the year to left. Brandon Decker proceeded to reach on a base hit and scored on a Clayton Cain double, who came home when Blaine Wilson homered to give VSU a 5-0 advantage. Georgia College (35-14) got a run back in the second when Kyle Allen drew a bases loaded walk and another run in the third on a Buddy Elmore single only to have the Blazers add three more runs in the fourth. Austin Smith singled to open the inning and moved to third as Logan Pierce followed with a double to left. A Jon Koenigsfeld sacrifice fly plated Smith and Pierce scored on a Kohata triple to right. Blackwood collected his third RBI of the game with a double to left-center that drove home Kohata for an 8-2 VSU advantage. A Pierce run-scoring single in the seventh plated Matt Williams, who was pinch-running for Cain, while Valdosta State added three more runs in the eighth. Shawn Keill drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in the first run while Robby Kuzdale followed with a single to plate Pierce and Decker. The Bobcats got three runs back in the bottom of the eighth with a pair of bases loaded hits. Allen tallied the first hit, a one-out single to left that plated Andrew Evans, while Derek Johns singled to center with two outs to score Matt Pitts and Chandler Snell. Koenigsfeld hit his second home run of the season in the ninth while Blackwood added his second of the game, a shot to center that scored Kohata, Jeremy Forbus allowed one hit and a walk while striking out six batters in four and two-thirds innings of relief to improve to 3-1 for the Blazers. Cain, Blackwood and Smith tallied three hits each to lead Valdosta State at the plate while Kohata, Blackwood and Pierce finished with two each. Matt Costello finished the game 0-of-6 at the plate and had his batting average fall to .494, the first time it has been below .500 for the first time since the first week of March. Valdosta State's four home runs in the game brought its 2009 total to 97, tying the second-highest total in school history. The Blazers are now just two shy of the school record of 99 set during the 1985 season. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, May 2 when it opens play in the Gulf South Conference Tournament in Millington, Tenn. The Blazers, the East Division's No. 3 seed, face Southern Arkansas, the West Division's No. 2 seed as well as the nation's second-ranked team, at 7:30 p.m. in USA Stadium.

Blazers Blank West Florida 10-0

2009-04-26

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Brandon Decker was a perfect four-of-four at the plate and drove in five runs to lead Valdosta State to a 10-0 Gulf South Conference victory over West Florida in baseball action Sunday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. Valdosta State (37-17, 11-7) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it built a 1-0 lead. Sho Kohata opened the Blazer half of the frame with a single up the middle and moved to second when Logan Pierce laid down a sacrifice bunt. Decker proceeded to double down the right-field line, scoring Kohata for the first run of the game. Blaine Wilson added his 12th home run of the season for VSU in the second before Decker used a record-setting home run in the third to push the Valdosta State lead to 4-0. After Pierce walked to open the frame, Decker sent his 19th home run of the year over the wall in centerfield. The two runs batted in on the play gave him 77 on the 2009 season, establishing a new VSU single season record. Decker recorded his fourth RBI of the day in the fourth inning as he singled home Kohata, who had walked and moved to third on a Pierce single, while a Kohata sacrifice fly in the fifth pushed the VSU lead to 6-0. A pair of Lee Huggins throwing errors in the seventh allowed Valdosta State to close out the scoring and the game. With one out in the frame, Austin Smith singled and moved to second as Huggins throw to first on the play was over the head of Zach Cates at first. After a fly ball moved Smith to third, a Jon Koengisfeld ground ball appeared to get West Florida (31-21, 8-10) out of the inning, but Huggins throw on the play pulled Cates off the bag. Smith scored on the error while Koenigsfeld came home a batter later when Kohata doubled to left. Kohata moved to third on the throw home on the play and Pierce drew a walk to put runners at the corners. A wild pitch plated Kohata while Decker doubled to straight-away centerfield to score Pierce, ending the ball game. Matt Costello surrendered five hits and two walks while striking out six batters in seven innings of work to improve to 8-2 for VSU. Kevin Johnson fell to 5-2 as he allowed four hits and four runs in three innings on the mound. Kohata finished the day with two hits, two RBI and three runs scored for the Blazers while Pierce and Smith scored two runs each. Cates finished the day with three of the Argonauts five hits while Tyler Hastings and Brenton Goebel collected one each. Valdosta State closes out its 2009 regular season Tuesday, April 28 when it travels to Milledgeville, Ga. to face No. 14 Georgia College. The game, which is a make-up of a rain out from earlier in the season, is slated for a 4:00 p.m. first pitch.

Blazers Split with West Florida

2009-04-25

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State rolled to a 10-0 victory in the first game of a doubleheader, but had a late-inning comeback bid fall short while falling 6-5 in the second game in splitting a pair of Gulf South Conference games with West Florida at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Clayton Cain and Brandon Decker got Valdosta State (36-17, 10-7) on the board first in the first game of the day as they hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the second inning. With one out in the frame, Cain sent a 1-1 pitch over the scoreboard in left-center field for his ninth roundtripper of the year. Two pitches later, Decker tallied his team-leading 18th dinger of the year as he homered over the wall in centerfield to post VSU to a 2-0 lead. Chase Blackwood added his 14th home run of the season in the third to push the Blazer lead to 3-0 while Valdosta State took advantage of a two-base error by Argonaut first baseman Zach Cates in the sixth to push its advantage to four runs. Decker led off the sixth and hit a shot to Cates, who was unable to handle the ball, allowing Decker to reach second. A sacrifice bunt moved Decker to third, allowing him to score on a Jon Koenigsfeld single. A Matt Costello single plated Blaine Wilson and Blackwood in the seventh while a Blackwood sacrifice fly that plated Koenigsfeld, a Costello double that scored Sho Kohata and Wilson and a Cain single that drove home Costello closed out the scoring in the eighth. Brandon Graves improved to 10-1 on the year as he surrendered just five hits and no walks while striking out three in eight innings for VSU's first complete game shutout of the year. Kyle Ramsey surrendered six hits and three runs for the Argonauts (31-20, 8-9) as he fell to 3-3. VSU again scored first in the second game as it plated a single run in the bottom of the first. With one out in the frame, Logan Pierce reached on a throwing error by Cates, who moved to third base for the second game. A ground out moved Pierce to second, allowing him to score as Costello followed with a single to left. The Argonauts avoided further damage when Costello, who moved to second on the throw home on his base hit, was thrown out at the plate when Cain singled to left. West Florida got its first run of the day in the top of the third as it took advantage of a pair of wild pitches by VSU starter Steve Turner. With two outs in the frame, Jack Materne singled and moved to third on the two Turner wild tosses. Greg Pron proceeded to single to center, scoring Materne to tie the game at 1-1. The Argonauts took the lead in the fourth off of Cates' first home run of the season. Cody Campbell singled to open the frame and scored when Cates followed with a shot over the wall in left field. After a walk and a pair of outs, Jimmy Boswell doubled to left-center, plating Kyle Brown to give UWF a 4-1 lead. West Florida added an unearned run in the fifth to push its lead to 5-1 before the Blazers pounced for four runs in the bottom of the sixth to even the game. Koenigsfeld started the rally with a double down the left field line and scored when Brown was unable to handle a Kohata ground ball at second. After Pierce fielder's choice, Decker and Costello walked to load the bases before a Cain base on balls plated Pierce. Shawn Keill proceeded to hit a pinch-hit single through the left-side of the infield to score Decker and Costello, evening the contest at 5-5. The Argonauts reclaimed the lead in the top of the seventh. Materne drew a walk to open the frame and moved to third as Pron singled to right-center. After a foul out, Cates hit a fly ball to foul territory in right field. Decker caught the ball, but his throw home was just late, allowing Materne to score for a 6-5 UWF lead. Ryan Sorce earned the victory for West Florida as he struck out two and did not allow a hit in an inning and two-thirds to improve to 5-2. Ross Gusky surrendered a hit and two runs, only one of which was earned, in two and a third innings to fall to 5-3. Koenigsfeld led the Blazers offensively on the day as he tallied four hits in six at-bats. Costello, Decker and Cain all tallied three hits on the day. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a single game on Sunday. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m. at Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Top SCAD 13-5

2009-04-22

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 16 hits, including three home runs, to defeat SCAD 13-5 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday afternoon. Valdosta State (35-16) scored first as it plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning. Jon Koenigsfeld singled to open the frame and moved to second as Sho Kohata executed on a hit-and-run. Both base runners moved up a base on a wild pitch, allowing them to score when Brandon Decker singled down the right field line for a 2-0 Blazer lead. SCAD (33-17) struck back for a run in the top of the fourth when Mark Stewart Jr. doubled and moved to third on a passed ball. Patrick Braswell followed with a sacrifice fly to score Stewart Jr. to slice the Bee deficit to 2-1. Decker added three more RBI in the fifth inning as he hit his 17th home run of the season. Koenigsfeld, who singled to open the inning, and Kohata, who reached on a bunt single, also scored on the play to push the VSU lead to 5-1. The Bees added a second run on a Patrick Braswell two-out single in the sixth while Blaine Wilson hit his 11th home run of the year in the bottom of the frame. Kohata added double that scored Koenigsfeld and scored when Logan Pierce singled in the inning to push the Valdosta State advantage to 8-2. A pair of Clayton Cain errors in the seventh gave SCAD a run in the top of the seventh while Matt Costello added his 10th roundtripper of the season in the bottom of the inning. The home run marked the fifth Valdosta State player to hit double digit home runs on the season, establishing a new school record. Wilson added a run-scoring double later in the frame. The Bees added their final two runs in the top of the eighth while an Austin Smith sacrifice fly and two runs on a pair of SCAD errors in the bottom of the inning closed out the scoring. Jeremy Forbus (2-1) earned the victory for VSU as he struck out five and allowed just one hit in a pre-determined three innings of work as the starter. Ricky Vaughn (3-2) took the loss as he allowed 10 hits and eight runs, all earned, in five and two-thirds innings. Kohata tallied three hits and three runs scored in five at-bats for the Blazers while Decker was two-of-four with five RBI. Koenigsfeld also finished with two hits, in as many at-bats, and scored three runs while Costello was three-of-five on the day. Braswell led the Bees with two hits on the day. Valdosta State returns to action this weekend when it plays its final Gulf South Conference regular season game of the year. The Blazers host West Florida for a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday in Billy Grant Field while the two teams conclude the three-game series with a single game at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Pierce Named GSC Player of the Week

2009-04-22

Valdosta, Ga. - For the third time this season a Valdosta State player has been named the Gulf South Conference baseball Player of the Week as Logan Pierce earned the honor Wednesday. Pierce batted .714 last week while collecting hits in 10 of his 14 at-bats. After hitting just one home run in his first year and a half in a VSU uniform, Pierce hit two last week, including a grand slam against GSC foe Montevallo on Saturday. He scored eight runs and drove in 10 while counting a double and a triple among his 10 hits. Pierce is now batting .329 on the season and has 22 RBI and 27 runs scored. He has hit all three of his career home runs this year while also counting eight doubles and two triples among his 28 hits.

Blazers Sweep Falcons

2009-04-19

MONTEVALLO, Ala. - After two wins Saturday, Valdosta State completed the full sweep of the Falcons with a 16-3 victory Sunday. The Blazers scored in all but one inning of a seven-inning game that ended early due to Valdosta State's lead. Logan Pierce led everyone on the day with six runs batted in and four runs scored. He brought in four with a grand slam and two with another home run on a four of five performance. Also going four of five was Brandon Decker. He notched four RBIs and three runs. As fans are beginning to expect, Matt Costello was a perfect four of four on the day with a walk. He finished with three RBIs and three runs scored. After hitting three home runs Saturday, Austin Smith was three of four Sunday with one RBI and one run scored. Steve Turner pitched the full seven innings played. He struck five out, walked one and gave up five hits with three earned runs. Just like the two previous games, the Blazers put up runs in the first inning Sunday. This time, it was three to start the game. A strong series of base hits scored Sho Kohata, Pierce and Decker. Valdosta State put up two more runs in the second. Pierce hit his first home run of the day, a two-run shot that brought in Chase Blackwood. Montevallo struck back in the bottom of the second with three runs, but the Blazers topped that in the third with four runs. It was Pierce again. He hit a grand slam to put the Blazers up, 9-3, in the third inning. In the fourth, Costello doubled to start the inning. He advanced to third on a wild pitch and took home on another one. He would see home plate again in the sixth inning. With one man on, Costello went long for a two-run homer to claim a 12-3 Blazer lead with one inning left. The Falcons would see no rest in the seventh inning as the Blazers posted four more runs. With two men on base, Decker homered. Then, on a Shawn Keill single, Costello came home to put the final nail in the coffin. After the VSU defense held Montevallo to just a fly out, ground out and a strikeout in the final frame, the game would end, 16-3. Valdosta State will next be in action at home against SCAD at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Blazers Clip Falcons' Wings

2009-04-18

MONTEVALLO, Ala. - Valdosta State put up 25 runs in two wins against Montevallo Saturday. The Blazers won, 14-3, and, 11-1, to claim the series before game three at 1 p.m. Sunday. Despite the heavy scoring day, Head Coach Greg Guilliams attributed much of the momentum behind the wins to his starting pitchers, Matt Costello and Brandon Graves. "The key to today was our starting pitching. Graves and Costello gave us both really good starts," said Guilliams. "When you're able to do that everything else just comes together." Valdosta State hitting definitely came together. Brandon Decker was three of four with four runs batted in during game one while Austin Smith was three for five with four RBIs in game one. He followed it up with four more RBIs in game two on a two for four performance with one run. Also in game two, Costello was a perfect three for three with three runs scored and two RBIs while Logan Pierce was three of four with two runs and two RBIs. The Blazers used a big inning in the third to earn a win in game one against the Falcons. After a run from Robby Kuzdale in the first, VSU put up seven in the third to make it 8-0 early. Jon Koenigsfield and Chaz Bagwell were both on base when Chase Blackwood brought them in with a double down the left field line. Then Blaine Wilson singled to bring in Blackwood. Later in the inning with Wilson at third and Costello at second, Decker went long for a three-run shot. In the next at bat, Smith also homered before Montevallo could end the inning. In the fifth inning, Decker brought in Costello again for Valdosta State's ninth run of the game. With the score, 9-0, it was the bottom of the fifth before the Falcons would score their first run of the day. The Blazers answered with their 10th run in the sixth inning. Bagwell scored on a single from Wilson. Montevallo put up one run in the seventh, but the Blazers scored again in the eighth. Pierce made his way to third, and, on a Blackwood ground out, scored. Then, in the ninth, Smith hit his second home run of the game. It was a three-run shot that put the score to 14-2. The Falcons could only muster one run in the ninth to end game one, 14-3. After Pierce scored in the first inning off a Costello single, the Blazers again put up a big inning in the third. Pierce brought in Koenigsfield. Smith followed it up with a grand slam for his third home run of the day. By the time the damage was done, the Blazers had racked up five runs in the inning. In the fourth, after holding Montevallo without a run, Sho Kohata came home off a Pierce triple. Montevallo went on to score their first run of the game in the fourth, but the Blazers came back with three more runs in the fifth inning. Blackwood singled to center field to bring home Costello. After Shawn Keill scored on a Montevallo error, Blackwood made his way home off a sacrifice fly from Kohata. To add to the onslaught, Costello homered in the sixth. The Blazers went on to close out the seventh without allowing a run to complete the second game with a score of 11-1. Game 1 Box Score Game 2 Box Score

Late CSU Rally Too Much for VSU

2009-04-15

COLUMBUS, Ga. - Valdosta State dropped to 31-16 on the season with a final inning loss to Columbus State. After leading the game for eight innings, the Blazers gave up a two-run homer in the ninth to fall, 6-5, Wednesday night. Five pitchers saw time for VSU in the game with Ross Gusky doing most of the heavy lifting. He pitched for 5.1 innings and gave up five hits and two runs. He allowed three walks but struck out four. Jeremy Forbus, Thomas Tripp, Shawn Keill and Matt Costello combined to give up six hits and four runs. The foursome each struck out one Cougar, but Costello was charged with the loss to drop to 6-2 on the season. Brandon Decker, Logan Pierce and Jon Koenigsfield led the offense with matching two of four performances. Pierce notched two runs batted in and scored one himself. Decker scored two runs while Koenigsfield scored one. Chase Blackwood scored the other run on a one for three performance. After two outs to start the game, Decker started the Blazers off with a single up the middle. Valdosta State would go on to load the bases, and Decker would score on a wild pitch. That would be the only run for the Blazers in the first. In the bottom of the first, Columbus State scored an unearned run to tie the game. Valdosta State came back to load the bases in the second when Decker hit a pop fly the Cougar pitcher could not handle. On the dropped ball, Koenigsfield and Pierce scored to claim a 3-1 lead. The game would go scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning. The Cougars had men at the corners and both stole bases. One took second and the other took home to pull within one. Valdosta State would answer though. VSU loaded the bases yet again when a double from Pierce down the left side drove in Decker and Blackwood for a 5-2 lead with two and a half innings to play. The CSU bats caught fire in the eighth inning. With a man on first, the Cougars homered to pull within one. But with the tying run on second and two down, Keill struck out the CSU batter to keep hold of the one-run lead. Valdosta State could not capitalize on the opportunity for more runs in the top of the ninth, and it would prove fatal. In the bottom of the ninth, Brad Bowen singled to represent the tying run on first. Wes Adkins, the CSU leader in home runs, swung at the first pitch he saw from Costello for a walk-off two-run homer to end the game. The Blazers will look to rebound at 2 p.m. Saturday in a doubleheader at Montevallo. The teams will finish up the three-game series at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Blazers Top Albany State 14-8

2009-04-14

ALBANY, Ga. - Jon Koenigsfeld hit Valdosta State's fifth grand slam of 2009 to lead the Blazers to a 14-8 victory over Albany State in non-conference baseball action at Golden Ram Park Tuesday evening. VSU (31-15) never trailed in the game as it scored the first eight runs of the game. Chaz Bagwell opened the scoring with a run-scoring single in the top of the second inning before the Blazers added seven more runs, including four on Koenigsfeld's first home run of the season, in the third. Chase Blackwood opened the third with a single to center and advanced to second on a passed ball before scoring on a Blaine Wilson single. Matt Costello proceeded to double to right to plate Wilson and scored when Clayton Cain singled. Brandon Decker singled and Austin Smith reached on a bunt single to load the bases, setting up Koenigsfeld's grand slam to left to put Valdosta State up 8-0. The Blazers added three more runs in the fourth, on a Koenigsfeld sacrifice fly, a Sho Kohata run-scoring single and a Robby Kuzdale double, before Albany State (26-15) got four runs in the bottom of the frame to cut the Valdosta State lead to 11-4. VSU added two more runs in the fifth as Costello and Cain scored, but the Golden Rams responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. After ASU added three more runs in the seventh, Valdosta State closed out the scoring with a run in the eighth when Kohata scored on a Kuzdale sacrifice fly. Nick Starrett started and allowed six hits and four runs while striking out one in three-plus innings of work. Steve Turner came on in the fourth and pitched one and two-thirds innings, allowing two hits and one run while Brandon Graves improved to 8-1 after giving up five hits and three runs in two and a third innings. Smith tallied four hits and two runs scored to lead VSU offensively. Blackwood, Wilson, Costello and Cain all tallied two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 18 when it opens a three game Gulf South Conference series at Montevallo with a doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m.

North Alabama Downs Blazers

2009-04-11

VALDOSTA, Ga. - North Alabama withstood a late-inning comeback bid by Valdosta State to defeat the Blazers 12-7 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Valdosta State (30-15, 6-6) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it plated a single run. Sho Kohata walked to open the frame and Robby Kuzdale was hit by a pitch before Brandon Decker flew out. Clayton Cain was also hit by a pitch to load the bases allowing Kohata to score when Matt Costello followed with a double to right-center. The Lions (30-15, 4-5) avoided further damage as Kuzdale was thrown out at home on the play and Austin Smith flew out to left to end the inning with VSU leading 1-0. North Alabama took the lead in the top of the third with three runs. With one out, Collin Murphy singled and advanced to second when Jeffrey Ritter was hit by a pitch. Chase Porch loaded the bases as he reached on a fielder's choice on a sacrifice bunt, allowing Cole Mitchell to collect a pair of RBI when he singled through the left-side of the infield to score Murphy and Ritter. Trey Pollard proceeded to double to right, driving home Porch for a 3-1 UNA lead. Decker hit his 13th home run of the year in the bottom of the frame to pull VSU back to within a single run only to have the Lions add two more runs in the fourth. Kyle Jones doubled to open the frame and scored as Qualon Millender tripled to right-center while Millender scored as Murphy singled to give North Alabama a 5-2 lead. The Lions took advantage of two Blazer errors in the fifth to add three more runs to their lead before Austin Smith hit his 11th home run of the third, scoring Cain who had previously walked, to cut the VSU deficit to 8-4. VSU got three more runs in the seventh thanks to a pair of North Alabama errors. Jon Koenigsfeld reached on a throwing error to open the frame before Kohata hit a ground ball that bounced off the glove and over the head of the Lion second baseman. After a pop up for an out, Decker hit his second home run of the day to pull VSU to within 8-7. Valdosta State threatened in the eighth, but Lion reliever Mitch Handley pitched out of trouble to secure the lead. Blaine Wilson led off the inning with a single and moved to second when Chase Blackwood drew a four-pitch walk. Koenigsfeld attempted to move both base runners up a base with a sacrifice bunt, but the throw to third on the play just beat Wilson to the bag for the first out. Handley proceeded to strike out the next two batters to end the inning. North Alabama scored its final runs in the top of the ninth on two-out hits by Ritter and Porch and a VSU fielding error. Chad Boughner allowed four hits and four runs while striking one in six innings of work to improve to 7-2 on the season. Handley struck out two in the final two inning to earn his eighth save. VSU starter Nick Starrett allowed seven hits and five runs in three and two-thirds innings to fall to 2-1. Decker finished with two hits and four RBI to lead VSU offensively on the day while Wilson also tallied two hits. Murphy was four-of-six to pace the Lions while Pollard collected three hits. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 14 when it travels to Albany, Ga. to face the Golden Rams of Albany State at 5:00 p.m.

Blazers Sweep North Alabama 8-2, 4-0

2009-04-10

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State won game one 8-2 and game two 4-0 to sweep a Gulf South Conference doubleheader from No. 28 North Alabama Friday at Billy Grant Field. Valdosta State (30-14, 6-5) opened the scoring of game one in the bottom of the first inning as it strung together three straight singles to plate a run. Brandon Decker began the rally with a two-out base hit up the middle before moving to second on a Clayton Cain single to left. Matt Costello proceeded to get a hit off the glove of Lion second baseman Dewayne Gunn to plate Decker and give VSU a 1-0 lead. The Blazers pushed their lead to 2-0 in the third inning on a Cain two-out single that plated Robby Kuzdale before North Alabama (29-15, 3-5) scored two in the fourth. With two out in the frame, Gunn singled and moved to third when Kyle Jones collected a base hit. Qualon Millender walked to load the bases before Gunn and Jones scored on a Collin Murphy single to right-center to tie the game at 2-2. Blaine Wilson hit his 10th home run of the season in the bottom of the fourth to put Valdosta State back in front by a run before the Blazers pushed their lead to 4-2 in the fifth. Decker and Cain walked with one out in the inning before Costello singled to left to drive home Decker. Valdosta State added two more runs in the sixth before pushing their advantage to 7-2 in the seventh on a Chase Blackwood RBI single. A Cain run-scoring single in the eighth closed out the game's scoring. Brandon Graves gave up seven hits and two runs, both of which were earned, while walking three and striking out four in five innings of work to improve to 7-1 for VSU. Ryan Miller surrendered seven hits and six runs while walking three and striking out three in five and a third innings to fall to 6-1. The Blazers also got on the board first in game two as they plated a single run in the bottom of the third inning. Jon Koenigsfeld was hit by a pitch to open the frame and moved to second when Sho Kohata drew a walk. Robby Kuzdale reached on a bunt single to load the bases before Blackwood tallied a single to left to drive home Koenigsfeld. Millender, the UNA leftfielder, kept the Blazers from scoring more in the inning as he threw Kohata out at home on the play and, after Kuzdale and Blackwood executed a double steal, made a diving catch on a Wilson fly ball to hold Valdosta State to a 1-0 edge. VSU added two more runs to its lead in the fourth. Costello singled to open the inning and was sacrificed to second before scoring on a Koenigsfeld two-out double to right-center. Kohata proceeded to single to right to drive home Koenigsfeld, giving Valdosta State a 3-0 advantage. Decker hit his 12th home run of the year in the bottom of the sixth to close out the scoring. Steve Turner allowed three hits and walked two while striking out three in five innings to improve to 4-3 on the season. Costello, who recorded the final six outs of the first game, did the same in the second contest to earn his second save of the season. The lefthander struck out five and allowed three hits in his four innings of work on the day. Justin Fleming surrendered seven hits and four runs in six innings to fall to 5-3. Costello collected hits in five of his seven at-bats to lead VSU offensively on the day while Blackwood, Cain and Decker finished with three hits each. Kyle Jones went four-for-six to lead the Lions while Jeffrey Ritter tallied three hits on the day. The two teams conclude the three game series with a single game Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The game will feature "Take a Kid to a Game" at Billy Grant Field as all kids aged 13 and under will be admitted free of charge with a paying adult. An Easter Egg Hunt will also be held both during and after the contest.

Blazers Top Georgia Southwestern 5-4

2009-04-07

AMERICUS, Ga. - Valdosta State built a 5-2 lead and withstood a Georgia Southwestern comeback bid as the Blazers defeated the Hurricanes 5-4 in non-conference baseball action at Hurricane Field Tuesday. Georgia Southwestern (14-26) got on the board first as it scored single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. Bud Long singled to open the inning and stole second before scoring on a Daniel Stokes base hit in the fourth while Drew Camp singled and was sacrificed to second before using a pair of wild pitches by Blazer reliever Ross Gusky to score and give GSW a 2-0 lead. The Blazers (28-14) grabbed the lead in the sixth by scoring three runs. After Jon Koenigsfeld singled to open the inning, Sho Kohata reached on a fielder's choice and advanced to second on a throwing error on the play before Robby Kuzdale also reached on an error. Brandon Decker followed with a base hit that plated Kohata and moved up a base when Matt Costello was hit by a pitch. Blaine Wilson proceeded to double to left field to plate two score two runs and give VSU a 3-2 advantage. Valdosta State pushed its lead to 5-1 in the seventh. With one out, Koenigsfeld walked and advanced to third on a Kohata base hit. After a pitching change, Kuzdale doubled to left to plate both base runners to post the Blazers to a four-run lead. The Hurricanes got a run back in the eighth as Chris Lingham singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch before Cody Adams added a home run in the bottom of the ninth for the final run of the game. Gusky (5-2) picked up the victory after allowing a hit and a walk while striking out three in two and two-thirds innings of work. Costello earned his first career save after allowing one run in an inning and two-thirds. Kohata tallied two hits to lead Valdosta State offensively. The Blazers return to action when they open a three-game Gulf South Conference series against North Alabama with a doubleheader on Friday. The first game will begin at 3:00 p.m. while Saturday's single game, which will feature %u201CTake a Kid to a Game%u201D as well as an Easter Egg Hunt, will begin at 1:00 p.m.

Blazers Top West Georgia 9-1

2009-04-05

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used strong performances by Matt Costello both on the mound and at the plate to defeat West Georgia 9-1 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. West Georgia (11-22, 2-4) scored first as it plated a two-out run in the top of the second inning. Cody Jackson began the rally by drawing a walk and moved to second as Seth Reber singled off the glove of a diving Austin Smith at third base. Ben Lillis proceeded to single to right-center to plate Jackson for a 1-0 Wolf lead. Valdosta State (27-14, 4-5) used a swing of the bat by Brandon Decker to take the lead in the third. Chad Smith was hit by a pitch to open the frame before Robby Kuzdale drew a walk. Sho Kohata reached on a base hit single to load the bases, bringing Decker to the plate. The junior worked the count to 2-1 before sending a ball over the wall in centerfield. Costello was hit by a pitch before Clayton Cain singled to right. Reber, the UWG right fielder, bobbled the ball, allowing Costello to score on the play for a 5-1 VSU lead. Costello hit his seventh home run of the season in the fifth while Valdosta State added two more runs in the sixth. Jon Koenigfeld singled to open the frame and was sacrificed to second. A ground out moved him to third before Kohatawalked to put two men on base. A wild pitch allowed Koenigsfeld to score and moved Kohata to score, allowing him to come home on a base hit by Decker. A throwing error on the play allowed Decker to move to second and Costello brought him home with a base hit to right to give VSU a 9-1 advantage. Costello picked up the victory for Valdosta State as he allowed five hits and just one run in seven innings of work. He walked one batter and struck out seven as he improved to 6-1 on the season. Chris Ferguson surrendered eight hits and eight runs in five and two-thirds innings as he fell to 1-5. Costello collected hits in all three of his at-bats to lead VSU offensively on the day. Decker finished with two hits and five RBI while Kohata also tallied two hits. Lillis finished with two of West Georgia%u2019s six hits. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 7 when it travels to Americus, Ga. to face Georgia Southwestern at 5:00 p.m.

Baseball Splits With West Georgia

2009-04-04

VALDOSTA, Ga. - West Georgia claimed a 6-5 come-from-behind victory in the first game while Valdosta State rolled to a 17-3 win in the second game of a Gulf South Conference doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. West Georgia (11-21, 2-3) scored a pair of runs in the top of the second to open the scoring in the game one. With two outs in the frame, Ben Lillis singled and moved to second as Eric Melton drew a walk. A B.J. Smith ground ball brought home Lillis while Chris King drove home Melton with a single to left. Valdosta State (26-14, 3-4) gained the lead in the fifth as it scored three runs. Jon Koengisfeld doubled to open the frame and scored as Brandon Decker followed with a single. A Matt Costello fielder's choice erased Decker, but Blaine Wilson followed with his 11th home run of the season, a shot over the wall in right-center that gave VSU a 3-2 lead. The Wolves got a Cody Jackson home run in the top of the sixth to even the game at 3-3, but the Blazers responded with two more runs in the bottom of the frame to regain the lead. Robby Kuzdale led off with his sixth home run of the season for the first run while Koenigsfeld walked and eventually scored on a Wilson hit through the left-side of the infield, posting Valdosta State to a 5-3 advantage. Smith singled with one out in the seventh and scored on a King double to cut the UWG deficit to 5-4 before getting two more in the eighth to regain the lead. With one out in the frame, Seth Reber walked and moved to second as Ryan Sever singled through the left-side of the infield. Lillis followed with a single up the middle to plate Reber. Pinch-hitter Andrew Parrish proceeded to single to right to score Sever to give West Georgia a 6-5 advantage. Ross Gusky (4-2) took the loss for the Blazers as he allowed four runs in four innings while Alex Wilson gave up just one hit over the final three and two-thirds innings to improve to 5-2 for UWG. VSU scored first in the second game as it plated four runs in the bottom of the first. Logan Pierce drew a walk to open the frame and moved to second on a Koenigsfeld ground out. Decker followed with a bloop single to left that advanced Pierce to third, allowing him to score on a Costello single. A passed ball moved both base runners up, allowing them to score when Clayton Cain singled to left. The leftfielder bobbled the ball to allow Cain to move to second on the play while Austin Smith doubled to right to bring him home and give Valdosta State a 4-0 lead. Wilson hit his 12th home run of the year in the third, a towering shot off the house in left-center field that plated Costello, to add two more runs to the VSU lead. Cain proceeded to draw a walk and scored when Smith doubled to right-center to give the Blazers a 7-0 lead. The Blazers sent nine men to the plate in the fourth and scored four more runs. Wilson drove in two of the runs with a bases loaded single while Shawn Keill added another with a sacrifice fly. Smith drove home the final run with a base hit to right that gave VSU an 11-0 lead. Valdosta State got a two-run from Costello in the fifth and a scored four more in the sixth. The Wolves closed out the scoring with two runs in the seventh on a Mike Arnold pinch-hit double. Brandon Graves gave up six hits and three runs, only one of which was earned, while striking out seven batters in six-plus innings to improve to 6-1. Jimmy Lamourt allowed 12 hits and 11 runs in four innings to fall to 0-3. Costello finished with four hits, four runs scored and four RBI on the day to lead VSU offensively. Wilson tallied five hits and seven RBI while Koenigsfeld scored five runs. The two teams conclude the three game series with a single game on Sunday. The contest, originally scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. first pitch, has been moved to 12:15 p.m. due to forecasted rain in the Valdosta area.

Baseball at Georgia College Washed Out

2009-04-01

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State's baseball game in Milledgeville against Georgia College has been cancelled due to rain. The game has been rescheduled for Tuesday, April 28 at 4:00 p.m.

West Alabama Sweeps Blazer Baseball

2009-03-29

LIVINGSTON, Ala. - West Alabama staged a pair of comebacks to sweep Valdosta State 6-5 and 12-11 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Tartt Field Sunday. The Blazers (25-13, 2-4) opened the scoring in the first inning of game one when Matt Costello singled home Sho Kohata before Brandon Decker and Austin Smith hit solo home runs in the fourth to push the VSU lead to 3-0. The Tigers (23-8, 8-0) struck for six two-out runs in the seventh to grab the lead. With one out, Sam McCormack walked and Bryan Mason singled before VSU starter Costello (5-1) recorded the second out of the inning on a fly ball. Jeremy Finney proceeded to single to plate McCormack and Rob Dahlberg doubled in both base runners before scoring on a Nick wheeler single. Kevin Deese closed out the scoring with his 13th home run of the season to give UWA a 6-3 lead. Valdosta State attempted its own comeback in the ninth inning, but fell just short of tying the game. With one out, Shawn Keill was hit by a pitch and moved to second when Kohata walked. Blaine Wilson singled to load the bases, but Costello recorded the second out on a fly ball. Decker followed with a single to right that scored two base runners and Clayton Cain was hit by a pitch to reload the bases, but Smith struck out looking to end the game. The Blazers wasted little time in grabbing the lead in the second game as they scored nine runs in the first inning. Kohata and Robby Kuzdale walked to open the game before Decker hit his second home run of the day, and 10th of the year, to put VSU up by three. Costello and Wilson followed with base hits and Cain walked to load the bases before a Smith strikeout recorded the first out of the inning. Chase Blackwood drew a walk to force in Costello and Jon Koenigsfeld drove home Wilson with a base hit before Kohata was hit by a pitch to plate Cain. Kuzdale drove in two more runs with a base hit and Kohata scored on a wild pitch to give VSU a 9-0 advantage. West Alabama got two runs back in the bottom of the first and one more in the second before striking for nine in third to gain the lead. Just one of the runs was earned in the inning as VSU committed two errors in the frame while Wheeler drove in the final three runs with a home run to centerfield that gave the Tigers a 12-9 advantage. Valdosta State closed out the scoring in the top of the sixth as Decker reached on a lead-off single and came home when Costello followed with his sixth home run of the year. Brandon Graves fell to 5-1 for VSU as he allowed four hits and eight runs, four of which were earned, in two and two-thirds innings. Decker was six-of-nine at the plate with three runs and three runs batted in on the day to lead the Blazers offensively. Costello picked up three hits and three RBI in eight at-bats. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, April 1 when it travels to Milledgeville, Ga. to face Georgia College at 4:00 p.m.

West Alabama Shuts Down Blazer Bats

2009-03-28

LIVINGSTON, Ala. - Mike Schmitt allowed just two hits in seven and two-thirds innings to lead West Alabama to a 5-1 victory over Valdosta State in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Tartt Stadium Saturday evening. The Blazers (25-11, 2-2) scored first as they plated a single run in the top of the first inning. With one out Logan Pierce drew a walk and moved to third as Matt Costello followed with a single to right field. A balk by Schmitt brought Pierce home for a 1-0 VSU lead. The Tigers (21-8, 6-0) scored a pair of two-out runs in the second to take a 2-1 lead. With one out and a runner on first, Jody Morgan hit into a fielder's choice and moved to third as Bryan Mason hit a double into right-center. Dallas Rogers proceeded to hit a single to left that plated both base runners. Jeremy Finney followed with a walk and Rob Dahlberg reached on an infield single to load the bases, but Valdosta State starter Steve Turner induced a ground out to get out of the inning without further damage. West Alabama upped its advantage to 3-1 in the fifth. Blazer reliever Ross Gusky walked Dahlberg to open the inning and the Tiger first baseman stole second before moving to third on a throwing error by Chase Blackwood on the play. Nick Wheeler proceeded to reach on a fielder's choice in which Dahlberg got back into third safely and Kevin Deese walked to load the bases. A Douglas Frazier fielder's choice plated Dahlberg to push the Tiger lead to two runs. After the Costello single in the first, Schmitt retired the next 16 batters before giving up a single to Pierce with two outs in the sixth. A balk moved Pierce to second and Costello was hit by a pitch, but Schmitt struck out Brandon Decker to end the threat. Dahlberg figured into UWA's fourth run of the game as he doubled to lead off the seventh and moved to third on a wild pitch. A Wheeler ground out allowed Dahlberg to score to post the Tigers to a 4-1 lead. Valdosta State threatened again in the top of the eighth, but again came up empty. Robby Kuzdale walked with one out and moved to third when pinch hitter Clayton Cain reached on a fielding error with two outs. However, UWA reliever Colter Millican got Costello to ground out to end the inning. West Alabama closed out the scoring in the eighth as Mason reached on a leadoff double and eventually scored on a Gusky wild pitch. Schmitt struck out 11 batters and walked just two to improve to 7-1 on the season. Dahlberg finished with three of West Alabama's seven hits and scored two of the four runs. Turner surrendered four hits, two walks and two runs while striking out six in four innings to fall to 3-3. Gusky walked three and gave up three hits and three runs while striking out six in four innings. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Blazers Down Albany State 5-1

2009-03-25

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State scored five runs over the final three innings to defeat Albany State 5-1 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. Albany State (20-11) opened the scoring in the top of the fourth inning as it plated a single run. B.J. Stewart reached on an infield single to open the frame and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt before a ground out moved him to third. Dax Spriggs followed with a double to left-center, scoring Stewart for a 1-0 Golden Ram lead. Matt Costello got the Blazers (25-10) on the board in the sixth when he hit his fifth home run of the season, a shot over the wall in left-center field. Austin Smith followed with a triple to right and Brandon Decker walked before Blaine Wilson doubled to plate Smith. A Jon Koenigsfeld sacrifice fly scored Decker to give VSU a 3-1 advantage. Clayton Cain added his eighth home run of the year in the seventh to push the Blazers lead to 4-1 while a Sho Kohata sacrifice fly in the eight closed out the scoring. Nick Starrett started for the Blazers and surrendered five hits and a run in five and two-thirds innings. Jeremy Forbus (1-1) earned the victory as he did not give up a hit in an inning and a third. Wilson collected two of Valdosta State%u2019s seven hits in the game while Costello finished the day 1-of-2 at the plate. Larry Johnson allowed three hits and three runs in a third of an inning to take the loss for Albany State. Gilberto Amaronte tallied two hits to lead ASU offensively. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 28 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series with a doubleheader at No. 20 West Alabama. First pitch is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. EDT.

Costello Named GSC Player of the Week

2009-03-24

VALDOSTA, Ga. - For the second time this season, Valdosta State junior Matt Costello has been named the Gulf South Conference Player of the Week, according to an announcement made by the league office Tuesday. Costello batted .542 last week while leading the Blazers to a 4-1 record. He began the week by going a perfect four-for-four at the plate and driving in two runs as VSU defeated No. 26 North Georgia 11-2 on Tuesday. The next day, the designated hitter tallied two hits and two RBI to lead VSU to a 12-11 victory over the Saints. Costello remained hot over the weekend as he led Valdosta State to a 2-1 mark against GSC foe Alabama-Huntsville. He began the series with three hits, two runs scored and three RBI in an 11-9 VSU victory before being held hitless in a 2-0 Blazer loss. The West Barnstable, Mass. native rebounded by tallying hits in four of his five at-bats while scoring four runs and drivining five as VSU claimed the series%u2019 rubber game 19-9. He doubled his season home run in the game as he hit two in the contest while also adding a double. Costello scored seven runs and drove in 12 on the week while counting three doubles and two home runs among his 13 hits. He owned a .917 slugging percentage on the week while reaching base 57.7 percent of his plate appearances. Costello is now batting .526 on the season, having collected 50 hits in his 95 at-bats. He has scored 32 runs and driven in 40 while counting 15 doubles, one triple and four home runs among his hits for a .832 slugging percentage. Costello also owns a .598 on-base percentage as he has drawn eight walks and been hit by a pitch nine times. Costello and the Blazers continue their season Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. when they host Albany State in Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Pound Chargers 19-9

2009-03-22

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Valdosta State hit six home runs as the Blazers defeated Alabama-Huntsville 19-9 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Joe Davis Stadium. VSU (24-10, 2-1) got the scoring started in the top of the first inning as Robbie Kuzdale led off the game with his fourth home run of the season. Two batters later Brandon Decker walked and scored when Matt Costello followed with his third home run of the year, a shot to left-center that gave Valdosta State a 3-0 lead. The Blazers added another run in the second as Costello hit a run-scoring double that plated Kuzdale before the Chargers (18-7, 1-4) got six runs in the bottom of the frame to grab their only lead of the game. Jordan Parker recorded the big hit of the inning as he delivered a double that plated two base runners and then scored the final Alabama-Huntsville run of the inning on a George Washington single that gave the Chargers 6-4 lead. VSU responded with four runs in the fourth to regain the lead, including Kuzdale's second lead-off home run of the game. Chase Blackwood proceeded to double and scored when Decker singled before Costello tallied his second home run of the day, a shot to center that posted Valdosta State to an 8-6 lead. The Blazers added five more runs in the fifth, all coming with two outs in the frame. With one out, Jon Koenigsfeld singled and moved to second when Kuzdale singled to left. After a Blackwood out, Decker doubled to score both base runners and Costello was intentionally walked. After a pitching change, Clayton Cain doubled to plate Decker and scored along with Costello when Blaine Wilson singled, giving VSU a 13-6 advantage. UAH got a run back in the bottom of the fifth only to have VSU score three more runs, on Blackwood's team-leading 13th home run of the year in the sixth. The Chargers also scored two runs in the eighth, but Cain hit his seventh home run of the year in the ninth, plating Costello who had singled to open the frame, while Sho Kohata hit an RBI triple later in the frame to close out the scoring. Costello finished the day with four hits, four runs and five runs batted in in five at-bats while Kuzdale was four-for-six with five runs scored. Decker and Kohata had three hits each as the Blazers tallied a season-high 24 on the day. The sixth home runs marked the third time this season Valdosta State has tied the school record for home runs in a game. Brandon Graves came on in relief with one out in the fourth and surrendered seven hits and three runs, two of which were earned, while striking out four in three and two-thirds innings to improve to 5-0 on the season. Washington led Alabama-Huntsville with four hits while Parker and Shannon Anderson had three each. Joe Dunlap (2-2) took the loss after surrendering 10 hits and eight runs in three and two-thirds innings. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 25 when it returns home to Billy Grant Field to host Albany State at 4:30 p.m.

Blazers Split Doubleheader with Chargers

2009-03-21

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Valdosta State used a ninth inning rally to claim game one 11-9 before falling 2-0 to Alabama-Huntsville in the second game of a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader at Joe Davis Stadium Saturday. The Blazers (23-10, 1-1) trailed 9-7 entering the final inning of game one before scoring four runs for the victory. Logan Pierce walked to open the frame before Shawn Keill collected a pinch hit double to put runners on second and third. Sho Kohata followed with a single to plate both base runners and moved to second when Chase Blackwood reached on a fielding error on a sacrifice bunt attempt. A Brandon Decker sacrifice bunt moved both base runners up a base before Matt Costello tallied a single to right that scored two runs to give VSU an 11-9 advantage. Valdosta State opened the scoring with a single run on a Costello RBI single in the third only to have the Chargers (18-6, 1-4) respond with three runs in the bottom of the frame. Jordan Parker accounted for all three runs as he hit a triple that plated two base runners before scoring on George Washington single to give UAH a 3-1 advantage. The Blazers responded with a run in the fourth before Alabama-Huntsville added two more runs in the bottom of the fourth to push its advantage to 5-2. Valdosta State added two more runs in the fifth and one in the sixth, but UAH scored one in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh to build a 9-7 lead. Nick Starrett improved to 2-0 on the season as he recorded the final out of the eighth inning. Brandon Graves allowed just one walk in the bottom of the ninth to earn his seventh save of the year. The second game proved to be a pitcher's duel as neither team hit the ball out of the infield through the first three innings. VSU drew just one walk during the span while the Chargers got an infield single and a walk. Decker got the first Valdosta State hit with two outs in the fourth while Blaine Wilson gave the Blazers their best scoring chance in the fifth. The leftfielder singled to open the frame and moved to second on a wild pitch before moving to third on an Austin Smith fly ball to right. However, Blackwood and Pierce struck out to end the rally. Alabama-Huntsville scored the only runs of the game in the bottom of the frame as it took advantage of a Kohata error. A fielder's choice and a walk put two runners on before Jovan Pickett was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Thomas Tripp relieved VSU starter Steve Turner and walked the next batter to force in a run while Ryan McCrory reached on Kohata's fielding error with two outs for the second run. Turner allowed just one hit, but walked three batters in four and a third innings of work to fall to 3-2 on the season. Wilson and Decker had four hits each to lead VSU while Costello finished the day 3-for-9. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. in Joe Davis Stadium.

Smith lead VSU to 12-11 Win over North Georgia

2009-03-18

DAHLONEGA, Ga. - Valdosta State rallied on two occasions to defeat No. 26 North Georgia 12-11 in 10 innings in non-conference baseball action at Stein Stadium Wednesday afternoon. After VSU (22-9) scored a run on a Matt Costello RBI single in the top of the first inning, the Saints (15-13) tallied three in the bottom of the frame on a Jordan Erisman three-run home run. The Blazers got a run back in the second as Chase Blackwood led off with a home run only to have John David Burgess respond with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the inning to once again push the NGCSU lead to two runs. The North Georgia lead grew to 5-2 in the third and, after Jon Koenigsfeld scored for VSU in the fourth, to 6-3 in the fifth before Valdosta State staged its first comeback bid by scoring three two-out runs in the sixth. Koenigsfeld singled with one out in the frame and moved to third as Sho Kohata tallied a two-out hit. Robbie Kuzdale walked to load the bases while Brandon Decker followed with a hit that plated both Koenigsfeld and Kohata. Costello followed with his second run-scoring base hit of the day to drive home Kuzdale and tie the score at 6-6. The Blazer surge was short lived as the Saints scored five runs in the bottom of the inning to regain the lead. However, Austin Smith got VSU back to within three runs with his eighth home run of the year in the seventh before Valdosta State scored three more in the top of the ninth to even the game at 11-11. Blackwood walked to open the ninth and moved to second on a passed ball before advancing to third when Koenigsfeld reached on an error two batters later. After a pop up, Kohata walked to load the bases, allowing both Koenigsfeld and Blackwood to score on a Kuzdale single. Kohata also scored as Decker followed with a base hit. Smith gave VSU its first victory of the season when trailing after eight innings as he added his second home run of the day in the 10th for the deciding run. Decker led the Blazers with three hits on the day while Smith, Costello and Koenigsfeld all tallied two hits each as Valdosta State finished with 13 in the game. Costello came on in relief in the ninth and recorded the final six outs to improve to 5-0 on the season. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 20 when it opens Gulf South Conference play with a doubleheader at Alabama-Huntsville beginning at 3:00 p.m.

Blazers Top No. 26 North Georgia 11-2

2009-03-17

DAHLONEGA, Ga. %u2013 Valdosta State used an eight-run fourth inning to defeat No. 26 North Georgia 11-2 in non-conference baseball action at Stein Stadium Tuesday. Each team scored a run in the second before the Blazers (21-9) sent 13 batters to the plate in the fourth. Shawn Keill reached on an error to open the frame before Matt Costello singled with one out. Brandon Atkins walked to load the bases and Keill scored on a Sho Kohata single while Costello came home on a Robbie Kuzdale base on balls. Jon Koenigsfeld followed with a two-run double and scored along with Kuzdale when Brandon Decker singled. After a pitching change, Blaine Wilson and Keill singled to once again load the bases, allowing two runs to score as Costello collected his second hit of the inning, giving VSU a 9-1 advantage. Wilson walked with the bases loaded in the fifth to force in Kohata, a repeat of how Valdosta State scored its first run in the second, while North Georgia (15-12) got a Brad Hall home run in the sixth. Atkins hit a sacrifice fly in the eighth that plated Keill to close out the scoring. Costello collected hits in each of his four at-bats, including a double, as well as two runs batted in to lead Valdosta State at the plate. Kohata also had two hits and two RBI as well as two runs scored for VSU. Thomas Tripp came on in the top of the fifth inning and allowed two hits and a run while striking out three to improve to 2-0 on the season. Hall tallied two of the Saints%u2019 six hits on the day while Blake Hobby took the loss after allowing four hits and eight runs in three and a third innings. The two teams conclude the two-game series Wednesday at Stein Stadium beginning at 5:00 p.m.

Blazers Split with Flagler

2009-03-14

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State got a strong pitching performance in the first game before struggling on the mound in the second game as the Blazers split a doubleheader with Flagler Saturday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. VSU won the first game 15-2 before falling 9-7 in the finale. Matt Costello (4-0) allowed just three hits and two unearned runs in the first game of the day as he struck out eight in 7.0 innings of work. He was relieved by Tanner Fudge who gave up two hits and a walk while striking out one in the final two innings. VSU (20-9) never trailed in the first game as the scored in the bottom of the first inning when Robbie Kuzdale walked and stole second before moving to third on a Brandon Decker base hit. A Costello fielder's choice brought Kuzdale home for a 1-0 VSU lead. The Blazers pushed their lead to 3-0 in the third inning before Flagler (8-16) got two unearned runs in the fourth. However, VSU responded with four runs in the bottom of the frame, including RBI singles by Decker and Clayton Cain to push its advantage to 7-2. Blaine Wilson added his fifth home run of the season in the fifth while the Blazers closed out the scoring with seven runs, including a grand slam by Costello, in the seventh. Valdosta State again scored first in the second game as Sho Kohata singled and scored on Decker's eighth home run of the season, but Flagler responded with four runs in the top of the second to gain the advantage. The first two Saint batters in the second singled before Kirby Johnson was hit by a pitch to load the bases. A ground out scored the first run of the game before Taylor Mathis singled to plate the second. Another ground out scored another run while Cale Owen doubled in the final run to give FC a 4-2 advantage. VSU got a run back in the bottom of the second, on a Wilson double, and regained the lead in the fourth with three more runs, including two on Wilson's fourth home run of the week, to take a 7-4 lead, but Flagler responded with four runs in the fifth to grab the lead for good. Kuzdale added a VSU home run in the fifth while the Saints closed out the scoring with a run in the sixth. Shawn Keill took the loss for Valdosta State as he fell to 2-2 on the season. Wilson collected four hits and four runs batted in on the day to lead the Blazers while Kohata and Decker finished with three hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, March 17 when it opens a two-game series at North Georgia at 4:00 p.m.

Blazers Calm Hurricanes 8-5

2009-03-11

AMERICUS, Ga. - Valdosta State jumped out to a 6-2 lead and withstood a Georgia Southwestern comeback bid to defeat the Hurricanes 8-5 in baseball action at Hurricane Field Wednesday evening. GSW (10-14) got on the board first as it scored a run in the third. Drew Camp walked to open the frame before moving to second on a passed ball. A sacrifice bunt moved Camp to third, allowing him to score on a Chris Lingham ground out for a 1-0 Hurricane lead. VSU (19-8) responded with two runs in the top of the fourth to grab the lead. Clayton Cain and Austin Smith reached on back-to-back singles to open the frame before Matt Costello doubled to plate Cain. Smith was thrown out at home while trying to score on a wild pitch that moved Costello to third while the Blazer designated hitter eventually scored on a second wild pitch to give Valdosta State a 2-1 advantage. Georgia Southwestern responded with a run in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game before the Blazers scored four runs in fifth to grab the lead for good. Brandon Atkins walked to open the inning before being lifted for pinch runner Sho Kohata. Kohata stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a Chase Blackwood single. Brandon Decker proceeded to draw a walk while a wild pitch moved Blackwood to third, allowing him to score on a Cain single. Smith followed with a double to plate Decker while Cain scored on a Costello ground out to give VSU a 6-2 lead. The Hurricane pulled back to within a single run in the bottom of the sixth. Lingham singled to open the frame and moved to third on a Shane Doyle double. A walk loaded the bases before Lingham scored on a fielder's choice. After a strikeout, an error allowed Doyle to score while Camp drove in the final run with a base hit. VSU closed out the scoring with two runs in the eighth. Costello singled to open the frame and was sacrificed to second before scoring on a Kohata base hit. Kohata moved to second on the throw home on the play and stole third, allowing him to score on a wild pitch. Costello struck out in his first at-bat to end his consectutive hits streak at an NCAA Division II record-tying 13 at-bats. He finished with two hits in five at-bats while also scoring two runs and driving in two more. Blackwood and Cain also tallied two hits while Smith finished with a team-high three. Steve Turner allowed four hits and five runs, only three of which were earned, in five innings to earn the win. He walked three and struck out four while improving to 3-1 on the season. Valdosta State returns to action Friday, March 13 when it opens a three-game series against Flagler at 7:00 p.m. in Billy Grant Field.

Blazer Baseball Takes Two

2009-03-10

ORMOND BEACH, Fla. - Matt Costello tied an NCAA Division II record for consecutive hits as he led Valdosta State to a pair of victories in the College Jamboree Tuesday. VSU defeated St. Francis (Ind.) 17-6 before downing St. Francis (Ill.) 17-8 at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex. Costello entered the day with hits in each of his last four at-bats and was nine-for-nine to tie the record originally set in 2002. St. Francis (Ind.) (3-6) got on the board first in the VSU's first game of the day as they plated a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Mickey Cassidy singled with one out in the inning before John Schlichter was hit by a pitch. Taylor Futterknecht proceeded to single to left-center to plate Cassidy while a Tony Drysdale single to left plated Schlichter for a 2-0 Cougar lead. The Blazers (18-8) got four runs in the top of the second as Costello led off with a double before Clayton Cain drew a walk. Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch to load the bases before Austin Smith hit a sacrifice fly to center that scored Costello. A sacrifice fly moved both runners up a base before Chaz Bagwell tallied an infield single that scored Cain. After Bagwell stole second, Sho Kohata singled up the middle to plate both base runners for a 4-2 Valdosta State lead. VSU upped its advantage to 9-2 in the third as Brandon Decker and Costello hit back-to-back singles to open the frame before scoring on Cain's sixth home run of the season, a shot over the wall in left-center. Blackwood proceeded to double down the left field line and moved to third on a Smith ground out before Blaine Wilson hit his third round-tripper of the year season, also a shot to left-center. The Cougars got two runs in both the third and sixth innings while Valdosta State got two in the fourth, one in the fifth, three in the seventh and two in the eighth to close out the scoring. Shawn Keill improved to 2-1 on the season as he surrendered five hits and two runs, neither of which was earned, in five and a third innings of work. The Blazers again fell behind early in the second game of the day as St. Francis (Ill.) (4-2) scored two runs in the bottom of the second. Karl Gotsch singled to open the frame and advanced to second two batters later when Nick Morris reached on a fielding error by Jon Koenigsfeld at short. David Schwabe proceeded to triple to left-center, plating both base runners for a 2-0 USF lead. VSU got on the board in the top of the third when Blackwood hit his team-leading 11th home run of the year, a two-out shot over the wall in left-center only to have the Saints score five runs in the bottom of the inning, including a Steve Kehr home run, to push their advantage to 7-1. Valdosta State got three runs back in the top of the fourth as Cain led off with a walk before scoring on Smith's fifth home run of the season. Two batters later, Costello singled, his 10th consecutive at-bat with a hit, which established a new Valdosta State record for consecutive hits. After a strikeout, Bagwell doubled to right-center to cut the VSU deficit to 7-4. Smith hit his second home run in as many innings, scoring Decker in the process, while Wilson made it back-to-back roundtrippers with his second home run of the day to pull VSU even in the fifth. The Blazers grabbed the lead in the seventh as it plated five runs while sending nine batters to the plate. With one out, Wilson singled and moved to second as Costello followed with a base hit. Keill pinch hit and drew a walk to load the bases before Kohata tripled. Kuzdale followed with a double that scored Kohata and came home when Logan Pierce singled to right to give Valdosta State a 12-7 lead. The Saints got a run back in the bottom of the seventh only to have VSU respond with three in the eighth, including an inside the park home run by Kohata, and two more in the ninth, on Smith's third home run of the game, to close out the scoring. His home run marked the sixth of the game for Valdosta State, the second time this season the Blazers have tied the school record for home runs in a game. Ross Gusky came on in relief and allowed two hits and a run in an inning to improve to 4-1 while Brandon Graves pitched the final three innings to earn his fifth save. Kohata was five-for-five in the two games while Smith finished with six hits, six runs batted in and four runs scored on the day. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 11 when it travels to Americus, Ga. to face Georgia Southwestern.

Blazers Sweep Tiffin 16-5, 13-3

2009-03-08

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State claimed a pair of double digit victories as the Blazers defeated Tiffin 16-5 and 13-3 in a non-conference baseball doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. The Blazers (16-8) got on the board first in the first game of the day as Brandon Decker was hit by a pitch and scored when Matt Costello followed with a double to right-center. VSU upped its lead 5-0 in the second with a pair of home runs. Chase Blackwood led off the frame with a shot to right field before Austin Smith singled. After a foul out, Jon Koenigsfeld singled to put runners at the corner before Sho Kohata hit his first roundtripper of the year, a shot to right-center. Tiffin (2-6) cut its deficit to 5-1 in the third as it collected four hits in the frame. Peter Catalano singled to open the frame before advancing to second two batters later when Bobby Mullin tallied a base hit. Ty Blake proceeded to single to right to load the bases, chasing Blazer starter Nick Starrett. Thomas Tripp came on and struck out Jason Bailey looking, but surrendered a hit to Colin Lowe that plated Catalano. Valdosta State added eight more runs, including six on a bases loaded doubles by Logan Pierce and Clayton Cain, and three in the fifth, two on a double by Shawn Keill, while the Dragons added four more in the sixth to close out the scoring. Tripp allowed seven hits and four runs, three of which were earned, while striking out four in three and two-thirds innings to improve to 1-0. TU starter Trevor Woodjets surrendered nine hits and 13 runs in two and two-thirds innings to fall to 0-1. VSU opened the scoring in game two in the bottom of the first. Robby Kuzdale and Blackwood walked to open the frame before Smith was hit by a two-out pitch. Matt Costello followed with a double to left-center, plating Kuzdale and Blackwood for a 2-0 VSU lead. The Dragons got a pair of unearned runs in the third inning to even the game at 2-2. With one out in the frame, Devin Rudolph singled and was sacrificed to second. Mullin proceeded to hit a ground ball to second base, but the ball was booted by Brandon Atkins allowing Rudolph to score. Blake followed with a double to right that scored Mullin to even the game. Valdosta State quickly regained the lead as it sent 13 men to the plate while scoring nine runs in the bottom of the frame. Austin Smith walked to open the frame before scoring on a Blaine Wilson triple. Atkins followed with a double to left-center that plated Wilson and scored when TU rightfielder Devin Rudolph failed to throw the ball back into the infield. Kuzdale proceeded to draw a walk and scored when Blackwood hit his 10th home run of the season while Brandon Decker reached on a fielding error by first baseman Pat Curtin. Cain drew a walk and scored with Decker as Smith hit a home run to right-center. Costello proceeded to single through the right-side of the infield and came around to score when Wilson doubled to center to give the Blazers an 11-2 run. Jason Kulp hit his first home run of the season for the Dragons in the top of the fifth to cut the TU deficit to eight runs while VSU added a run in the fifth and sixth to close out the game. Matt Costello gave up seven hits and three runs, only one of which was earned, while striking out five in six innings of work to improve to 3-0. Smith collected hits in all five of his at-bats on the day while scoring five runs while driving in four. Wilson added three more hits as VSU collected 25 in the two games. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, March 10 when it plays St. Francis (Ind.) at 2:00 p.m. and St. Francis (Ill.) at 5:00 p.m. in Ormond Beach, Fla.

Blazers Trounce Tiffin 22-2

2009-03-07

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State took advantage of wildness by the Tiffin pitching staff to defeat the Dragons 22-2 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Saturday evening. Valdosta State (14-8) took advantage of wildness by Dragon starter Kyle Klinker (0-2) to grab the lead in the first inning. Klinker hit Sho Kohata to open the inning before walking Robby Kuzdale and Brandon Decker. Matt Costello was also hit by a pitch to force in Kohata before Clayton Cain singled to plate Kuzdale and Decker. Shawn Keill followed with a single to left, scoring Costello before Austin Smith hit a sacrifice fly that plated Cain before Klinker was chased from the game after walking Jon Koenigsfeld. Kohata greeted reliever Lee Kerns with a double to left-center, plating Keill and Koenigsfeld for a 7-0 VSU lead. A Cain RBI single in the second pushed the VSU advantage to 8-0 before the Blazers added three more runs in the third. Koenigsfeld reached on a fielding error to open the frame before Kohata singled through the right-side of the infield. Kuzdale followed with a double to right that plated both base runners and moved to third on a Decker single before scoring on a Costello double play ground ball. Cain proceeded to single and scored from first as Chase Blackwood doubled to right-center to give Valdosta State a 12-0 advantage. Tiffin (2-4) got on the board in the top of the fifth inning as it took advantage of a VSU error. Trevor Johnson singled with one out in the frame and moved to second on Devin Rudolph walk. After a fielder's choice moved Johnson to third, Pat Curtin hit a fly ball to left that was dropped by Costello, allowing Johnson to score to cut the Blazer lead to 12-1. The Dragons got their final run in the seventh as Anthony Thomas singled, stole second and moved to third on a ground out before scoring on a wild pitch while Blackwood hit a grand slam in the bottom of the frame, his team-leading eighth home run of the season, in the bottom of the frame. A Logan Pierce RBI single and a Brandon Graves grand slam in the eighth closed out the scoring. Cain was three-for-three with three runs scored and three runs batted in while Blackwood went two-for-four with five RBI. Kohata also tallied two hits in the contest as the Blazers collected 16 as a team. Ross Gusky picked up the win as he allowed just five hits and two runs, only one of which was earned, in seven innings of work. The junior also walked just one batter while striking out 10 as he improved to 3-1. Johnson collected two of TU's six hits in the game. The Dragon pitching staff walked 10 batters in the game and hit four more. The two teams conclude the three game series with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Blazers Take Two at Russ Matt Invitational

2009-03-05

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Valdosta State rolled to a 13-5 victory over West Virginia Wesleyan in the first game before scoring four runs in the top of the ninth inning to defeat Ashland 6-2 in the second game of the Russ Matt Invitational Thursday. WVW (2-7) opened the scoring of the first game with a single run in the top of the second before VSU (13-8) scored six runs in the bottom of the frame. Matt Costello began the inning with a double before Blaine Wilson hit his second home run of the season. Jon Koenigsfeld proceeded to single and moved to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a Sho Kohata base hit. Robbie Kuzdale followed with a single before a Chase Blackwood ground out moved both runners into scoring position. Brandon Decker proceeded to collect a two-run single and moved to second on a error on a Clayton Cain ground ball, allowing him to score as Costello singled to give VSU a 6-1 lead. The Blazers added two more runs in the third as Kohata singled and scored on Kuzdale's second home run of the year before pushing their lead to 9-1 with a Wilson run-scoring single in the fourth. The Bobcats got four runs back in the top of the sixth, only to have Valdosta State score a run in the bottom of the frame and three more in the seventh to close out the scoring. Steve Turner picked up the victory as he pitched into the sixth inning to improve to 2-1. The second game proved to be a pitcher's duel for the first seven innings before Valdosta State got on the board with a single run in the top of the eighth. Blackwood singled to open the frame and moved to second on a Decker base hit. Costello proceeded to single, scoring Blackwood for a 1-0 VSU lead. Ashland (4-3) responded with two runs in the bottom of the frame before the Blazers scored four in the top of the ninth for the victory. With one out in the ninth, Koenigsfeld doubled and scored as Cain followed with single. Chaz Bagwell drew a walk and Blackwood was hit by a pitch to load the bases while Decker gave Valdosta State the lead with a base on balls. Costello proceeded to triple to score Bagwell, Blackwood and pinch-runner Luke Harben to close out the scoring. Austin Smith started for Valdosta State and surrendered five hits and no runs while striking out three in six innings of work. Brandon Graves came on and allowed two hits and two runs over the final three innings to improve to 4-0. Costello led Valdosta State with six hits and five runs batted in on the game while Koenigsfeld tallied four hits in the two games. Kuzdale and Decker finished with three hits each while Blackwood, Wilson, Kohata and Brandon Atkins finished with two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 7 when it opens a three-game series against Tiffin at Billy Grant Field. VSU will honor its 1979 national championship team prior to the game, which is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. first pitch.

Costello Named GSC Player of the Week

2009-03-03

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State's Matt Costello has been named the Gulf South Conference baseball Player of the Week, according to an announcement made by the league office Tuesday. Costello batted .714 in four games against nationally ranked opponents last week while helping the Blazers to a 2-2 record. He collected hits in 10 of his 14 at-bats and scored four runs while driving in four more. Costello counted three doubles and a home run among his 10 hits for a 1.143 slugging percentage on the week. The junior began the week by tallying hits in both of his at-bats against No. 18 Georgia College. He was instrumental in VSU's 13-7 victory over No. 9 in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday as he went 4-of-5 at the plate while scoring three runs and driving in two. He hit two doubles and a home run in the game. Costello followed by going three-for-three, including a double, with a run scored and two RBI as VSU defeated Tampa 7-6 in the second game of the doubleheader. He was also the starting pitcher in the game and struck out five Spartan batters, but did not factor into the decision. Costello ended the week by going 1-of-4 in a 6-2 Blazer loss to Tampa on Sunday. Costello and the Blazers return to action Thursday, March 5 when they face Ashland and West Virginia Wesleyan in the Russ Matt Invitational in Winter Haven, Fla.

Blazers Split with Tampa

2009-03-01

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State claimed a 7-6 victory in the conclusion of one game before falling 6-2 in the final game of a non-conference baseball series against Tampa Sunday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. After game two was interrupted by lightning in the sixth inning on Saturday, the Blazers (11-8) took advantage of a pair of walks in the bottom of the seventh to earn the victory. Chase Blackwood singled to open the frame before Brandon Decker was intentionally walked. Pinch hitter Shawn Keill also drew a walk to load the bases before Clayton Cain singled to plate Blackwood for the winning run. UT (12-6) opened the game two scoring in the top of the first as Jesus Barroso doubled with one out and scored on a Mike Schwartz single to left. VSU responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning on a Matt Costello RBI double and a sacrifice fly by Cain to take a 2-1 lead. After the Spartans evened the game with a single run in the second, Valdosta State scored four more runs in the third to take a 6-2 lead. Blackwood was hit by a pitch to open the frame and moved to third as Decker followed with a single to right. Costello plated Blackwood and moved Decker to third before advancing to third on a Cain base hit that scored Decker. Costello scored on a wild pitch by UT starter A.J. Pinera while Sho Kohata singled to score Cain for the final run of the inning. Tyler Cox led off the fourth with his first home run of the year while Jose Jimenez and Steven Broschofsky hit run-scoring doubles in the frame even the game at 6-6. Brandon Graves (3-0) picked up the victory as he allowed just one hit in the sixth and seventh inning. Danny Keefe (1-2) took the loss as he allowed three hits and a run in two inning of work. Valdosta State got on the board first in game three as it plated a single run in the bottom of the first inning. Robbie Kuzdale tripled to open the frame and came home three batters later on a Cain sacrifice fly to give VSU a 1-0 lead. The Blazers pushed their lead to 2-0 in the third as Kuzdale again reached on a lead-off triple and score two batters later when Decker singled to right. The Spartans got a run back in the top of the fifth. Cox singled with one out in the frame and moved to third as Nick Nordgren followed with a double to right-center. Correy Figueroa proceeded to ground out to force, driving in Cox to cut the Blazer lead to 2-1. Tampa scored two more runs in the seventh to take a 3-2 lead. Michael Bourdon was hit by a pitch to open the frame before moving to second on a sacrifice bunt. Nordgren proceeded to single, plating Bourdon, and stole second before scoring on a Figueroa single to center to give the Spartans the lead. Tampa added three more runs, including two on a Nordgren double, in the eighth to close out the scoring. John Wiedenbauer allowed six hits and two runs while striking out nine in seven innings to improve to 3-0 for Tampa. Jeremy Forbus surrendered nine hits and five runs, four of which were earned, in seven innings to fall to 0-1. Decker led the Blazers with four hits and three runs batted in in six at-bats. Kuzdale's two triples in the game tied a VSU single game record while Costello tallied four hits in seven plate appearances. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, March 3 when it travels to Americus, Ga. to face Georgia Southwestern at 5:00 p.m.

Blazers Down Tampa 13-7, Tied 6-6 in Game 2

2009-02-28

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State claimed a 13-7 victory in the first game against No. 9 Tampa while second game was stopped due to lightning in the sixth inning with the score tied 6-6 in doubleheader action at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Austin Smith got Valdosta State (10-7) on the board first as he hit his second home run of the season, a shot over the wall in left-centerfield, to post the Blazers to a 1-0 lead. Back-to-back home runs by Brandon Decker and Matt Costello pushed the VSU lead to 3-0 in the fourth before Tampa (11-5) got on the board in the top of the fifth. Brett McKean doubled to open the frame before Tyler Cox reached on a base on balls. Correy Figueroa proceeded to single through the right-side of the infield to load the bases before Jesus Barroso hit into a fielder's choice that plated McKean. The Blazers ended the threat as Mike Schwartz proceeded to ground into his third double play of the game, securing a 3-1 VSU advantage. The Spartans took the lead in the sixth as they plated four two-out runs. Jose Jimenez walked to open the frame before Steven Broschofsky was hit by a pitch. VSU starter Ross Gusky induced a fly out and recorded a strike out before walking McKean. Cox proceeded to hit an infield single that plated Jimenez and Broschofsky, both of home were running on the play. Steve Turner came on and walked Figueroa and gave up a double to Cox that plated McKean and Cox to give UT a 5-3 lead. The Blazers quickly got the lead back in the bottom of the inning, as it once again used the long ball. Decker reached on an infield single before moving to third on a single through the right-side by Costello. Clayton Cain proceeded to hit a towering shot off the scoreboard in left-center while Chase Blackwood followed with a line drive shot off the scoreboard to put Valdosta State in front 7-5. Tampa got a run back in the seventh as Jose Jimenez scored on a Devin Gonzalez single before VSU plated six more runs in the bottom of the frame. Smith provided the big blow of the inning as he hit his second home run of the year to plate Luke Harben and Blackwood. The home run marked the Blazers' sixth of the game, tying a school record originally set against Eckerd in 1985. Schwartz closed out the scoring with his fourth home run of the season in the ninth. Turner picked up the victory as he allowed one run in an inning while Brandon Graves gave up a run and three hits in two and a third innings to earn his fourth save. Josh Bowman took the loss for the Spartans as he allowed 11 hits, of VSU's 16 in the game, and seven runs in six innings of work. UT opened the game two scoring in the top of the first as Barroso doubled with one out and scored on a Schwartz single to left. VSU responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning on a Costello RBI double and a sacrifice fly by Cain to take a 2-1 lead. After the Spartans evened the game with a single run in the second, Valdosta State scored four more runs in the third to take a 6-2 lead. Blackwood was hit by a pitch to open the frame and moved to third as Decker followed with a single to right. Costello plated Blackwood and moved Decker to third before advancing to third on a Cain base hit that scored Decker. Costello scored on a wild pitch by UT starter A.J. Pinera while Sho Kohata singled to score Cain for the final run of the inning. Cox led off the fourth with his first home run of the year while Jimenez and Broschofsky hit run-scoring doubles in the frame even the game at 6-6. Costello led the Blazers with four hits, three runs and two runs batted in in five plate appearances of the first game. Blaine Wilson added three hits while Koenigsfeld, Smith, Decker and Blackwood had two each. Barroso tallied three hits for the Spartans while Gonzalez finished with two. The two teams will conclude the second game beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday before playing the third game.

Saturday's Baseball Moved to Noon

2009-02-27

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Due to weather that is supposed to move into the Valdosta area beginning early Saturday evening, the start of the baseball doubleheader between Valdosta State and No. 9 Tampa on Saturday has been pushed up to Noon. The two teams were originally supposed to begin play at 1:00 p.m., but the threatening weather caused both coaches to agree to move the start time up an hour. The Blazers and Spartans are also scheduled to play a single game on Sunday beginning at 1:00 p.m. The start time of that contest has not be changed.

Blazers Fall 8-5 to GCSU

2009-02-25

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Georgia College scored the final four runs of the game to defeat Valdosta State 8-5 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wedneday afternoon. Georgia College (10-4) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as it took advantage of a pair of walks to score three runs. Sean Harrell walked with one out in the inning before Buddy Elmore also drew a free pass with two outs. Pete Paris followed with a double to right-center to plate both base runners and scored when Steve Muoio reached on a single up the middle, giving the Bobcats a 3-0 lead. Valdosta State (9-7) got two runs back in the bottom of the second as Chase Blackwood walked and scored on an Austin Smith double to right-center. Smith moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a Brandon Atkins single to left, cutting the VSU deficit to 3-2. The Blazers evened the game at 3-3 in the third as it took advantage of some heads-up base running by Sho Kohata. Kohata walked to lead off the inning before Matt Costello followed with a bunt single. GCSU pitcher Luke Rogers and Paris, tripped over each other on the play and Kohata noticed no one was covering third base so he broke for the bag and slid in just under the tag by Muoio. Blaine Wilson proceeded to ground into a double play, but Kohata scored on the play to even the game at 3-3. The Bobcats regained the lead on a Harrell sacrifice fly in the fourth before Valdosta State scored two runs in the fifth to grab the lead. Atkins and Robbie Kuzdale reached on back-to-back singles to open the frame before Kohata walked to load the bases. Clayton Cain followed with a single through the left side of the infield to plate Atkins while Kuzdale scored on Wilson's second double play ball of the game to give VSU a 5-4 lead. GCSU quickly regained the lead as it scored three runs in the sixth inning. Danny McCorkle was hit by a pitch to open the frame and scored on a Derek Johns single two batters later. Harrell, who had singled before Johns, also scored in the frame on an Elmore sacrifice fly while a single by Paris plated Johns for a 7-5 Bobcat lead. An unearned run by Chandler Snell unearned run in the seventh closed out the scoring. Ryan Parson earned the win as he gave up two hits while striking out four batters in relief to improve to 3-0 on the season. Austin Smith allowed three runs in an inning to fall to 0-3. Atkins, Costello and Cain all collected two hits on the day for the Blazers while Paris was a perfect 4-of-4 at the plate for the Bobcats. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, February 28 when it opens a three-game series against Tampa with a doubleheader in Billy Grant Field at 1:00 p.m.

Blazers Fall 12-2 to Nova Southeastern

2009-02-22

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Nova Southeastern scored the first 12 runs of the game in defeating Valdosta State 12-2 in non-conference baseball action at the NSU Baseball Complex Sunday. Riann Furstenburg singled and eventually scored on a passed ball in the second inning to open the scoring for NSU (11-2) before the sharks added four more runs in the sixth. Brayan Valencia drove in the first run of the sixth with a single before Furstenburg added two more RBI's with a bases loaded double. J.D. Martinez added the final run of the inning as he reached on an error and scored on a Dale Alberto ground out. Furstenburg added a three-run double to spur a seven-run seventh for Nova Southeastern before Valdosta State (9-6) scored two runs in the eighth. Chad Smith singled with the bases loaded to plate Luke Harben for the first Blazer run while a Matt Williams fielder%u2019s choice scored Sam Kauffman for the final VSU run of the game. Brandon Decker collected two of VSU's seven hits in the game while Furstenburg had three hits and five RBI for Nova Southeastern. Michael Fiers allowed six hits and one run in seven inning of work to earn the victory for NSU while Austin Smith surrendered six hits and five runs, three of which were earned, in five innings to fall to 0-2. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, February 25 when it hosts Georgia College at 4:30 p.m. at Billy Grant Field.

Baseball Falls in Doubleheader

2009-02-21

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Nova Southeastern used five runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to claim a 7-6 victory in game on before shutting out Valdosta State 4-0 to sweep the Blazers in a non-conference ball doubleheader at NSU Stadium Saturday. The two teams traded runs in the first inning of the first game before VSU (9-5) scored two runs in both the second and third innings to build a 5-2 advantage. Austin Smith was hit by a pitch in the second inning and came home to score on Logan Pierce's first home run of his career. After the Sharks (10-2) scored a run in the bottom of the second, Chase Blackwood homered and Brandon Decker scored on a Smith base hit in the third to give the Blazers their three-run advantage. Pierce tripled and score on a Jon Koenigsfeld double in the fourth to push the Valdosta State lead to 6-2 in the fourth before plated five runs in the bottom of the frame. Dale Alberto homered to open the frame before Ryan York singled. David Robinson followed with a walk and a ground out moved both base runners into scoring position, allowing both to score on a Dexter Butler single to center. Brayan Valencia homered to close out the scoring. Ross Gusky took the loss for the Blazers, falling to 2-1 in the process, as he allowed seven hits and seven runs in four innings of work. Rhys Roberts singled to drive in J.D. Martinez in the second inning of the second game to open the scoring. Martinez added a two-run triple in the sixth and scored on a Roberts sacrifice squeeze to close out the scoring. Steve Turner fell to 0-1 in the game as he allowed five hits and four runs in five and a third innings of work. Pierce tallied two hits, two runs scored and two runs batted in on the day to lead VSU at the plate. Decker, Blaine Wilson, and Koenigsfeld also tallied two hits on the day. The two teams conclude the four-game series with a single game beginning at Noon. Game One Boxscore Game Two Boxscore

Blazer Comeback for 4-3 Victory

2009-02-20

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Valdosta State scored three runs in the top of the ninth inning to defeat Nova Southeastern 4-3 in non-conference baseball action at the NSU Baseball Complex Friday evening. The Blazers (9-3) managed just an unearned run through the first eight innings before plating taking advantage of three errors in the ninth to score the winning runs. Jon Koenigsfeld singled to open the frame and moved to safely reached second on a throwing error on a Robbie Kuzdale fielder's choice. After a strikeout, Brandon Decker singled to score Koenigsfeld. Luke Harben came on to pinch-run for Decker and moved to third on a Shawn Keill single and a fielding error that allowed Kuzdale to score. Clayton Cain was intentionally walked and, after a second strikeout, Austin Smith reached on a error that plated Harben for the winning run. The Sharks (8-2) opened the scoring in the third inning. Michael Hartley walked to open the frame and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. After Eric McCans was hit by a pitch, Dexter Butler singled to load the bases, allowing Hartley to score on a sacrifice fly. VSU evened the game at 1-1 in the fifth as Decker reached on a two-base error and scored on a Cain single to right. NSU regained the lead in the eighth as Butler led off with a double before Brayan Valencia was intentionally walked. J.D. Martinez loaded the bases with a bunt single while Riann Spanjer-Furstenburg walked to plate Butler. After a strikeout, Rhys Roberts hit a sacrifice fly to plate Valencia to give Nova Southeastern a 3-1 advantage. Keill picked up the win, improving to 1-1, for the Blazers as he did not allow a hit in an inning of work. Decker tallied two hits, a run scored and an RBI in four at-bats while Koenigsfeld and Smith also tallied two hits apiece. Zachary North allowed all three runs in the ninth to fall to 0-2 for the Sharks. The two teams continue the four-game series with a doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Baseball Falls 7-6 to Georgia Southwestern

2009-02-18

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Georgia Southwestern built a 7-5 lead and withstood comeback bid by No. 11 Valdosta State to defeat the Blazers 7-6 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. The Hurricanes (6-7) struck first in the game as they plated a single run in the top of the third inning. Daniel Lynn singled to left to open the frame and two batters later moved to third as Chris Lingham delivered a hit to right-center on a hit-and-run. Blazer starter Jeremy Forbus proceeded to throw a wild pitch, allowing Lynn to score for a 1-0 GSW lead. The Blazers (8-3) struck back for a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 2-1 lead. With one out in the frame, Brandon Atkins drew a walk and stole second before Chase Blackwood reached on a two-out base on ball. Brandon Decker proceeded to hit a 1-0 pitch off the wall in centerfield to put VSU up by a run. Georgia Southwestern used a pair of Forbus walks in the fourth to even the game. With one out in the frame, Daniel Stokes drew a walk and moved to second as Lynn reached on a two-out free pass. Zack Stanton followed with a single through the left-side of the infield, scoring Stokes and tying the game at 2-2. Valdosta State regained the lead in the bottom of the fourth. Clayton Cain singled to open the frame and moved to second as Austin Smith drew a walk. Pinch-hitter Matt Williams laid down a sacrifice bunt to move both runners over a base and reached himself as the throw from GSW starter Jody Sellars pulled Jared Allen off the bag at first before Jon Koenigsfeld plated Cain with a sacrifice fly, giving VSU a 3-2 advantage. The Hurricanes regained the lead in the fifth as they plated three runs. Shane Doyle walked to open the inning and moved to third as Bud Long doubled to left-center off reliever Thomas Tripp. A wild pitch allowed Doyle to score before Allen homered down the leftfield line to give GSW a 5-3 advantage. Cain's fourth home run of the season, a two-run shot to center, in the bottom of the fifth evened the game at 5-5 only to have Georgia Southwestern score a pair of runs in the seventh to retake the lead. Doyle was hit by a pitch to open the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. After Allen was intentionally walked, Francisco Gomez hit a single to right-center, scoring Doyle. Stokes followed with a ground out that scored Allen for a 7-5 Hurricane lead. Valdosta State closed out the scoring in the bottom of the eighth inning as pinch runner Chaz Bagwell scored on a balk by GSW reliever Bud Fuller. Brandon Reeder allowed three runs in three and two-thirds innings to improve to 2-0 on the year while Shawn Keill fell to 0-1 for the Blazers. Cain led the Blazers with two hits and two runs batted in in five at-bats. Valdosta State returns to action Friday, February 20 when it begins a four-game series against Nova Southeastern in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Start Time for Baseball Game Moved

2009-02-17

VALDOSTA, Ga. - The start time for Wednesday's baseball game between Valdosta State and Georgia Southwestern has been moved from 4:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Blazers, who are currently riding a five game winning streak, moved up to No. 11 in the nation in the Collegiate Baseball News poll, which was announced Monday. VSU is coming off a three-game sweep of Saint Leo, during which Valdosta State hit 11 home runs and scored 36 runs.

Blazers Sweep Saint Leo 14-8, 9-8

2009-02-14

SAINT LEO, Fla. - A day after hitting five home runs in a victory, Valdosta State pounded out six more round-trippers as the Blazers swept Saint Leo 14-8 and 9-8 in a non-conference baseball doubleheader at Southard Stadium Saturday afternoon. Four of the home runs came in the first game of the day, during which VSU (8-2) tallied 19 hits. Both teams scored a run in the first inning before the Blazers grabbed the lead with a three-run second. Brandon Atkins collected the big hit of the frame as he collected his first round-tripper of the year, a shot to left field that scored Blaine Wilson and Shawn Keill. After the Lions (0-8) added two more runs in the bottom of the second, Brandon Decker and Keill hit solo home runs in the third. Saint Leo scored two more runs in the bottom of the inning, but got no closer as Valdosta State added four runs in the fifth, one in sixth and one in the seventh to take an 12-5 lead. After SLU added their final three runs of the contest in the bottom of the eighth, Clayton Cain hit a two-run homer in the ninth to close out the scoring. Ross Gusky picked up the victory after allowing five runs, three of which were earned, in five and two-thirds innings of work to improve to 2-0 on the season. The Blazers added two more home runs in the second game of the doubleheader, both by Decker. The Lions jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the Dustin Brown triple before Decker hit a shot over the scoreboard in right in the top of the third to tie the game at 3-3. Robbie Kuzdale, who opened the inning with a walk, and Chase Blackwood, who had singled, scored on the play. Decker put VSU in front 5-3 in the fourth as he hit a two-out shot out to left. Kuzdale, who had tripled earlier in the inning also scored on the play, but SLU responded with a single run in the bottom of the frame to get back within one. With one out in the Lion half of the inning, Brown singled and scored when Eugene Garnett followed with a double. Wilson singled and scored on an Austin Smith sacrifice fly in the fifth for Valdosta State, but Saint Leo got two unearned runs in the bottom of the inning to even the game at 6-6 before Kyle Hobbs hit home run to lead-off the sixth to put the Lions back in front by a single run. The Blazers regained the lead in the top of the seventh. Keill walked to open the inning before being lifted for pinch runner Matt Williams. After a fly out and a strikeout, Smith was hit by a pitch, bringing up pinch hitter Logan Pierce. Pierce proceeded to double, plating both Williams and moving Smith to third. Jon Koenigsfeld proceeded to reach on a fielding error by J.C. Suarez at first base, scoring both Pierce and Smith for a 9-7 Valdosta State lead. Saint Leo added the final run on a Jonathan Duncan run-scoring single in the bottom of the frame. The Lions proceeded to load the bases, on a double and an intentional walk, with outs, but a strikeout ended the threat. Nick Starrett recorded the final out of the sixth inning to earn his first career victory while Brandon Graves picked up his first save. Decker tallied four hits, including the three home runs, in nine at-bats while also tallying seven runs batted in to lead VSU at the plate on the day. Six other Blazers finished the day with three hits as Valdosta State collected 27 on the day. The Blazers return to action Wednesday, February 18 when they return home to Billy Grant Field to face Georgia Southwestern at 4:30 p.m. Game One Box Game Two Box

Blazers Pound Saint Leo 13-6

2009-02-13

SAINT LEO, Fla. - Valdosta State pounded out a season-high 17 hits, including a home run by each of the first five batters in the order, as the Blazers defeated Saint Leo 13-6 in non-conference baseball action at Southard Stadium Friday evening. The Lions (0-6) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as Kyle Hobbs hit a lead off home run before a Blaine Wilson lead-off homer for VSU (6-2) in the top of the second evened the game at 1-1. Robbie Kuzdale added a solo round-tripper of his own, his first of the season, in the top of the third to post the Blazers to a 2-1 lead, only to have SLU gain three runs in the bottom of the inning to grab the lead. With one out in the frame, Hobbs singled and moved to second on a throwing error by Valdosta State starter Matt Costello on a J.C. Suarez bunt attempt. Bobby Munoz followed with a triple to right to plate both base runners and scored as Aaron McLamar followed with a single, giving Saint Leo a 4-2 advantage. A Chase Blackwood single plated Jon Koenigsfeld in the fourth to cut the Blazer deficit back to a single run, but the Lions responded with a run-scoring single from Hobbs in the bottom of the frame to regain a two-run advantage. Valdosta State batted around and scored six runs in the fifth to regain the lead at 9-5. Clayton Cain led off the frame with his second home run of the season before Austin Smith doubled to right-center. A ground out moved Smith to third, allowing him to score on a Koenigsfeld double down the right field line. Koenigsfeld also scored as Kuzdale collected a single to left before Blackwood singled to put two runners on. Brandon Decker proceeded to hit a home run over the light pole in right field, his third homer of the year. Hobbs tallied his third RBI of the game in the bottom of the fifth to cut the SLU deficit back to three runs only to have Kuzdale draw a bases loaded walk in the sixth to put VSU up 10-6. Blackwood hit his fifth home run of the season, a towering shot to center that scored Koenigsfeld and Kuzdale, in the eighth to close out the scoring. Blackwood led the Blazers with four hits and four runs batted in in six at-bats while Kuzdale was two-of-three with three runs scored and three RBI. Smith totalled three hits in the game while Wilson, Cain and Koenigsfeld finished with two each. Hobbs led Saint Leo with four hits and three RBI while Munoz, Eugene Garnett, Dustin Brown and Jason Hamm finished with two hits each. Costello gave up 14 hits and six runs, five of which were earned, in six and two-thirds inning to improve to 2-0 on the season. Thomas Tripp came on with two on and two out in the seventh and did not allow a run to earn his first save of the season. Eric Nickolaison surrendered four runs on four hits in an inning of relief to fall to 0-1 for the Lions. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a doubleheader in Southard Stadium beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Blazers Comeback to Defeat Flagler 9-6

2009-02-11

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - Valdosta State scored five eighth inning runs to come from behind and defeat Flagler 9-6 in non-conference baseball action at Flagler Stadium. The Blazers (5-2) entered the top of the eight trailing 6-4, but sent nine men to the plate in the frame to stage the comeback victory. Robbie Kuzdale opened the inning by being hit by a pitch and scored as Brandon Decker followed with his second home run of the season that tied the game at 6-6. After a flyout, Clayton Cain singled and Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch with two outs before Austin Smith doubled down the left field line to plate Cain. Jon Koenigsfeld proceeded to single to left, scoring Blackwood and Smith for the final runs of the game. Valdosta State opened the scoring in the third inning, on a Blackwood lead-off home run to left, before adding two more runs in the when Decker doubled and scored on a Matt Costello two-bagger. Costello moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a Cain ground out to give VSU a 3-0 lead. The Saints (2-3) bounced back with four runs in the bottom of the fourth and added single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to build a 6-3 advantage before Blackwood led off the top of the seventh with his second home run of the game, a shot to centerfield. Brandon Graves earned the victory, his second of the season, after allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out three in two innings of relief. Smith came on in the bottom of the eighth and allowed just one hit to earn his first save of the year. Blackwood was two-of-three with three runs scored and a pair of runs batted in to lead the Blazers at the plate on the night. Decker also tallied two hits, in five at-bats, and scored two runs while driving in one while Smith was three-of-four with a run scored and one RBI. Valdosta State remains on the road and opens a three-game series against Saint Leo in Saint Leo, Fla. at 7:00 pm. on Friday, February 13.

Blazers Split with Florida Tech

2009-02-08

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State fell 12-7 in the first game before rebounding for a 6-2 victory in the second game as the Blazers split a doubleheader with Florida Tech Sunday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. In game one, the Blazers (4-2) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with back-to-back one-out doubles. After a ground out to open the frame, Logan Pierce laced a two-bagger down the left field line and scored as Brandon Decker followed with a double down the right field line, plating Pierce for a 1-0 VSU lead. Florida Tech (3-3) evened the game in the top of the second as Michael Demma reached on a catcher's interference call to open the frame and stole second. A ground out moved Demma to third, allowing him to score on John Fouchet's triple to right-center. The Panthers took their first lead of the series in the top of the fourth. Sam Palace led off the frame with a double before Blazer starter Glen Lemke hit Josh Hinkle with a pitch. After a strikeout, Dane Maglich singled to right, but Decker threw Palace out at the plate. Brandon Graves came on to pitch for VSU and threw a wild pitch, allowing Hinkle to score for a 2-1 FIT lead. Valdosta State regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth with a pair of runs. Jon Koenigsfeld doubled to open the frame and moved to third on Sho Kohata one-out single. Pierce followed with a single through the left side of the infield on a hit and run play that scored Koenigsfeld and moved Kohata to third while Kohata scored on a passed ball to give VSU a 3-2 advantage. The Blazers pushed their advantage to 6-2 in the seventh. With one out, Kohata walked and scored as Robbie Kuzdale followed with a pinch-hit triple to right-center. Kuzdale also came home on the play as the throw to third from Fouchet on the play eluded Mitch Saum. Decker proceeded to draw a walk and stole second before being lifted for pinch-runner Luke Harben, who scored when Clayton Cain collected a pinch-hit single. FIT sent 14 men to the plate and scored eight runs in the eighth to take a 10-6 lead. Kevin Villa and Demma collected base hits to open the frame before Austin Smith came on to pitch and gave up a single to Palace to load the bases. After a strike out, Fouchet hit a ground ball to Koenigsfeld at short, but the ball bounced over the shortstop's head, allowing Villa and Demma to score. Smith proceed to walk Maglich and, after a strike out, Joe Clause, forcing in Palace. Mitch Saum proceeded to double to left, scoring Maglich and Fouchet to chase Smith. Steve Turner relieved Smith and gave up a double to Villa that scored Saum and Clouse and a single to Demma that plated Saum to give the Panthers a four run lead. Florida Tech scored two more runs in the ninth while VSU added a single run in the bottom of the frame to close out the scoring. Smith (0-1) took the loss for VSU after allowing two hits and five unearned runs in two-thirds of an inning while Tyler Carman earned the victory to improve to 1-0. FIT got on the board first in the second game as Villa walked to open the frame, moved to second on a ground out and third on a Palace single through the left side of the infield before scoring on a Josh Hinkle ground out. VSU used two Panther errors in the bottom of the inning to even the game at 1-1. With one out, Shawn Keill reached on a fielding error and moved to second when Koenigsfeld was hit by a pitch with two outs. A fielder's choice appeared to end the inning, but the throw to second on the play pulled Clouse off the bag, allowing all base runners to reach safely. Kohata collected the RBI when he was hit by a pitch, forcing in Keill. Saum hit a lead-off home run in the fourth to put Florida Tech back in front by a run, but a Pierce single in the bottom of the frame plated Kohata to even the game at 2-2. The Blazers gained their first lead of the game in the bottom of the fifth as they plated four runs. Matt Costello opened the frame with a double before Blackwood was hit by a one out pitch and Koenigsfeld reached on a fielding error to load the bases. Brandon Atkins followed with a fly ball to right that plated Costello while Pierce walked on five pitches to force in Blackwood. Justin Arsenault relieved FIT starter Jake Koch (0-2) and was greeted with a Brandon Decker single to right-center that drove in Koenigsfeld and Kohata to give VSU a 6-2 lead. Pierce tallied five hits, two RBI and a run scored on the day to lead VSU at the plate while Kohata was three-of-six with five runs scored. Decker also collected three hits while driving in three runs in the two games. Blazer starter Ross Gusky surrendered four hits and two runs while striking out eight in a complete game outing to improve to 1-0 on the season. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, February 11 when it travels to St. Augustine, Fla. to face Flagler at 4:00 p.m. Game One Boxscore Game Two Boxscore

Blazers Top Florida Tech 11-5

2009-02-07

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State hit three home runs in defeating Florida Tech 11-5 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. The Blazers (3-1) opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning as Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch to open the frame and scored from first as Sam Kauffman followed with a double to right-center for his first career hit. VSU added three more runs in the third, the first coming on a lead-off home run by Clayton Cain. Brandon Decker followed with a single to left and moved to second two batters later when Blackwood singled. Kauffman proceeded to strike out on a hit-and-run attempt, but both base runners advanced two bases when the throw from Panther catcher Kevin Villa eluded third baseman Mitch Saum. Blackwood also scored via an error as FIT shortstop John Fouchet dropped a Brandon Atkins pop-up. Decker added his first career home run in the fourth, scoring Blaine Wilson who had walked earlier in the inning, to push the Valdosta State lead to 6-0 before a bases loaded walk and a sacrifice fly in the fifth added two more runs to the Blazer lead. Florida Tech (2-2) got on the board in the top of sixth inning when Chris Fox doubled to open the inning, stole second and scored when the throw from Blackwood evaded Austin Smith at third. Kevin Villa proceeded to draw a one out walk and scored two batters later when Sam Palace homered to left to cut the VSU lead to 8-3. The Blazers got two runs back in the bottom of the inning when Decker hit a triple to plate Cain, who was hit by a pitch to open the frame, and came home on a single by Smith. The Panthers added two more unearned runs on a Palace single in the eighth while Blackwood's second home run of the season in the bottom of the frame closed out the scoring. Blazer starter Matt Costello allowed three hits and one run while striking out four in five-plus innings of work to improve to 1-0 on the season. The VSU batters pounded out 13 hits in the game, led by Decker, who was three-of-three with three runs scored and three runs batted in. Kauffman also tallied three hits in the game while Wilson and Blackwood added two each. Blackwood also scored four runs in the contest. FIT's Jonathan Cornelius surrendered seven hits and eight runs, five of which were earned, while striking out eight in four innings to fall to 1-1. Palace finished with two of the Panthers' six hits and totaled four RBI in the contest. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a doubleheader beginning at Noon on Sunday, February 8.

Blazers Blast Barry 7-1

2009-02-03

WINTER PARK, Fla. - Austin Smith's three-run home run propelled Valdosta State to a 7-1 victory over Barry in non-conference baseball action at Alfond Stadium Tuesday afternoon. The Blazers (2-1) jumped out to the early lead as they plated three runs in the top of the second inning. Blaine Wilson singled to open the frame and stole second before Smith drew a two-out walk. Jon Koenigsfeld followed with a double to left that allowed both base runners to score while a Sho Kohata single to right plated Koenigsfeld for a 3-0 VSU lead. Barry (0-1) got its only run of the game on a Joel Keefe solo home run in the bottom of the fourth before Smith sent a shot over the wall in right field in the sixth. Logan Pierce, who reached on a walk, and Chase Blackwood, who was hit by a pitch scored on the play to give Valdosta State a 6-1 advantage. Kohata was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a passed ball and third on a Matt Williams bunt single before scoring on a Brandon Decker double play ball in the seventh to close out the scoring. Kohata tallied two hits, a run scored and a run batted in in four at bats to lead the Blazers at the plate while Smith was one-of-three with three RBI and two runs scored. Ross Gusky started and allowed three hits and a run in four and two thirds innings of work while Brandon Graves picked up the win after striking out two in an inning and a third. Four different Buccaneers tallied a hit in the game while starter Bobby Hernandez took the loss after allowing four hits and four earned runs in five and two-thirds innings of work. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, February 7 when it opens a three-game series against Florida Tech. First pitch is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Billy Grant Field.

Rain Alters Tuesday Baseball Schedule

2009-02-02

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Rain in central Florida has altered the schedule for Valdosta State's baseball contests against Barry in Winter Haven, Fla. on Tuesday. Rain has caused the games to be moved to Winter Park, Fla. and the campus of Rollins College. Additionally, instead of the originally scheduled doubleheader, the two teams will play just one game, beginning at 1:00 p.m.

Blazers Split Season-Opening Doubleheader

2009-02-01

FLORENCE, S.C. - No. 21 Valdosta State dropped its season opener 11-7 to No. 33 Francis Marion before rebounding for a 9-0 victory in the second game of a doubleheader at Cornell Field Sunday afternoon. The Blazers (1-1) jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the first game as they chased Patriot ace David Walters after just an inning and a third of work. Four of the runs came in the first inning as Sho Kohata doubled with one out and moved to third on Brandon Decker single. Matt Costello followed with a double to plate Kohata while a Blaine Wilson sacrifice fly drove home Decker. Costello eventually scored on a throwing error by the FMU catcher while a Chase Blackwood single plated Shawn Keill, who walked and moved to second on the throwing error. Francis Marion (1-1) got a run back in the bottom of the inning as Colby Green walked and scored on a Jared Barkdoll single before VSU added two more runs in the third. With one out in the frame, Wilson was hit by a pitch and Keill singled before Blackwood was also hit by a pitch to load the bases. Jon Koenigsfeld proceeded to single to plate both Wilson and Keill to give Valdosta State a 6-1 lead. The Patriots scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth to chase Costello, who started on the mound for the Blazers, and five more off three VSU relievers in the fifth to take a 10-6 advantage. Kohata scored on a Wilson fly ball in the sixth to cut the Valdosta State deficit back to one while a passed ball in the eighth allowed Keon Graves to close out the scoring. Brandon Forshee picked up the victory in the game after allowing one hit and two and a third innings while Colby Yates took the loss after surrendering two runs in a third of an inning. The Blazers scored five runs over the first three innings of the second game while Glen Lemke held the Patriots to just one hit in four innings of work. Koenigsfeld singled to lead off the first inning of the game and moved to second when Blackwood walked. After a strikeout and a passed ball moved Koenigsfeld to third, Clayton Cain hit a sacrifice fly to post Valdosta State to a 1-0 advantage. Costello singled and moved to second on a Brandon Atkins single in the second before Robbie Kuzdale moved both batters up a base with a sacrifice bunt. Two batters later, Blackwood hit his first home run of the season to post the Blazers to a 4-0 lead. Decker scored on an Austin Smith double in the fourth before VSU scored four more runs in the fifth. Luke Harben, who pinch-ran for Wilson after the leftfielder singled to open the fifth, and Keill scored on a fielding error with bases loaded in the frame while a Costello single scored Smith and Decker to close out the scoring in the contest. Lemke struck out three and walked one in earning the victory. Josh Edgin allowed five runs and four hits in three innings to fall to 0-1. Decker was 3-for-5 with three runs scored in the two games to lead VSU at the plate while Blackwood tallied three hits and four runs batted in. Koenigsfeld also finished with three hits to go with a run scored and two RBI while Smith was three-of-eight with a run scored and two RBI. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, February 3 when it plays a doubleheader against Barry in Winter Haven, Fla. Game One Boxscore Game Two Boxscore

Baseball Picked to Win GSC East

2009-01-28

VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State baseball team was selected to repeat as Gulf South Conference East Division champions in a vote of the GSC head coaches as announced by the league office on Wednesday. VSU garnered six of the seven first place votes in the East Division and 36 total points to claim the top spot. The lone coach not to vote for the Blazers was Valdosta State head man Greg Guilliams, who under GSC rules was not permitted to vote for his squad. West Alabama garnered Guilliams first place vote and finished second in the East rankings with 30 followed by North Alabama with 24. West Florida was fourth with 22 points while Montevallo (17), Alabama-Huntsville (10) and West Georgia (8) rounded out the poll. Delta State claimed six of the eight first place votes in the West Division and received seven votes as the preseason favorite to win the GSC Tournament. The Blazers tallied five of the remaining eight votes to finish second on the tournament championship ballot while Southern Arkansas received the final three votes. The Blazers, who are ranked 21st in the preseason Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll, open their season Sunday, February 1 with a doubleheader at No. 33 Francis Marion. VSU returns six position starters and four starters off of a squad that went 36-18-1, including a 13-4 record in GSC play, during the 2008 season.

Baseball to Hold Annual Alumni Game

2008-09-15

Valdosta State University Blazer Baseball is pleased to announce the 2008 Alumni Baseball Game and Alumni Social. The Alumni Baseball Game will be held at Billy Grant Field Friday, October 17 while the Alumni Social will immediately follow the game. Baseball alumni activities are scheduled to coincide with the annual Valdosta State University Homecoming Weekend October 17 - 19. Alumni baseball players are welcome to arrive at Billy Grant between 2:00 p.m. and 3:45 p.m. for uniform distribution. Batting practice is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. with a game start time of 4:00 p.m. The Alumni Social will begin following the game, at approximately 6:30 p.m. Alumni are urged to check back for updates, including a registration form and complete schedule.

Donations Now Being Accepted for John McDonald Fund

2008-07-18

The Valdosta State Athletic Department is seeking donations for the John McDonald Fund. McDonald, who played in the outfield for the Blazer baseball squad in 2004 and 2005, was critically injured in a car accident during the week of July 7-11. McDonald was one of Valdosta State's top hitters during his two seasons with the squad as he batted .368 in 2004, second-best on the squad, while leading the Blazers with a .396 batting average in 2005. He tallied 21 home runs during his two seasons in the Red and Black, during which he also tallied 105 RBI. Blazer fans wishing to contribute to the John McDonald Fund should send checks made out to "John McDonald Fund" to: Citizens Community Bank Attn: Drew Copeland/John McDonald Fund PO Box 3788 3261 North Valdosta Rd. Valdosta, GA 31604-3784 or to: Valdosta State Athletics Attn: Herb Reinhard/John McDonald Fund 1500 North Patterson St. Valdosta, GA 31698 Former Blazer baseball coach Tommy Thomas as well as former Blazer Matt Rucker can also be contacted concerning donations.

Baseball to Hold Open Tryout

2008-05-27

The Valdosta State Baseball program will hold an open tryout for all interested players on Saturday, May 31. For more information, please see below. Date: Saturday, May 31 Time: Noon Location: Billy Grant Field IMPORTANT: Players must bring written documentation of a physical they have taken in the last six months to be allowed to participate. Any player wishing to transfer from a four-year institution must bring a copy of their release from their respective school. All players will be required to sign a release prior to the workout. Any student-athlete who has not turned 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the release.

Justin Lamb Named All-American

2008-05-27

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State senior Justin Lamb was named to the Daktronics All-America second team Tuesday in a vote of the NCAA Division II Sports Information Directors. Lamb tallied a 1.84 earned run average while compiling a 4-2 record on the season. The senior also registered 11 saves while appearing in a VSU single season-record 32 contests. He struck out 68 batters, while walking just 14, in 58.2 innings of work and held opponents to a .233 batting average. Lamb owned a 10.43 strikeouts-per-nine innings mark during the year, during which he appeared in 58.2 percent of Valdosta State's 55 games.

Blazers Earn Baseball All-Region Honors

2008-05-22

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Two Valdosta State baseball players have been named to the Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association All-South Central Region Team while a third has been honored as a member of the ABCA South Central Region Gold Glove squad in a vote of the South Central Region coaches as announced by the ABCA on Thursday. Blazer closer Justin Lamb earned first-team honors after compiling a 4-2 record and 11 saves during the 2008 season. Lamb appeared in a school record 32 games during the season and owned a team-best 1.84 earned run average as he allowed just 12 earned runs in 58.2 innings pitched. The senior owned a 10.43 strikeouts per nine inning ratio as he fanned 68 batters on the year and held opponents to a .233 batting average. By being named to the All-Region first squad, Lamb advances for All-America consideration in a vote of all Division II coaches. VSU designated hitter Daniel Muniz also earned All-Region honors after being named to the South Central's second-team squad. Muniz, also a senior, was second on the Valdosta State squad with a .347 batting average while leading the Blazer team with 53 runs batted in. He hit eight home runs on the year while adding 10 doubles and one triple among his 61 hits and had a team-high .551 slugging percentage. Junior catcher Chase Blackwood was VSU's lone representative on the South Central Gold Glove team after tallying a .990 fielding percentage on the season. Blackwood committed just four errors in 418 chances on the season while batting .309. The Taft, Calif. Native picked off three base runners on the year and threw out 20 of 62 base runners.

Blazers Fall 11-5 to Delta State

2008-05-06

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Delta State scored seven unearned runs on four Valdosta State errors to defeat the Blazers 11-5 in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament at USA Stadium Tuesday. Three of the unearned runs came in the top of the first inning after Blazer starter Jeremy Forbus retired the first two batters of the game. Clay Sartain was promptly hit by a pitch before Forbus appeared to get out the inning with a Rickey Noland ground ball, but VSU's Jon Koenigsfeld was unable to handle the ball at shortstop to put runners on the corners. Chris Clark followed with a walk to load the bases before Forbus hit Anthony Palasini to force in Sartain. Michael Niemann proceeded to single over the third base bag to plate Noland and Clark for the final two runs of the frame. Niemann hit his second home run of the season, a solo shot over the right field fence, with two outs in the third to up the Statesmen lead to 4-0 before they added two more runs in the fourth. J.T. Taylor doubled to open the frame and moved to third on a Hunter Jobes single before scoring when VSU's Daniel Muniz was unable to make a sliding catch on a Devin Goodwin fly ball to left. Goodwin took second on Muniz's throw home on the play and scored when Sartain singled through the left-side of the infield to post DSU (43-9) to a 6-0 advantage. Delta State added two more unearned runs in the seventh as Clark reached on a one-out single and moved to second on a two-out base hit by Niemann, which got by Blaine Wilson in right, allowing Clark to score. Niemann, who moved to second on the error, advanced to third on an Anthony Palasini single and scored when the throw from Blazer catcher Chase Blackwood on a Palasini stolen base was wild, pushing the Statesmen edge to 8-0. Valdosta State (36-18-1) struck for its only run in the bottom of the seventh as Wes Hyman led off with a double and moved to third on a Wilson ground ball. DSU starter Cody Kelley attempted to pick Hyman off third, but threw the ball over the head of Clark to allow Hyman to jog home. The Statesmen added two more unearned runs in the eighth and an earned run in the ninth while VSU added four in the bottom of the frame. Drew Camp hit a one-out home run for the Blazers before Blackwood was hit by a pitch and Logan Pierce singled. Jesse Barfield proceeded to hit a triple to right to plate both base runners while Curtis Keegan doubled to center to drive in Barfield for the final run. Forbus surrendered nine hits and eight runs, only three of which were earned, in seven innings of work to fall to 5-2. Blackwood, Barfield, Keegan and Pierce tallied two hits on the day to lead VSU offensively. Kelley gave up six hits and an earned run in seven innings to improve to 4-0 on the year. Niemann led DSU with three hits while Steven Oswald, Taylor, Noland and Clark finished with two each.

Blazers Top West Alabama 5-1

2008-05-05

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Glen Lemke struck out a career-high 13 batters to lead Valdosta State to a 5-1 victory over West Alabama in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Monday at USA Stadium. Lemke (10-3) registered just three 1-2-3 innings in the frame, but two came over the course of the last two innings as he retired the final seven batters he faced. His complete game effort was just the second of the season by a Blazer and the first since he pitched all seven innings in a 3-2 loss to Tampa on February 24. He surrendered six hits and walked four batters in the game while throwing 141 pitches. Sho Kohata got Valdosta State (36-17-1) out to an early lead as he hit a solo home run, his third of the season, with one out in the top of the first inning to put the Blazers in front 1-0. The Blazers upped their advantage to 2-0 in the second inning when Jon Koenigsfeld singled to open the frame, stole second and came home on Sidney Spell's two-out single up the middle before West Alabama (45-11) struck back for a run in the bottom of the inning. Matt Busbee doubled to open the Tiger half of the frame and came around to score two batters later when Chris Ransburgh singled to center, cutting the VSU advantage to 2-1. VSU pushed its advantage to four runs in the seventh as it took advantage of a piar of walks by UWA reliever Kasey Nafzger. With one out in the frame, Nafzger issued a free pass to Calem Ray before surrendering a bunt single to Logan Pierce. Kohata loaded the bases with a walk before Blaine Wilson drove in Ray with a sacrifice fly. A wild pitch moved both runners up a base, allowing both to score as Daniel Muniz laced a 1-2 pitch into center to post Valdosta State to a 5-1 advantage. Pierce and Muniz tallied two hits each for the Blazers on the day while Kohata, Koenigsfeld and Spell finished with one each. Matt Hill (5-2) took the loss for West Alabama as he surrendered five hits and two runs in six innings of work. Jake DeRoy led the Tiger offense with two hits. Valdosta State awaits the winner of Monday%u2019s final two games for its Tuesday opponent and game time.

Blazers Fall 6-5 to Montevallo in 10 innings

2008-05-04

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Ryan Norman's base hit in the bottom of the 10th inning scored Brantly Clay to propel Montevallo to a 6-5 victory over Valdosta State in the second round of the Gulf South Conference Tournament at USA Stadium Sunday afternoon. Clay singled to open the bottom of the 10th and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt before Norman hit a 1-0 pitch under a diving Jesse Barfield at first to score the winning run. Valdosta State (35-17-1) jumped out to an early lead as it took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Jon Koenigsfeld worked a full-count walk to open the frame before moving to second on a Sho Kohata sacrifice bunt. Daniel Muniz also reached on a base on balls before a Blaine Wilson fly out moved Koenigsfeld to third. Shawn Keill proceeded to single through the right-side of the infield, plating Koenigsfeld. Montevallo (34-23) evened the game in the bottom of the second as Jeremy Faust led off with a single before Clay also reached on a base hit to move to Faust to second. A ground out moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Faust to score on a Norman sacrifice fly that tied the game at 1-1. The Falcons took the lead in the bottom of the fourth Daniel Furuto and Dustin Rhodes each hit solo home runs to right to post UM to a 3-1 lead. A Clay home run with Furuto on base in the sixth pushed the Montevallo lead to 5-1 before the Blazers struck for a run in the top of the seventh. Logan Pierce walked to open the frame and moved to third two battes later as Calem Ray followed with a single to left-center that chased Falcon starter Jeffrey Reach. Nate Russ came on and struck out Koenigsfeld before being lifted for Garrett Mims. Mims gave up an infield single to Kohata that scored Pierce while a stolen base and a Muniz walk loaded the bases. Wilson worked a 2-2 count on Mims before hitting a slow roller to third. Chris Cooper fielded the ball and rushed a throw to first, which barely beat Wilson for the third out in the frame, ending the threat. The Blazers further cut into their deficit in the eighth as Keill reached on a two-base fielding error and scored on a two-out triple by Sidney Spell before tying the game at 5-5 in the ninth. Koenigsfeld drew a lead off walk to open the ninth and moved to second on a Kohata ground out. Mims recorded a Muniz ground out for the second out of the frame, but gave up back-to-back singles to Wilson, who scored Koenigsfeld, and Keill before being lifted for Zach Andrews. Chase Blackwood greeted Andrews with a single that drove home pinch runner Wes Hyman and moved Keill to third. Three pitches later, Keill attempted to score as Norman let an Andrews pitch get away from him, but Norman recovered to flip the ball to Andrews, who held on to the ball while colliding with Keill to end the inning. Blazer starter Will Thompson surrendered six hits and three runs in five innings. Justin Lamb gave up three hits and a run in an inning and a third to fall to 4-2. Keill tallied three hits on the day to lead the Blazers, who left 11 runners on base in the contest, offensively. Reach surrendered just three hits and two runs in six and a third innings. Andrews surrendered two hits in an inning a third to improve to 6-2. Clay had tree hits for the Falcons while Cooper, Furuto and Norman tallied two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Monday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern when it plays the winner of Sunday%u2019s North Alabama vs. West Alabama elimination game.

Blazers Come From Behind to Top Harding 4-3

2008-05-03

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - A Blaine Wilson single in the bottom of the ninth inning plated Curtis Keegan to propel Valdosta State to a 4-3 victory over Harding in the opening round of the Gulf South Conference Tournament at USA Stadium Saturday. Sho Kohata walked with one out in the bottom of the ninth and moved to second as Glen Lemke tallied a pinch-hit single to right, just his second hit of the season. After Keegan entered as a pinch runner for Lemke, Jon Koenigsfeld tallied a base hit through the left-side of the infield to plate Kohata. Logan Pierce proceeded to single to center to load the bases for Wilson, who hit a shot to left-center to drive in the winning run. Harding (27-22) took the lead in the eighth inning when Wisley Correa singled up the middle before being lifted for pinch-runner Charles Bradley. A sacrifice bunt moved Bradley to second while he moved to third on a wild pitch. After a strikeout, Ben Rodriguez entered the game as a pinch hitter and worked a 3-2 count before tallying a shot up the middle to plate Bradley to give the Bison a 3-2 advantage. The Blazers (35-16-1) got on the board first as they scored an unearned run in the bottom of the second inning. Daniel Muniz singled up the middle to open the inning and moved to second two batters later when Shawn Keill drew a walk. A passed ball moved both runners into scoring position before Kohata singled to left to plate Muniz for a 1-0 VSU advantage. Harding evened the game at 1-1 in the fourth. With one out in the frame, Wisley Correa was hit by a pitch and advanced to second as Tyler Thompson drew a base on balls. Matt Stevens proceeded to double to left, scoring Correa to even the game. VSU, which entered the game as the No. 1 seed in the East Division, took advantage of wildness by HU starter Troy Keith in the bottom of the inning to regain the lead. Muniz and Chase Blackwood reached on a pair of walks to open the frame before a Ryan Moody throwing error on a Keill sacrifice bunt loaded the bases. A Sidney Spell ground out plated Muniz before Kohata also walked to reload the bases. However, a Calem Ray double play ball limited the damage as the inning ended with the Blazers leading 2-1. The Bison, who earned the West's No. 4 seed for the tournament, once again evened the contest at 2-2 in the sixth as it opened the frame with a pair of doubles. Correa doubled to center to open the frame and moved to third on a wild pitch before Thompson laced a double just inside the third base bag to drive in the tying run. Blazer starter Russ Crum pitched into the fifth inning and recorded seven strikeouts while allowing two hits and a run in a no decision. Justin Lamb surrendered two hits and the Bradley run in two innings of work to improve to 4-1 for the Blazers. Muniz led the Blazer offense with two hits and two runs in as many at-bats. D.A. Kremer came on in the sixth for the Bison and walked two batters while surrendering four hits in four innings of work to fall to 3-4. Correa was two-of-three with two runs scored in the game to lead Harding offensively. Valdosta State returns to action Sunday at 1:00 p.m. when it faces Montevallo, the No. 3 seed out of the East Division.

Rain Pushes Back Baseball Tournament

2008-05-02

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Rain in the Millington area has delayed the start of the 2009 Gulf South Conference Baseball Tournament. The tournament was to begin at 10:30 a.m. Saturday morning, but the day's play was cancelled by the rain. The tournament will now begin at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, with Valdosta State playing at 8:15 p.m. on Sunday evening.

Seven Blazers Named All-GSC

2008-05-01

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Seven Valdosta State baseball players were named to the All-Gulf South Conference team in a vote by the league coaches according to an announcement made by the GSC Office Thursday. Three of the Blazers were unanimous selections to first-team All-GSC squad, including designated hitter Daniel Muniz and a pair of pitchers. Muniz batted .341 for VSU on the season while leading the squad in runs batted in with 51. The senior hit eight home runs on the year and scored 29 runs while playing in 48 of 51 games. Joining Muniz as a unanimous selections were starting pitcher Glen Lemke and closer Justin Lamb. Lemke tallied a 9-3 record for VSU on the year, including a 4-1 mark in versus GSC opponents. The junior record a 4.37 earned run average on the year and struck out 64 batters in 70.0 inning. Lamb led the GSC in both earned run average, at 1.49, and saves, with 11. The senior also appeared in a league-high 29 games and earned a 3-1 record while striking out 62 in 54.1 innings of work. The trio of unanimous selections were joined on the first team by first baseman Blaine Wilson and starting pitcher Will Thompson. Wilson batted .293 on the year and tallied 48 RBI while leading Valdosta State with 10 home runs. Thompson earned GSC Pitcher-of-the-Week honors three times on the year, the most by any player in the conference, while registering an 8-4 record. The senior registered a 2.25 earned run average and struck out 57 batters in 68.0 innings. The final two Blazers, shortstop Jon Koenigsfeld and catcher Chase Blackwood, earned second-team honors. Koenigsfeld led the Blazers with a .369 batting average and scored 45 runs while driving in 35. Blackwood batted .319 while scoring 35 runs and driving in 40. The junior hit seven home runs on the season and led the GSC in number of times hit by a pitch with 24. The Blazers, who earned the GSC East Division No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament, play West Division No. 4 Harding at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday in USA Stadium.

Thompson Named GSC Pitcher-of-the-Week

2008-04-29

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pitcher Will Thompson has been named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher-of-the-Week according to an announcement made by the league office Tuesday. Thompson earned two of the Blazers four victories last week has he saw action as a reliever in both contests. On Tuesday, the senior entered the game with two on and no outs in the fifth inning and allowed just two hits in two innings of work to propel the Blazers to an 8-1 win over St. Leo. He returned to action in the first game of a doubleheader against West Florida on Saturday and surrendered three hits while striking out five in eight scoreless innings of work. On the season, Thompson has an 8-4 record and a 2.25 earned run average. He has struck out 57 batters in 68.0 innings of work while allowing just 17 earned runs on the year. The award, which is Thompson's third of the season and fifth of his career, marks the fifth time this year a VSU pitcher has won the conference's weekly honor. The Blazers open play in the GSC Tournament Saturday, May 3 as the East Division%u2019s No. 1 seed when they play Harding, the No. 4 seed out of the West, at 1:00 p.m. in USA Stadium in Millington, Tenn.

West Florida Tops Blazers 11-6

2008-04-27

PENSACOLA, Fla. - West Florida jumped out to an 8-0 lead and then withstood a Valdosta State comeback bid to defeat the Blazers11-6 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Pelican Park Sunday afternoon. The Argonauts (20-32, 5-13) got on the board in the bottom of the first inning as they plated five runs. Kyle Andrews doubled to open the frame and moved to third two batters later as Greg Pron singled. Jon Reed proceeded to single home Andrews, but a Scott Beckwith fielder's choice erased Pron at home. Steven Bingert proceeded to single to load the bases before Craig Wescott doubled to drive home Reed and Beckwith. A Tyler Hastings single chased Blazer starter Glen Lemke (9-3) and closed out the scoring in the frame as Bingert and Wescott scored. Wescott doubled and moved to third on a fielding error on a Hastings fly ball in the third inning before Eric Kroll walked to load the bases. Andrews and Pron picked up RBI base hits while Reed drove in a third run with a sacrifice fly to post UWF to an 8-0 lead. Valdosta State (34-16-1, 13-4) got on the board in the top of the sixth as Sho Kohata reached on a pinch-hit single and scored on a Jon Koenigsfeld double, but West Florida responded with three more runs in the bottom of the frame. The Blazers further cut into their deficit in the seventh as they plated four runs in the frame. Drew Camp opened the frame with a single and moved to second on a fielding error on a Calem Ray ground ball. Wesley Mitchell walked to load the bases before Kohata homered to cut the VSU deficit to 11-5. Valdosta State scored the game's final run in the eighth. Daniel Muniz singled to open the frame and moved to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a Shawn Keill base hit. The Blazers threatened further in the frame as Ray followed with a base hit, but a double play ended the frame and the threat. Koenigsfeld, Muniz, Keill and Kohata finished with two hits each to lead the Blazers offensively. Meanwhile, Andrews and Pron had three hits each for the Argonauts. Valdosta State returns to action next Saturday when it opens play in the Gulf South Conference Tournament. The Blazers, who enter the tournament as the East Division's No. 1 seed, will play West Division No. 4 seed Harding at 1:00 p.m. at USA Stadium in Millington, Tenn.

Blazers Sweep West Florida 5-1, 4-3

2008-04-26

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Valdosta State claimed the Gulf South Conference East Division crown as the Blazers swept West Florida 5-1, in 11 innings, and 4-3 in league play at Pelican Park Saturday afternoon. West Florida (19-32, 4-13) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first game as it scored its only run of the game in the second inning. Jackson Woodard opened the inning with a walk and moved to second on a throwing error on a failed pick off attempt by Blazer starter Russ Crum. A sacrifice bunt allowed Woodard to move to third and he scored a batter later when Craig Wescott singled. Valdosta State (34-15-1, 13-3) evened the game in the fourth inning. With one out in the frame, Sidney Spell reached on a two-base error before a fly ball moved him to third. Daniel Muniz proceeded to single, plating Spell and knotting the game at 1-1. The two teams played scoreless into the 11th when the Blazers scored four runs before registering an out in the frame. Logan Pierce singled to open the frame before Curtis Keegan reached on a fielding error. A bunt single by Jon Koenigsfeld loaded the bases before Spell doubled to drive home Pierce and Keegan. Blaine Wilson and Muniz proceeded to hit back-to-back singles, scoring Koenigsfeld and Spell for the game's final runs. Will Thompson pitched eight innings in relief and surrendered three hits and no runs to improve to 8-4 on the season. Argonaut starter Kyle Ramsey pitched into the 11th inning and surrendered six hits and five runs, three of which were earned, to fall to 3-7. The Blazers jumped got on the board first in the second game as it plated two runs in the top of the second inning. With one out in the frame, Spell singled and moved to second on a Sho Kohata base hit. Calem Ray proceeded to tally a single to center to plate Spell while Kohata came home two batters later on a Pierce double. UWF cut its deficit in half in the bottom of the frame. Jon Reed was hit by a pitch to begin the frame and moved to second when Scott Beckwith drew a four-pitch walk. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a bag, allowing Reed to score when Wescott scored on a fielding error by Koenigsfeld. Valdosta State upped its advantage to 3-1 in the third inning as Shawn Keill led off the frame with a walk, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a Chase Blackwood double. Meanwhile, in the fourth, Ray singled to open the frame and beat the throw to second on a Koenigsfeld fielder%u2019s choice. A Pierce sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base before Ray scored on a Muniz sacrifice fly to post the Blazers to a three-run lead. The Argonauts closed out the scoring in the fifth inning as Tyler Hastings doubled to open the frame and moved to third two batters later when Kyle Andrews singled. A Brandon Brewer base hit drove in Hastings and moved Andrews to third, allowing him to score on a double steal attempt in which Brewer was thrown out at second. Jeremy Forbus surrendered five hits and three runs in six innings to improve to 5-1 while Justin Lamb, who also pitched the 11th inning of the first game, recorded a perfect seventh for his 11th save of the year. Jon Sintes took the loss as he surrendered eight hits and three runs in two-plus innings of work. Spell finished the day with two hits, three runs scored and two RBI to lead Valdosta State offensively. Andrews and Greg Pron tallied two hits each to lead West Florida on the day. The two wins insures Valdosta State the No.1 seed out of the East in next weekend's Gulf South Conference Tournament. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a single game beginning at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Blazers Top St. Leo 8-1

2008-04-23

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State jumped out to an 8-0 lead en route to defeating St. Leo 8-1 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. Valdosta State (32-15-1) opened the scoring in the bottom of the third inning as Sho Kohata tripled to open the frame and scored on a Jon Koenigsfeld ground ball that went through the legs of shortstop Anthony Santa. Koenigsfeld advanced to third as Sidney Spell singled on a hit and run and scored two batters later when Daniel Muniz doubled to left-center. Chase Blackwood followed with a sacrifice fly to plate Spell to give the Blazers a 3-0 lead. The Blazers batted around in the fourth to up their Blazer lead to 8-0. Calem Ray, who reached on a fielder's choice, scored the innings first run on a Koenigsfeld two-bagger down the left field line while Kohata, who walked after the Ray fielder's choice, and Koenigsfeld came home on a Blaine Wilson double to left. Muniz followed with a double to straight-away center field, plating Wes Hyman, who reached base after being hit by a pitch, and Wilson for the final runs of the inning. St. Leo (26-20) got a run back in the top of the fifth inning. Brandin Daniel singled to open the frame before moving to second on an Anthony Santa bloop base hit to right. Will Thompson relieved starter Shawn Keill and induced a ground ball double play that moved Daniel to third. Jason Hamm proceeded to single to right to plate Daniel, cutting the VSU lead to 8-1. Muniz was two-of-four with three runs batted in to lead the Blazers offensively. Koenigsfeld also tallied two hits and scored two runs while also driving in two. Keill allowed three hits and a run in four-plus innings of work while Thompson surrendered two hits in two innings of work to improve to 7-4 on the year. Daniel finished the day two-of-four at the plate to lead the Lion offense. Yunior Tabares also finished with two hits while Dale Slimick gave up six hits and three runs, only one of which was earned, to fall to 2-1. Valdosta State concludes its 2008 regular season when travels to Pensacola, Fla. for a three-game Gulf South Conference series against West Florida. The series, which will be played at Pelican Park, opens with a doubleheader beginning at 3:00 p.m. Eastern on Saturday followed by a single game Sunday beginning at 2:00 p.m.

Glen Lemke Named GSC Pitcher-of-the-Week

2008-04-23

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pitcher Glen Lemke has been named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher-of-the-Week according to an announcement made by the league office Wednesday. Lemke pitched Valdosta State into the 2008 Gulf South Conference Tournament over the weekend as he defeated Montevallo 1-0 to secure the Blazers%u2019 spot in the upcoming league championship event in Millington, Tenn. Lemke surrendered just three hits in six-plus innings of work while walking one batter and striking out eight. Only one base runner advanced as far as third base against the junior in the game, that coming in the seventh inning as he surrendered a lead-off walk and a single before leaving the game. The win upped Lemke's record to 9-2 on the year and lowered his earned run average to 3.80.

Blazers Blank Pirates 6-0

2008-04-22

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State defeated Armstrong Atlantic 6-0, its seventh shutout of the season, in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Tuesday evening. Valdosta State (31-15-1) got on the board first as it scored in the bottom of the first inning. Logan Pierce walked to open the frame before moving to second when Jon Koenigsfeld was hit by a pitch. Daniel Muniz laid down a sacrifice bunt to move both runners up a base, allowing Pierce to score on Blaine Wilson's base hit to center. VSU upped its advantage to 4-0 in the fourth inning as it scored three runs with two out in the frame. Chase Blackwood singled to open the frame and moved to second on a fielding error by Pirate centerfielder Michael Price. A Sho Kohata single moved Blackwood to third before Pierce loaded the bases with a walk. Koenigsfeld proceeded to work a full count before singling up the middle to plate Blackwood and Kohata. AASU reliever Sam Dotson came on and appeared to get out of the inning, but his throw to first on a Muniz grounder was over the head of first baseman Joey Davis, allowing Pierce to score. The Blazers added two more runs in the fifth on a Kohata sacrifice fly and a Pirate fielding error that allowed Blackwood to score to close out the scoring in the game. Russ Crum started for the Blazers and allowed two hits while striking out three in a pre-determined three innings of work to improve to 3-0. Blackwood collected two hits while also scoring a pair of runs to lead VSU offensively. Jeff Chase surrendered three hits and a run in an inning and a third to fall to 4-5 for Armstrong Atlantic (24-18). Michael Price tallied two of the Pirates seven hits to lead AASU offensively. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, April 23 at 5:00 p.m. when it hosts St. Leo in Billy Grant Field in the Blazers final home contest of the 2008 season.

Montevallo Tops Blazers 2-1

2008-04-20

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Aaron Faust's two-out run in the top of the 10th inning proved to be the game winner as Montevallo defeated Valdosta State 2-1 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. Faust walked to open the 10th and stole second to move into scoring position. After a pair of outs, B.J. Holloway worked a 2-2 count before fouling off three pitches. The shortstop proceeded to hit a single up the middle to score Faust and give Montevallo (29-21, 11-6) its winning run. Valdosta State (30-15-1, 11-3) opened the scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one out in the frame, Blaine Wilson hit a bloop double to left. A ground out moved Wilson to third, allowing him to score on a balk by Montevallo starter Jeffrey Reach. The Falcons (30-21, 12-6) evened the game in the top of seventh as Chris Cooper hit his eighth home run of the season, a shot off the scoreboard in left-center field that knotted the game at 1-1. Blazer starter Jeremy Forbus allowed just two hits and a walk in six and two-thirds innings of work. The junior righthander was perfect through the first five innings of the contest and struck out seven UM batters in the game. Justin Lamb came on with one on and two out in the seventh and allowed three hits and a run in three and a third innings to fall to 3-1. Wilson tallied three doubles in four plate appearances to lead Valdosta State offensively. Chase Blackwood, Calem Ray and Wes Hyman recorded the final three Blazer hits. Falcon starter Jeffrey Reach surrendered five hits while striking out two in seven innings of work. Garrett Mims pitched the final three innings and struck out one while allowing one hit to improve to 3-3. Cooper and Brantly Clay tallied two hits each for Montevallo while Holloway finished with one hit. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 22 when it hosts Armstrong Atlantic at 6:00 p.m. in Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Sweep Montevallo 8-7, 1-0

2008-04-19

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State claimed an 8-7 win in game one before edging Montevallo 1-0 in game two to sweep a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. In the first game, Montevallo (29-21, 11-6) scored in each of the first four innings to jump out to a 7-2 advantage. Daniel Furuto hit his 10th home run of the season, a two-run shot to right right, in the first while Eric Moore upped the Falcon lead to 3-0 with his seventh home run of the in the second. Valdosta State (30-14-1, 11-2) cut its deficit to a single run in the bottom of the second. Chase Blackwood singled to open the inning before Sho Kohata reached on a base hit. Kohata reached second on the play as the ball was booted by Brantly Clay in left field, but Clay recovered to throw out Blackwood at third. After Calem Ray walked, Logan Pierce singled to score Kohata while Jon Koenigsfeld%u2019s base hit scored Rayto close VSU to within 3-2. UM added two more runs in the third and one in the fourth before VSU struck for five runs in the bottom of the fourth to even the game. Blackwood, Kohata and Pierce singled to load the bases in the frame before Koenigsfeld greeted Montevallo reliever Nate Russ (2-4) with a single up the middle to plate Blackwood and Kohata. Daniel Muniz followed a home run over the fence in straight away center field, his eighth homer of the year, to knot the game at 7-7. The Blazers claimed the lead in the fifth as Blackwood was hit by a pitch to open the inning and, after a fielder's choice and a Kohata bunt single, scored on a Ray fielder's choice to post VSU to an 8-7 lead. Will Thompson pitched three innings in relief, allowing just one hit while striking out two, to improve to 6-4 on the season. Justin Lamb did not allow a hit in the final two innings to pick up his ninth save. After stranding four base runners through the first three innings of the second game, Valdosta State scored the only run of the contest in the bottom of the fourth as it took advantage of a Falcon error. Shawn Keill walked to open the frame and two batters later moved to third when a Wes Hyman ground ball was booted by B.J. Holloway at short. A Kohata sacrifice bunt allowed Keill to score, giving VSU a 1-0 advantage. Blazer starter Glen Lemke (9-2) struck out eight batters and allowed three hits in six-plus innings of work before leaving with two on and none out in the seventh. Lamb came on and induced a pop-up, struck out a batter and got a fly out to earn his 10th save of the year. UM's Zac Blakney also struck out eight while surrendering six hits and one unearned run to fall to 7-2. Pierce collected five hits in seven at-bats on the day to lead VSU offensively while Koenigsfeld, Blackwood and Kohata finished with three hits each in the two games. Furuto finished the day with three hits for the Falcons while Moore had two on the day. With the two wins, Valdosta State assures itself of a spot in the 2008 Gulf South Conference Tournament. The two teams conclude the three game series with a single game beginning at 1:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon. The 2008 Blazer seniors will be honored prior to the contest. Game One Stats Game Two Stats

Blazers fall 6-1 to No. 7 Columbus State

2008-04-16

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Jeremy Thompson scattered seven hits over nine innings to lead No. 7 Columbus State to a 6-1 victory over No. 18 Valdosta State in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. Columbus State (33-13) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning as it took advantage of the speed of leadoff batter Jonnie Geiger. Geiger singled up the middle to open the inning and stole second before moving to third on a Brandon Masters base hit. Masters proceeded to steal second. Geiger scored on the play as the throw from VSU catcher Chase Blackwood sailed into centerfield. The Cougars upped their advantage to 2-0 in the second inning as Brian Gordon tripled to open the frame and came home on Aaron Beasley's sacrifice fly to centerfield before Valdosta State (28-14-1) answered with a run in the bottom of the inning to close back to within a run. Blaine Wilson doubled to right-center to open the Blazer half of the frame and moved to third on a Daniel Muniz ground out. Blackwood drove Wilson home with a groundout. A leadoff triple again led to a CSU run in the third as Masters tripled to left-center to open the frame and scored two batters later on a Thomas Morrison ground out while Rodney Rutherford hit a two-run home run, his 21st round-tripper of the season, in the fifth to push the Cougar lead to 5-1. A pinch hit single by Cole Martin, which scored C.J. Bressoud in the eighth closed out the scoring. The Blazers only other threat against Thompson came in the fourth as they loaded the bases before a strikeout ended the frame. The junior walked two batters while striking out eight to improve to 4-1 on the season. Will Thompson allowed four hits and two runs, only one of which was earned, in two innings to fall to 5-4 on the year. Shawn Keill and Wes Hyman led the Blazers offensively with two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 19 when it opens a three-game series with Gulf South Conference foe Montevallo at 1:00 p.m. in Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Top Armstrong Atlantic 11-3

2008-04-15

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Logan Pierce collected four hits to lead No. 18 Valdosta State to an 11-3 win over Armstrong Atlantic at Pirate Field Tuesday afternoon. Valdosta State (28-13-1) opened the scoring in the top of the second inning as it took advantage of a pair of walks by Pirate starter Westley Lucas (0-3). Chase Blackwood reached on a free pass to open the inning and moved to second on a wild pitch before Sidney Spell also walked. Shawn Keill was hit by a pitch to load the bases, allowing Blackwood to score when Sho Kohata hit into a double play. Armstrong Atlantic (23-15) evened the game in the bottom of the inning on a Nick Pyron home run before VSU responded with its second run in the third. With one out in the frame, Pierce reached on an infield single and moved to second on a stolen base. Two batters later, Daniel Muniz drove Pierce home with a single through the left side of the infield to give the Blazers a 2-1 advantage. Valdosta State blew the game open by scoring three runs in each of the next three inning. In the fourth inning, Spell and Keill walked to open the inning, chasing Lucas in the process, before a Kohata sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position. A Calem Ray ground out plated Spell while a Jon Koenigsfeld double drove home Keill. Pierce proceeded to single, plating Koenigsfeld to up the VSU lead to 5-1. In the fifth, Daniel Muniz walked to open the frame and reached second on a Wes Hyman pinch-hit single. Keill was hit by a pitch for the second time in the game to load the bases while Muniz and Hyman scored on a Kohata base hit. Keill eventually scored on a wild pitch, pushing the Valdosta State advantage to seven runs. Blackwood's seventh home run of the season, which plated Pierce and Blaine Wilson, rounded out the Blazer scoring in the game while Matt Tufts hit a two-run double in the eighth for the Pirates. Valdosta State tallied 11 hits in the game while starter Jeremy Forbus surrendered five hits and run in five innings to improve to 4-1 on the season. The Blazers return to action Wednesday, April 16 at 6:00 p.m. when they return home to Billy Grant Field to host No. 7 Columbus State.

Blazers Take UNA Series with 4-2 Win

2008-04-13

FLORENCE, Ala. - Valdosta State built a 4-0 lead before withstanding a North Alabama comeback bid to defeat the Lions 4-2 in Gulf South Conference action at Lane Field Sunday afternoon. VSU (27-13-1, 9-2) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as Sho Kohata hit his first home run of the season before upping its advantage to 2-0 in the second inning. Chase Blackwood walked to open the inning and moved to second when Shawn Keill singled. A Wes Hyman sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Blackwood to score on a Calem Ray base hit. Kohata and Blackwood both played into the Blazers third run as Kohata reached base on passed ball after striking out to open the third. Blaine Wilson's single moved Kohata to second, allowing him to score on a Blackwood base hit. Valdosta State pushed its lead to four runs in the seventh as Ray singled and was sacrificed to second by Kohata. Wilson followed with a single, plating Ray for a 4-0 Blazer lead. North Alabama (23-17, 5-7) got a run back in the bottom of the seventh as Qualon Millender led off with a single and stole second. A Jeffrey Ritter single moved Millender to third, allowing him to score on a Josh Graham ground out. The game's final run came in the bottom of the ninth as Collin Murphy singled with one out and came around to score on a Ritter double. Graham proceeded to single to put runners at the corner, but Blazer pitcher Justin Lamb struck out Ross Parker and induced a Cole Mitchell ground out to end the game. Lamb pitched the final four and two-thirds innings to improve to 3-0 on the year. The senior allowed seven hits and two runs while striking out six after relieving VSU starter Russ Crum in the fifth inning. Ray led the Blazers with three hits while Wilson and Blackwood tallied two hits each. Brennen Auerbach surrendered three runs, two of which were earned, and five hits in two and a third innings to fall to 3-2 on the year. Ritter finished the game with three hits to lead the Lions while Millender, Murphy and Matt Horton had two each. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 15 at 5:00 p.m. when it travels to Savannah to take on Armstrong Atlantic.

Blazers Split Doubleheader with UNA

2008-04-12

FLORENCE, Ala. - North Alabama won game one 15-5 before Valdosta State rebounded for a 6-2 victory in game two as the Blazers and Lions split a Gulf South Conference doubleheader at Lane Field Saturday afternoon. In the first game, Valdosta State (26-13-1, 8-2) got on the board first on Blaine Wilson's 10th home run of the season in the top of the first inning. However, North Alabama (23-16, 5-6) responded with five runs in the bottom of the frame, including a three-run home run from Jeffrey Ritter, to take a 5-1 advantage. Ritter tripled and scored for the Lions in the third before UNA added three more runs in the bottom of the fourth and one in the fifth to take a 10-1 advantage. The Blazers responded with two runs in both the sixth and seventh while North Alabama scored five in the bottom of the seventh. In the sixth, Daniel Muniz doubled and scored two batters later when Chase Blackwood homered. In the seventh, Wes Hyman reached on a pinch-hit single before Sidney Spell hit a pinch-hit home run. Will Thompson (5-3) took the loss as he allowed four hits and five runs, three of which were earned, in an inning of work while UNA's Brandon Tepe surrendered eight hits and five runs in eight and a third innings to improve to 4-5. VSU again struck first in the second game as it tallied a pair of home runs in the top of the first inning. Jon Koenigsfeld led off the game with his second home run of the year and three batters later, Muniz also hit a solo homer to post the Blazers to a 2-0 advantage. UNA responded with a single run in the bottom of the first as Ritter was hit by a pitch, stole second and scored on a Josh Graham base hit before VSU used an RBI double from Wilson in the third to increase its lead to 3-1. A Graham home run in the bottom of the sixth cut the Lion deficit to 3-2, but Valdosta State responded with three runs in the top of the seventh to seals the victory. Shawn Keill singled to open the inning and was sacrificed to second before Sho Kohata walked. Koenigsfeld proceeded to hit a run-scoring single to plate Keill while Kohata, who had moved to third on the play, scored as Kyle Jones' throw home was wild. Koenigsfeld moved to second on the wild throw and scored when Logan Pierce reached on a fielding error by Graham at first, giving the Blazers a 6-2 advantage. Glen Lemke allowed five hits and two runs in six innings of work to improve to 8-2 for Valdosta State while Justin Fleming surrendered five hits and four runs, three of which were earned, in six innings to fall to 1-1. Muniz had three hits in eight plate appearances to lead VSU on the day while Koenigsfeld, Pierce and Wilson had two hits each. Ritter was four-of-four and fell just a double shy of hitting for the cycle in game one for North Alabama. Graham also tallied four hits in the two games while also finishing with four RBI. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a single game beginning at 2:00 p.m. Sunday afternoon. Game One Stats Game Two Stats

Blazers Fall 4-0 to St. Leo

2008-04-08

ST. LEO, Fla. - No. 18 Valdosta State was shut out for the first time this season as the Blazers fell 4-0 to St. Leo in non-conference baseball action at Thomas B. Southard Stadium Wednesday evening. St. Leo (23-15) scored its first two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Kyle Hobbs tripled to open the frame and scored as Bobby Munoz followed with a single to left field. Munoz was promptly picked off first base, but T.J. Alonzo proceeded to homer to right to give the Lions a 2-0 advantage. SLU scored its final two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. With two outs in the frame, Braulio Pardo walked and scored on a Brandin Daniel home run to right. Valdosta State (25-12-1) managed just three hits in the contest including a Daniel Muniz single in the fourth, a Sidney Spell double in the fifth and a Chase Blackwood single in the seventh. Dale Slimick (3-0) earned the victory for St. Leo as he surrendered two hits while striking out two in three innings of work while VSU's Steve Turner fell to 2-2 after allowing three hits and two runs in a third of an inning of work. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 12 when it returns to Gulf South Conference play versus North Alabama in Florence, Ala. The two teams play a doubleheader beginning at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday followed by a single game at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Blazers Split with West Georgia

2008-04-06

CARROLLTON, Ga. - No. 15 Valdosta State fell 14-2 in the first game before rebounding for an 11-3 win as the Blazers split a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader with West Georgia at Cole Field Sunday afternoon. The Wolves (27-10, 4-4) scored in all six innings in which they batted during the first game of the day. Bradley Abell drove in a run with a run-scoring single in the first inning before UWG added two more unearned runs with two outs in the second to up their advantage to 3-0. Jud Jones drove in two more runs in the bottom of the third inning before Valdosta State (25-11-1, 7-1) got on the board with a run in the top of the fourth. Blaine Wilson doubled to open the inning before Daniel Muniz walked and Chase Blackwood singled to load the bases. Two batters later, Wilson scored on a Shawn Keill ground out to cut the Blazer deficit to 5-1. West Georgia blew the game open with five runs in the bottom of the fourth, including three on a home run by Abell, and added two more in the fifth and one in the sixth before VSU closed out the scoring with a single run in the seventh. With two out in the frame, Sho Kohata singled and scored as Curtis Keegan doubled to left. Will Thompson (5-2) took the loss as he surrendered six hits and five runs, three of which were earned, in two innings of work. Cody Gossett improved to 6-2 as he allowed seven hits while striking out three in a complete game effort. Valdosta State opened the game two scoring with a pair of runs in the top of the second inning. With two outs in the frame, Blackwood was hit by a pitch and Wes Hyman singled. A Kohata walk loaded the bases, allowing Blackwood and Hyman to score as Calem Ray singled up the middle, posting the Blazers to a 2-0 advantage. VSU increased its lead to 7-0 during its next at-bat. Logan Pierce singled to open the third and moved to third on a Wilson double while Muniz walked to load the bases. A Keill walk forced in Pierce and chased Wolf starter Derrick Sheffield (5-2). Blackwood proceeded to single to plate Wilson while an error on a Hyman ground ball drove in Keill and Muniz. Kohata followed with an infield single to plate Blackwood, giving the Blazers their seven run lead. West Georgia responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning. Luke Martin singled to open the frame and scored when Davan Abney followed with a home run to left. A.J. Renfro proceeded to single, but was erased on an Abell fielder's choice, who then moved to third on an Andrew Parrish single. A wild pitch allowed Abell to score before Justin Lamb (2-0) came on to record the final out of the inning. The Blazers added two more runs in the fifth as Kohata walked and Ray singled with two outs in the frame. A wild pitch moved Kohata to third before Ray stole second, allowing both runners to score on Jon Koenigsfeld's single left-center. Blackwood picked up an RBI single and Ray walked with the bases loaded in the sixth to close out the scorinig. Lamb allowed three hits and struck out two in four and a third innings of work in earning the win. Pierce led Valdosta State with three hits in nine at-bats in the two games while Keill was two-of-six with two RBI and two runs scored. Kohata picked up two hits in four at-bats while also drawing three walks. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 8 when it plays at St. Leo with a first pitch beginning at 6:00 p.m.

Three VSU Athletic Events Canceled

2008-04-05

Three Valdosta State athletic events were canceled today: baseball, softball and men's tennis. The Blazers baseball team, who traveled to West Georgia, will play two games tomorrow, starting at 1 pm. The Lady Blazers (32-8, 8-2) traveled to Alabama-Huntsville and have not yet set a make-up date. VSU travels to North Alabama tomorrow for a 2 pm double header. VSU men's tennis at the second day of the White Sands Invitational was rained out and the men's and women's tennis team take on Georgia College & State on Tuesday night in Millington, Ga.

No. 15 VSU Blanks Georgia College 11-0

2008-04-02

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. - Six Valdosta State pitchers combined to limit Georgia College to two hits as the 15th-ranked Blazers defeated the Bobcats 11-0 in non-conference baseball action at Kurtz Field Wednesday afternoon. Valdosta State (24-10-1) opened the scoring in the first inning as it plated five runs. Jon Koenigsfeld singled to lead-off the game and moved to second on a Logan Pierce bunt single. Wes Hyman pinch-hit for Blaine Wilson, who was hurt on a foul ball during the at-bat, and also reached on a bunt single to load the bases before Daniel Muniz and Shawn Keill walked to force in Koenigsfeld and Pierce. Ryan Bode came on in relief of Bobcat starter Ryan Heimpel (1-4) and hit Chase Blackwood with a pitch to score Hyman while Sidney Spell's ground out allowed Muniz to score. Sho Kohata proceeded to hit a sacrifice fly, plating Keill for a 5-0 VSU lead. The Blazers upped their advantage to 6-0 in the second on a Muniz double that drove home Pierce before upping their advantage to 10-0 in the sixth. Reliever Jamie Ammons opened the inning by hitting Calem Ray and Koenigsfeld with a before committing a throwing error on a Pierce sacrifice bunt that allowed Ray to score. After a pop-up, Muniz singled to score Koenigsfeld. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position while Keill doubled to up the advantage to 10-0. Kohata's double in the eight which plated pinch-hitter Drew Camp closed out the scoring. Georgia College (21-17) got a Derek Johns double with two out in the seventh and an Andrew Evans double with two out in the ninth for its only hits of the game. Russ Crum (2-0) earned the win after striking out three batters in a pre-determined two innings of work. Hyman picked up four hits in six at-bats to lead VSU at the plate while Muniz finished the game with three hits. Koenigsfeld and Pierce also finished with two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 5 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series at West Georgia. The two teams play a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday followed by a single game at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Will Thompson Earns GSC Honor

2008-04-02

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pitcher Will Thompson has been named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher-of-the-Week, according to an announcement made by the league office Wednesday. Thompson saw action in a pair of games last week while tallying a 1-0 record. He began the week by pitching an inning and a third in relief versus Thomas University on Tuesday. The senior did not give up a hit and struck out one against the Night Hawks and was one of the two pitchers, out of the 10 used between the two schools combined, that did not surrender a run in the 15-12 VSU victory. Thompson returned to the mound in the first game of a doubleheader with GSC foe West Alabama, who entered the weekend ranked third nationally, and was dominating in a 5-1 Blazer win. The Valdosta native surrendered just two hits and did not walk a batter in seven innings of work. He struck out seven batters and allowed just one Tiger base runner to reach second base, that coming in the first inning after an error allowed the runner to reach first before a wild pitch moved him to second. On the week, Thompson held opposing batters to a .074 batting average as he allowed just two hits to 27 opposing batters. The honor marks the second time this season and the fourth time in his career that Thompson has earned the GSC Pitcher-of-the-Week honor.

Blazers Down Thomas 13-3

2008-04-01

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used a six-run first to defeat Thomas 13-3 in non-conference action at Billy Grant Field Tuesday afternoon. The Blazers (20-19) sent 11 men to the plate during the first inning as Thomas starter Will Smelzter threw 41 pitches in the frame. Sherard Reynolds walked to open the inning and moved to third on Ryan Parson's base hit through the right side of the infield. Nick Phillips followed with a fielder's choice that scored Reynolds and stole second to move into scoring position. Justin Hill walked to put two men on while Jesse Barfield drove in Phillips with a base hit. Rusty Harris' single to right plated Hill and Eddie San Roman and Drew Camp walked to force in Barfield. Calem Ray's fielder's choice plated Harris and Reynolds singled to drive in San Roman to post VSU to a 6-0 lead. VSU added two more runs in the second, on base hits by San Roman and Camp, and one in the third before Thomas (19-14) broke through for a pair of runs in the fifth. After Justin Majors singled to open the inning, Eric Johnson reached on a fielder's choice and advanced to second on a fielding error by Phillips at second on a fielder's choice by Ruben Rodriguez. After a strikeout, Matthew Blanton doubled down the left field line to drive in Johnson and Rodriguez scored on a balk to cut the Valdosta State lead to 9-2. The Night Hawks added another run in the sixth, on a bloop single by Rodriguez, before Chris Harris hit his third home run of the season, a shot over the left field wall, in the seventh for VSU, which added three more runs in the eighth to invoke the 10-run rule. Jeremy Forbus started for VSU and gave up four hits while striking out two in a pre-determined three innings to improve to 2-0 on the season. Chris Harris, Hill and Rusty Harris all tallied two hits in the game while Camp drove in a pair of runs. Smeltzer allowed seven hits and walked five while allowing eight earned runs in two innings to fall to 5-3 on the year. Rodriguez and Majors had two hits each to lead the Night Hawks at the plate. Valdosta State returns to action Friday, April 6 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series with a doubleheader against West Georgia at 3:00 p.m.

Blazers Sweep Tigers with 8-7 Win

2008-03-30

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used an eighth inning rally to grab the lead and then withstood a comeback bid by West Alabama in the ninth to defeat the Tigers 8-7 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. The win gave the Blazers a sweep of the three-game season series. VSU (23-10-1, 6-0) entered the eighth inning trailing 5-3 before taking advantage of three walks to grab the lead. Daniel Muniz walked to open the frame and, after a ground out, Chase Blackwood and Wes Hyman also walked to load the bases. Sho Kohata was hit by a pitch to force in Muniz before pinch-hitter Sidney Spell singled up the middle to bring home Blackwood and Hyman. Kohata and Spell both moved into scoring position on the throw home on the play, allowing Kohata to score as Jon Koenigsfeld singled through a drawn-in infield. Logan Pierce proceeded to hit a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Spell and giving the Blazers an 8-5 lead. West Alabama (29-8, 5-4) scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning. With one out in the frame, Todd Rea singled and moved to second as Clint Moody was hit by a pitch. Koenigsfeld came on to pitch and registered a strike out before Cory Houston singled to right-center to drive in Rea and Moody. The Tigers proceeded to reload the bases, but a ground out ended the game. The Tigers opened with three runs in the top of the first inning. Jake DeRoy singled up the middle to open the game and moved to second when Jeremy Finney was hit by a pitch. Tres Avans single through the right-side of the infield drove in DeRoy for the first run of the game. Both base runners moved into scoring position on a throw home on the play, allowing Finney to eventually score on a Rea sacrifice fly. Moody followed with a base hit that scored Avans, chasing Blazer starter Jeremy Forbus. Valdosta State struck back for a run in the bottom of the second. With one out, Shawn Keill walked and moved to third on a throwing error by UWA shortstop Nick Wheeler. Hyman proceeded to hit a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Keill to cut the Blazer deficit to 3-1. The Blazers further cut into the Tiger lead in the fourth as it again plated a single run. With two outs in the frame, Pierce singled and stole second. Blaine Wilson proceeded to single up the middle, scoring Pierce to slice the West Alabama advantage to 3-2. The Tigers upped their lead to 5-2 in the seventh as it took advantage of a Blazer error to open the inning. Finney hit a ground ball to shortstop to open the frame, but the throw from Koenigsfeld was high allowing Finney to reach safely. Avans followed with a double to right-centerfield to score Finney, but was thrown out trying to dive back into second after rounding the base on the play. Rea also doubled to right-center and moved to third on a ground out before coming home on a Wheeler base hit to right. Valdosta State got a run back in the bottom of the inning on a two-out hit by Koenigsfeld. With one out in the frame, Kohata singled and moved to second on a ground out. Koenigsfeld proceeded to hit a bloop single to center, scoring Kohata to cut the Blazer deficit to 5-3. Koenigsfeld and Pierce tallied two hits each to lead the Blazers offensively while Russ Crum surrendered two hits in an inning and a third to improve to 1-0. Koenigsfeld registered his first save. Tiger starter Brandon Gill struck out six batters while allowing seven hits and three runs in seven innings in a no decision. Reliever Kasey Nafzger gave up three of the five runs in the eighth to fall to 4-1. DeRoy and Rea tallied three hits each to lead the Tigers at the plate while Avans and Moody had two each. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, April 2 when it travels to Milledgeville, Ga. to face Georgia College at 4:00 p.m.

Blazers Sweep No. 3 West Alabama

2008-03-29

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used a pair of strong pitching performances to defeat No. 3 West Alabama 5-1 and 3-1 in a Gulf South Conference doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Valdosta State (22-10-1, 5-0) took advantage of a Tiger error in the bottom of the first inning of the first game to open the scoring. Jon Koenigsfeld reached on an error by UWA second baseman Jeremy Finney to open the frame before moving to second on a ground out. Two batters later, Daniel Muniz doubled down the right field line to plate Koenigsfeld and give VSU a 1-0 advantage. The Blazers added two more runs in the sixth as Blaine Wilson and Muniz opened the inning with back-to-back home runs before scoring two more in the seventh. Koenigsfeld singled to open the frame and was sacrificed to second by Logan Pierce. After a Wilson fly out, Muniz was intentionally walked. Chase Blackwood followed with a single that drove in Koenigsfeld and advanced Muniz to third. West Alabama proceeded to pick Blackwood off first, but Muniz scored during the ensuing run down to give Valdosta State a 5-0 advantage. The Tigers (29-7, 5-3) scored its only run of the game in the top of the eight as Brent Bumgarner doubled with one out and moved to third on a wild pitch. Jake DeRoy proceeded to single up the middle, scoring Bumgarner for a 5-1 VSU edge. Will Thompson pitched seven shutout innings in the contest to improve to 5-1 on the season. The senior allowed just two hits while striking out seven batters. Koenigsfeld, Muniz and Blackwood all tallied two hits in the contest as Valdosta State out-hit UWA 10-5. Mike Schmitt allowed seven hits and three runs while striking out six to fall to 7-1 on the year. DeRoy and Bumgarner finished with two hits each to lead the Tigers. West Alabama scored first in the second game as it claimed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. DeRoy and Jeremy Finney reached on back-to-back singles to open the game. After a strikeout, Nick Wheeler was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Cory Houston followed with a single to right, scoring DeRoy, but passed Wheeler, who held up at first while waiting to see if the ball would be caught, for the second out of the frame before a fly out ended the inning. VSU responded with a pair of runs in bottom of the frame to take a 2-1 lead. With one out in the frame, Pierce singled and stole second. Wilson proceeded to single to drive in Pierce and took second on the throw home on the play. Muniz followed with a base hit to drive in Wilson, giving the Blazers the lead. Valdosta State upped its lead to two runs in the bottom of the sixth on a Sho Kohata run-scoring double. Wes Hyman singled to open the frame and was sacrificed to second before Kohata hit a 2-1 count into the gap in left-center to score Hyman for a 3-1 Blazer advantage. Glen Lemke surrendered eight hits and a run while striking out four to improve to 7-2 on the season. Justin Lamb, who struck out five in two innings of work in the first game of the day, struck out one in a perfect seventh inning to earn his eighth save of the year. Pierce and Shawn Keill had two hits each to lead the VSU offense. Matt Hill allowed six hits and two runs in three and two-thirds innings to fall to 3-1 on the season while Finney tallied two hits to lead UWA at the plate. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a single game Sunday afternoon beginning at 1:00 p.m. Game One Boxscore Game Two Boxscore

Baseball Tops Thomas 15-12

2008-03-26

THOMAS, Ga- The Valdosta State baseball team used a five-run first inning to help secure a 15-12 non-conference win over Thomas University on Tuesday night. The Blazers (20-10-1, 3-0) scored five runs in the first inning, but TU came within one off a grandslam in the bottom of the first. Thomas had a two-run lead going intot he sixth inning but VSU had another five-run inning to take a 14-11 lead. The Nighthawks came within two but the Blazers scored another run in the ninth to secure the win. The Blazers return to action this Saturday when they host the nationall ranked West Alabama at 1 pm.

Blazers Sweep Chargers in Doubleheader

2008-03-22

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State defeated Alabama-Huntsville 13-2 in game one before claiming a 6-3 victory in game two as the Blazers swept the Chargers in a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Alabama-Huntsville (14-20, 0-6) opened the scoring in the first inning of the first game as Luke Putnam singled to open the frame and stole second base. A ground out moved Putnam to third, allowing him to score on a wild pitch to give the Chargers a 1-0 lead. Valdosta State (19-10-1, 3-0) answered with a pair of two-out runs in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Logan Pierce walked and moved to second on a throwing error by Charger starter Tom Longyear (2-4) on a failed pick off attempt. After a strikeout, Daniel Muniz drew a walk and scored along with Pierce as Chase Blackwood followed with a double to right-center, posting the Blazers to a 2-1 advantage. VSU upped its advantage to 3-1 in the third inning. Jon Koenigsfeld doubled to open the frame and moved to third as Pierce followed with a bunt single. Longyear was forced to leave the game due to injury and reliever Patrick Grimes threw a wild pitch on his first pitch, allowing Koenigsfeld to score. The Blazers added six more runs in the fourth as it sent 11 men to the plate. Sidney Spell walked to open the frame and moved to second when Shawn Keill was hit by a pitch. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners up while pinch hitter Jesse Barfield was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Koenigsfeld followed with a single to left to plate Spell while Keill and pinch-runner Sho Kohata scored on a Blaine Wilson single through the left-side of the infield. Muniz's base hit to right plated Koengisfeld and Blackwood doubled down the left field line to drive in Wilson and Muniz, giving the Blazers a 9-1 advantage. Valdosta State added two runs in the fifth and, after the Chargers scored one in the sixth, two more in the sixth to close out the scoring. Will Thompson surrendered six hits and two runs while striking out four in five and two-thirds innings to improve to 4-1 on the season. UAH again scored first in the second game as it took advantage of a Wilson error in right to score two runs. With one out in the inning, Joey Tatara doubled to centerfield and scored as Putnam followed with a single to right. Wilson had the ball roll between his legs, allowing Wilson to advance to third on the play. He scored as Blake Butler singled to right, giving the Chargers a 2-0 lead. The Blazers took advantage of two UAH errors in the bottom of the inning to take a 3-2 lead. Keill walked to open the frame before Wilson hit a fly ball to right that bounced off the glove of Butler, allowing Keill to reach third and Wilson second. Muniz hit the next pitch to the wall in left-center for a double that plated both base-runners. Muniz moved to third on a fly out and scored when Pierce reached on an error by Charger reliever Jacob Wray. The Chargers evened the game with a Jordan Parker sacrifice fly in the fifth before VSU got a Wilson home run and two unearned runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 6-3 advantage. Justin Lamb allowed a run and three hits in three innings of relief to earn his first victory, against no losses, of the year. UAH reliever Jacob Wray surrendered three runs, only one of which was earned, in three innings to fall to 3-2. Koenigsfeld, Wilson, Pierce, Muniz and Kohata all collected three hits on the day to lead VSU offensively. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, March 25 when it travels to Thomasville, Ga. to face Thomas University at 4:00 p.m. Game 1 Boxscore Game 2 Boxscore

Blazer Baseball Blanks UAH 5-0

2008-03-21

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Three Valdosta State pitchers combined to strike out 14 Alabama-Huntsville players to lead Valdosta State to a 5-0 Gulf South Conference victory in baseball action Friday evening at Billy Grant Field. Valdosta State (17-10-1, 1-0) scored first as the Blazers plated a run in the bottom of the first inning. Jon Koenigsfeld doubled to open the frame and advanced to third as Logan Pierce followed with a bunt single. Koenigsfeld scored on the play as the throw to first by UAH catcher Joe Sutton was just over the head of first baseman Will Nichols. Charger second baseman Jake Lee got the throw back to the plate, but Koenigsfeld slid under the tag to give the Blazers a 1-0 lead. The Blazers added their second unearned run of the game in the bottom of the fifth to increase their lead to 2-0. Shawn Keill singled to open the inning and moved to second on a Calem Ray sacrifice bunt. Ray reached base safely on the play as the throw from Charger starting pitcher Indjomar Juliana (2-1) pulled Nichols off the first base bag. A Curtis Keegan sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base before Koenigsfeld was intentionally walked to load the bases. Pierce proceeded to hit a ground ball that allowed Keill to score for the second run of the game. VSU increased its lead to three runs in the seventh as Keill opened the inning with a double and moved to third on a Ray sacrifice bunt. Juliana proceeded to throw a wild pitch on the next pitch, allowing Keill to score to up the Blazer advantage to 3-0. The Blazers closed out the scoring in the bottom of the eighth as they took advantage of walks by the UAH relief corps. Andrew Ford relieved Juliana to open the inning and walked Pierce before inducing a fielder's choice from Chase Blackwood. Blaine Wilson followed with a double to left, moving Blackwood to third before Daniel Muniz walked to load the bases. Blackwood was picked off third, but Sidney Spell promptly walked to reload the bases. Chase Brewington came on to relieve Ford and was greeted by a single from Keill to score Wilson. UAH third baseman Jordan Parker attempted to throw out Spell at second on the play, but threw the ball away, allowing pinch runner Wes Hyman to also score, posting VSU to a 5-0 lead. Alabama-Huntsville (14-18, 0-4) managed to get just two base runners past second base in the game. Parker singled and moved to third on an outfield error with one out in the first inning while a pair of back-to-back singles moved Jake Lee to third with no outs in the seventh. Glen Lemke allowed six hits while striking out a career-high nine batters in six innings as he improved to 6-2 on the season. Justin Lamb came on with one on and none out in the seventh and tallied two strikeouts in two innings while Thomas Tripp struck out the side in the ninth. The shutout was the fourth of the year for the Blazer pitching staff. Keill tallied three hits for Valdosta State while Koenigsfeld finished with two. The Charger offense was led by Lee and Nick Huckaby, who tallied two hits each. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a doubleheader Saturday afternoon beginning at 1:00 p.m.

VSU Falls 7-5 to North Georgia

2008-03-19

VALDOSTA, Ga. - North Georgia got a pair of ninth inning home runs to defeat Valdosta State 7-5 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday afternoon. The two teams entered the top of the ninth inning with the scored tied 4-4, but NGCU's Chad Sage led off with a round-tripper to left-center. Logan Sharrett drew a walk on five pitches on the next at-bat before Craig Brisson homered to center field, giving the Saints (15-11) their three run lead. The Blazers (16-10-1) got a run back in the bottom of the inning as Sho Kohata singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. A ground out moved Kohata to third, allowing him to score on a wild pitch on a swinging strike three by Jon Koengisfeld. Valdosta State opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning as it took advantage of a pair of walks to open the frame. Koenigsfeld and Logan Pierce drew the free passes to begin the first before Blaine Wilson singled to left field to drive in Koenigsfeld. After a strikeout, Chase Blackwood singled up the middle, scoring Pierce, while a Shawn Keill base hit through the right side of the infield plated Wilson, chasing Saint starter Jessie Coxwell and giving VSU a 3-0 advantage. North Georgia got two runs back in the top of the third as it led off the inning with a pair of hits. Brisson singled to open the frame and moved to second as Andre Airich also tallied a base knock. A wild pitch allowed both runners to move up a base while Brisson scored on a Rob Flanigan ground out. Josh Tate followed with a sacrifice fly to left to drive in Airich and cut the Blazer lead to 3-2. VSU responded with Daniel Muniz's fourth home run of the season with one out in the bottom of the third while the Saints got an Andrew Jones solo homer with one out in the sixth before evening the game in the seventh. Brisson walked to open the seventh and advanced to second on an Airich sacrifice bunt. Flanigan was intentionally walked to set up a possible double play, but Tate singled to left, scoring Brisson to tie the game at 4-4. Koenigsfeld came on in relief with one out in the sixth and gave up three hits and four runs in his first outing of the year on the mound to fall to 0-1. North Georgia's Jason Rickett allowed one hit and a run in two innings of work to improve to 2-1. Six different Blazers tallied a hit on the day while Sage had three hits to lead the Saints. Valdosta State returns to action Friday, March 21 when it opens Gulf South Conference play against Alabama-Huntsville. The Blazers and Chargers play one game, beginning at 5:00 p.m., on Friday before concluding the series with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

North Georgia Tops Blazers 5-3 in 11 Innings

2008-03-18

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Craig Brisson's two-out triple in the top of the 11th inning drove lifted North Georgia to a 5-3 non-conference victory in baseball action at Billy Grant Field Tuesday evening. The Saints (14-11) and Blazers (16-9-1) played scoreless from the second inning on before NGCSU strung together a walk and two hits in the top of the 11th inning. Anders Oster walked to open the frame and advanced to third two batters later when Daniel Petittie singled to left-center. VSU reliever Shawn Keill (0-1) retired the next batter before Brisson came to the plate. On a 2-2 pitch, the rightfielder hit a ball to right that dropped just in front of a diving Wes Hyman, allowing both base runners to score. North Georgia opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as it took advantage of a VSU error to score three unearned runs. With one out in the inning, Andre Airich singled and stole second before Rob Flanigan was hit by a pitch. Josh Tate proceeded to hit a ball that VSU third baseman Curtis Keegan was unable to handle, loading the bases, before Airich scored on a Kevin Morrison ground out while Oster singled to drive in Flanigan and Tate for a 3-0 Saint lead. Valdosta State got two runs back in the bottom of the inning to cut its deficit to one. Jon Koenigsfeld doubled to left-center to open the frame and moved to third when Sidney Spell followed with a single up the middle. Spell advanced to second on a throw home on the play and moved to third on a Blaine Wilson ground out that scored Koenigsfeld. Daniel Muniz also grounded out to drive in Spell, cutting the VSU deficit to 3-2. Calem Ray manufactured a run for the Blazers in the bottom of the second to even the game at 3-3. With one out in the frame, Ray singled and moved to second when the throw from Brisson in right escaped Flanigan at first base. A ground out moved Ray to third and the VSU second baseman stole home for the tying run. North Georgia's Zach Black allowed just two hits while striking out seven in four and a third innings to improve to 1-2 on the year. Koenigsfeld totaled two hits to lead Valdosta State while the Saints got a pair of hits from Logan Sharrett and Brisson. The two teams conclude the two-game series Wednesday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. in Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Top Brewton-Parker 13-2

2008-03-17

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 14 hits as it defeated Brewton-Parker 13-2 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Monday afternoon. The Blazers (16-8-1) opened the scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning as it plated four runs. Jon Koenigsfeld singled to open the frame before Shawn Keill was hit by a pitch. A passed ball moved both base runners up a base, allowing both to score on Blaine Wilson's double to right-center. Two batters later, Chase Blackwood doubled to left-center, driving in Wilson, before Sidney Spell walked and Logan Pierce was hit by a pitch. Calem Ray followed with a ground to that drove in Blackwood for a 4-0 VSU advantage. Brewton-Parker (9-13) got an unearned run in the top of the third before Valdosta State added three more runs in the bottom of the frame. Spell, Pierce and Ray all reached on singles to open the frame while two batters later Koenigsfield walked to force in Spell. Keill also walked to drive in Pierce while Wilson hit a sacrifice fly that plated Ray to post the Blazers to a 7-1 advantage. Valdosta State added two more runs in the fifth, on a Daniel Muniz two-run triple, before upping their advantage to 11-1 in the sixth when Sho Kohata tripled, scoring Ray, and then scored on a wild pitch. Muniz homered off the scoreboard in left-centerfield in the bottom of the seventh, his third roundtripper of the year, while Kohata doubled and came home on a Koenigsfeld singled in the eighth to close out VSU's scoring. The Barons added a run in the ninth. Glen Lemke started and pitched a pre-determined two innings to improve to 4-1 on the season for VSU. Wilson and Muniz tallied two hits and three RBI each to lead VSU offensively. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday evening at 6:00 p.m. when it hosts North Georgia at Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Sweep at College Jamboree

2008-03-13

ORMOND BEACH, Fla. - Valdosta State easily won two games in the College Baseball Jamboree as the Blazers defeated Bridgeport 19-1 and Olivet Nazarene 17-7 Thursday afternoon. VSU (15-8-1) scored in five of the six innings it batted in during the first game as it was never threatened by the Purple Knights (0-2). The Blazers started the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it plated six runs. Logan Pierce drove in a pair of runs during the frame while Shawn Keill and Blaine Wilson tallied one RBI each. Valdosta State upped its lead to 8-0 in the second before adding six more runs in the third. Chase Blackwood provided the big blow of the frame as he hit a two-run home run, his fifth round-tripper of the year. Wilson, Calem Ray and Sho Kohata also drove in runs during the frame. Bridgeport got its only run in the fifth while VSU added three runs in the bottom of the frame and two more in the sixth. Olivet Nazarene scored the first two runs in the second game as it plated runs in the second and third innings. However, the Blazers responded with four runs in the fourth, including three on Wilson's six homer of the year, to take a 4-2 advantage. Valdosta State added two more runs in the sixth while the Tigers responded with their final run in the top of the seventh. However, VSU responded with seven runs in the bottom of the inning to end the game. Daniel Muniz and Ray each drove in two runs during the decisivie inning while Pierce also picked up an RBI. Jeremy Forbus allowed four hits while striking out four in five innings of work in improving to 3-1 in game one. Glen Lemke pitched six and a third inning, surrendering five hits and three runs while striking out six in game two to improve to 4-1 on the year. Wilson tallied four hits, six RBI and four runs scored in seven plate appearances to lead VSU on the day while Koenigsfeld was three-of-seven with four runs scored. Blackwood also tallied three hits while scoring five runs. Valdosta State returns to action Monday, March 17 when it hosts Brewton-Parker at Billy Grant Field. First pitch is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.

Blazers Fall 4-3 to Georgia Southwestern

2008-03-12

AMERICUS, Ga. - Georgia Southwestern built a 4-1 lead before withstanding a Valdosta State comeback bid as the Hurricanes defeated the Blazers 4-3 in non-conference baseball action at the GSW Baseball Field Wednesday afternoon. The Blazers (13-8-1) opened the scoring in the top of the second inning with a single run. Chase Blackwood singled to open the frame and moved to third as Jon Koenigsfeld followed with a base hit. Logan Pierce followed with a sacrifice fly to plate Blackwood. The Hurricanes (7-14) answered with three unearned runs in the bottom of the inning to grab the lead. Francisco Gomez was hit by a pitch to open the frame, bringing Byron Haynes to the plate. The GSW designated hitter appeared to be retired as he fouled a pitch off, but VSU first baseman Shawn Keill dropped the ball, allowing the at-bat to continue. Haynes took advantage of the mistake as he hit a two-run home run on the next pitch. Two batters later, Trey Reeves singled and moved to second on a Daniel Stokes base hit. Nick Rex's single to right allowed Reeves to score, giving Georgia Southwestern a 3-1 advantage. GSW upped its advantage to 4-1 in the fourth when Reeves tripled with two outs and scored when Miles Martin followed with a single to center. Valdosta State responded with a pair of runs in the seventh as it took advantage of a Hurricane error. Keill opened the inning by reaching on a fielding error by Martin at short and advanced to second as Blaine Wilson followed with a single. A Daniel Muniz walk loaded the bases, allowing Keill to score on a sacrifice fly by Blackwood. Wilson and Muniz moved up a base on a passed ball before Koenigsfeld singled to plate Wilson. Hurricane reliever Bud Fuller entered the game and struck out the next two batters to preserve the 4-3 Georgia Southwestern lead. Koenigsfeld led VSU at the plate with three hits in four at-bats while Wilson was two-of-four on the day. Josh Maxwell fell to 0-2 on the season as he allowed four hits and three runs, none earned, in three innings of work. Reeves tallied two of GSW's eight hits to lead the Hurricanes. Colin Duffie allowed eight hits and three runs in six and a third innings to improve to 1-2 while Fuller struck out all eight batters he faced to earn his first save of the year. Valdosta State returns to action on Thursday, March 13 when it plays a pair of games in the College Jamboree in Ormond Beach, Fla. The Blazers face Bridgeport at 2:00 p.m. and Olivet Nazerene at 6:00 p.m.

Blazers Fall 7-5 to Thomas

2008-03-11

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Thomas University scored three runs in the top of the sixth inning to defeat Valdosta State 7-5 in a rain-shortened non-conference baseball game at Billy Grant Field Tuesday evening. Thomas (12-8) opened the scoring in the top of the third inning when, with one out, Bret Huett singled up the middle and stole second. Ruben Rodriguez followed with a double to right-center, driving in Huett. Stephen Cheney greeted Blazer reliever Adam Harmych with a chopper over the head of VSU third baseman Curtis Keegan to bring home Rodriguez for a 2-0 Night Hawk lead. Valdosta State (13-7-1) responded with a four runs in the bottom of the frame as it batted around. With one out, Keegan singled through the left-side of the infield and moved to third as Sidney Spell followed with a double just inside the third base bag. A Logan Pierce ground ball appeared to plate Keegan, but the ball hit Spell, putting Keegan back on third and Pierce on first with two outs. Jon Koenigsfeld proceeded to single up the middle to drive in Keegan before he and Pierce executed a double steal. Blaine Wilson's single through the middle of the infield plated both runners. Wilson moved to second on a throw home on the play advanced to third as TU first baseman Matthew Blanton was unable to handle a throw from shortstop Ken Zarillo on a Chase Blackwood ground ball. Daniel Muniz followed with a single up the middle to drive in Wilson and give VSU a 4-2 advantage. The Night Hawks took advantage of a pair of VSU errors to even the game in the fourth. Mike Griffin singled to open the frame and moved to second when Muniz mishandled the ball in right field. Two batters later, Zarillo singled up the middle to plate Griffin and moved to second on a ground out. A wild pitch on a Mike Vitello base on ball advanced Zarillo to third, allowing him to score when Keegan misplayed a Huett ground ball. The Blazers regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth as it grabbed a 5-4 edge. With two out in the frame, Wilson was hit by a pitch before advancing to third on failed pick-off attempt. After Blackwood was hit by a pitch, Muniz singled up the middle, plating Wilson for the go-ahead run. Thomas answered with its game-winning, three-run inning as it came to bat an inning later. Randy Adams doubled to open the frame and two batters later, Jonathan Rossi was hit by a pitch. A passed ball moved both runners into scoring position and Vitello walked to load the bases prior to a Huett fielder%u2019s choice that plated Adams. Rodriguez proceeded to single to score Rossi and move Huett to third, allowing him to score on a wild pitch to put the Night Hawks up 7-5. Muniz finished the day with three hits in as many at-bats to lead VSU offensively. Thomas Tripp gave up three runs in an inning and two-thirds while falling to 2-1 on the year. Rodriguez, Griffin and Adams each tallied two hits each for TU while starters Chris Poulos struck out eight batters in seven innings to improve to 3-0 on the year. Valdosta state returns to action Wednesday, March 12 when it travels to Americus, Ga. to take on Georgia Southwestern at 4:00 p.m. LAMB NAMED GULF SOUTH CONFERENCE PITCHER-OF-THE-WEEK Valdosta State closer Justin Lamb was named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher-of-the-Week Tuesday after helping the Blazers to a 3-0 record in the week ending Sunday, March 9. Lamb recorded a pair of saves on the week without giving up a hit. He started the week by retiring the side in order in the ninth inning to preserve a 5-2 win over Georgia College. Lamb also pitched the final two innings of a 4-2 victory over Webber International on Saturday. The only batter to reach base against him in the game was due to an error. On the week, Lamb struck out four of the 10 batters he faced while picking up his fifth and sixth saves of the year. The senior's six saves are just two fewer than the eight recorded by the entire VSU pitching staff in 2007.

Blazers Sweep Webber International

2008-03-08

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State hit six home runs as the Blazers swept a non-conference baseball doubleheader from Webber International, winning 21-7 and 4-2, at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. Valdosta State (13-6-1) opened the game one scoring in the bottom of the second run as it batted around while scoring five runs. With one out in the inning, Jon Koenigsfeld singled and moved to second on a Calem Ray base hit. A fielder's choice put Ray on second and Curtis Keegan on first before Sidney Spell doubled to centerfield to drive in Ray. Logan Pierce's base hit allowed both Keegan and Spell to score while Pierce came home on a Shawn Keill double to left. A ground ball appeared to get WIU out of the inning, but shortstop James Latorre misplayed the ball and committed a second error on the throw, allowing Keill to score for a 5-0 Blazer advantage. Latorre got Webber International (15-11) on the board in the top of the third as he led off with a home run to centerfield. Nic Horne followed with a single that hugged the base line before bouncing off bouncing off the base and away from an awaiting Keill. Alberto Burgos followed with a base hit and both runners moved up a base on a Harris Hartley sacrifice bunt before Jose Rodriguez singled to right to plate both Horne and Burgos. M.J. Wilson also tallied a single to chase VSU starter Jeremy Forbus. Will Thompson (3-1) came on for VSU and registered a pair of outs to preserve the 5-3 Valdosta State advantage. VSU added two runs in the third, including Chase Blackwood's second home run of the season, and three more in the fourth to push its advantage to 10-3. Blaine Wilson and Blackwood each added two-run homers in the fifth and Valdosta State got a single run in the sixth before scoring six in the seventh, including Blackwood's third home run of the game, to push its lead to 21-3. The Warriors strung together five straight hits to score four runs in the top of the eighth off of reliever Landon Gray to close out the scoring in the game. The Blazers pounded out 25 hits in the contest while Thompson allowed just one hit and struck out four in four and a third innings of work. Spell opened the scoring in game two with a lead-off home run in the bottom of the first to put VSU up 1-0 while a Daniel Muniz home run, his second of the year, and a CRay run-scoring single in the fourth gave the Blazers a three-run edge. Webber Internationl cut its deficit to a single run in the top of the fifth. With one out, Duane Bowman singled and moved to second on a two-out Chad Pearce base on balls. Rodriguez proceeded to double to right, bringing home both base runners to close the Warriors to within 3-2. Valdosta State took advantage of a Warrior error in the fifth to regain a two-run advantage. With one out, Pierce singled and moved to second when Keill reached on a fielding error by Wilson at third. Two batters later, Muniz singled to left to drive in Pierce, pushing the VSU lead to 4-2. Glen Lemke allowed five hits and two runs while striking out six batters in five innings to improve to 3-1 on the year. Justin Lamb struck out three without giving up a hit over the final two innings to register his sixth save. Blackwood finished the day with four hits, four runs and five runs batted in in five at-bats while Koenigsfeld was five-of-six at the plate. Valdosta State returns to action returns to action Tuesday, March 11 at 5:00 p.m. when it hosts Thomas University in Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Top Georgia College 5-2

2008-03-05

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used a three-run fifth inning to defeat Georgia College 5-2 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday afternoon. The Bobcats (12-8) got a leadoff home run from Brooks Robinson in the top of the first inning to open the scoring before the Blazers (11-6-1) evened the game in the bottom of the frame without the benefit of a hit. Sidney Spell was hit by a pitch to begin the VSU half of the first and moved to second on a Blaine Wilson ground out. A stolen base moved Spell to third, allowing him to score on a wild pitch by GCSU starter Sean Rigney. Georgia College used a run in the fourth to regain the lead. With one out, Richard Pirkle singled and moved to second two batters later when Chandler Snell was hit by a pitch. Tommy Rice walked to load the bases before Robinson reached on an infield single that plated Pirkle to give the Bobcats a 2-1 advantage. Valdosta State grabbed its first lead of the game in the bottom of the inning as it plated three runs. With one out in the frame, Spell singled and moved to second on a throwing error by GCSU pitcher Gator Parker (1-1). Sho Kohata followed with a base hit to move Spell to third before a Wilson single scored Spell. Another throwing error by Parker on a second failed pickoff attempt moved both runners into scoring position while Kohata scored on a Chase Blackwood sacrifice fly to right. Wilson moved to third on the play and proceeded to score on a Daniel Muniz single to give VSU a 4-2 advantage. The Blazers pushed their advantage to 5-2 in the bottom of the eighth. Blackwood singled and advanced to second on a throwing error to open the frame before pinch-hitter Wes Hyman was walked. After a sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base, Shawn Keill was intentionally walked. A Curtis Keegan fielder's choice drove in Blackwood to give VSU its three-run lead. Thomas Tripp gave up three hits and no runs in two innings of relief to improve to 2-0 on the season. Spell was 2-of-2 at the plate to lead VSU while Justin Lamb pitched a perfect ninth inning to pick up his fifth save of the year. Robinson tallied two of Georgia College's six hits in the game while scoring one run and driving in two. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 8 when it hosts Webber International in Billy Grant Field for a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m.

Baseball Splits Doubleheader with Florida Southern

2008-03-02

LAKELAND, Fla. - Valdosta State used a ninth-inning home run to win game one 3-2 before falling 10-3 in game two as the Blazers split a non-conference doubleheader with Florida Southern at Henley Field Sunday afternoon. In the day's first game, Florida Southern (6-10) scored single runs in the third and fourth innings to jump out to a 2-0 lead. In the third, Robbie Shields reached on a two-out bunt single and moved to second on a Brian Schultz walk. David Golliner proceeded to single home Shields for the game's first run. Will Cherry singled to open the fourth and moved to second on a Zach Maggard sacrifice before coming around to score on Wade Kirkland base hit to right. Valdosta State (10-6-1) responded with a run in the top of the sixth to cut its deficit in half. Logan Pierce singled to open the frame and moved to second when Curtis Keegan walked. Sidney Spell followed with a bunt single to load the bases, but was erased on a Jon Koenigsfeld double play ball. Pierce scored on the play to cut the VSU deficit to 2-1. The Blazers evened the game in the eighth inning as Calem Ray was hit by a pitch to open the frame and moved to second on a Pierce sacrifice bunt. Keegan followed with a ground out for the second out in the inning. However, Ray, who was running with the pitch on the play, rounded third and beat the throw to home, knotting the score at 2-2. Blaine Wilson gave Valdosta State the victory in the top of the ninth as he hit his team-leading third home run of the season, a shot to deep left-center field to push the Blazers to their one run lead. Jeremy Forbus gave up seven hits and two runs while striking out four batters in eight innings of work to improve to 2-1 on the season. Justin Lamb walked two batters in the ninth before striking out Spencer Theisen to end the game to pick up his fourth save of the year. The Moccasins scored in each of the first four innings of the second game. They opened the scoring in the bottom of the first with a pair of runs. Theisen walked to open the frame and moved to second when Arden McWilliams was hit by a pitch. A Shields walk loaded the bases while a Schultz fielder's choice allowed Theisen to score. After Golliner was hit by a pitch to again load the bases, Tristan Rainone hit into a fielder's choice to score McWilliams for a 2-0 FSC lead. Florida Southern scored a pair of unearned runs in the second and added three more runs in the third on a three-run homer from Kirkland before VSU got on the scoreboard with a pair of runs in the fourth. Shawn Keill walked to open the frame before a Wilson single put two men on base. A passed ball moved both base runners up a base, allowing Keill to score on a Daniel Muniz ground out. Wilson moved to third on the play and eventually scored on a wild pitch to cut the Blazer deficit to 7-2. FSC pushed its advantage to 8-2 with a single run in the fourth before Wilson hit his second homer of the day for the Blazers in the top of the sixth. The Mocs closed out the scoring with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Glen Lemke took the loss for Valdosta State after allowing four hits and seven runs, five of which were earned, in three innings of work. Wilson led VSU in hitting on the day as he tallied three hits, three runs scored and two RBI in seven at-bats. Pierce and Koenigsfeld recorded two hits each for the Blazers. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, March 4 when it travels to Mt. Vernon, Ga. to face Brewton-Parker at 4:00 p.m.

Baseball Edge Florida Southern 5-4

2008-03-01

LAKELAND, Fla. - Calem Ray's run-scoring double in the top of the ninth inning propelled Valdosta State to a 5-4 non-conference baseball victory over Florida Southern at Henley Field Saturday afternoon. Chase Blackwood led off the ninth with a double to center for the Blazers (9-5-1) before moving to third on a Jon Koenigsfeld sacrifice bunt. Ray followed with his base hit to right, plating Blackwood for the go-ahead run. Valdosta State opened the scoring with a pair of home runs in the top of the first. Sidney Spell opened the game with a round-tripper on the first pitch he saw from Moccasin starter Ken Wadsworth. After a strike out, Shawn Keill walked before Blaine Wilson reached on a fielder%u2019s choice. Daniel Muniz proceeded to homer to right, scoring Wilson for a 3-0 VSU lead. FSC (5-9) responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame. Spencer Theisen homered to open the frame before Arden McWilliams walked. After a pair of outs, David Golliner singled to move McWilliams to second, allowing him to score on a Tristan Rainone base hit to cut the Blazer lead to 3-2. Florida Southern evened the game in the fifth as McWilliams and Robbie Shields reached on a pair of one-out walks to chase VSU starter Will Thompson. A fly out moved McWilliams to third before Golliner singled to drive him in, evening the contest at 3-3. The Moccasins grabbed their only lead of the contest on a Theisen sacrifice fly in the sixth before the Blazers tied the game in the top of the seventh. Koenigsfeld walked to open the frame and two batters later moved to second on a Curtis Keegan sacrifice bunt. A pair of wild pitches by FSC reliever Ryan Kock allowed Koenigsfeld to come home, knotting the score at 4-4. FSC threatened to regain the lead with one out in the bottom of the eighth, only to be shut down by VSU reliever Adam Harmych (1-0). After a Rainone fly out to begin the inning, Will Cherry doubled and Wade Kirkland walked. Harmych entered the contest and struck out both batters he faced to end the threat. Blackwood was two-of-four to lead Valdosta State at the plate while Spell, Pierce, Muniz and Ray all tallied one hit each. Justin Lamb allowed just one hit in the ninth to earn his third save of the year. Theisen, McWilliams and Golliner all finished with two hits each to lead the Moccasins while Jeremy Thorne fell to 0-4 after allowing two hits and a run in two innings of work. The two teams complete the three-game series with a double-header Sunday beginning at 1:00 p.m.

Blazers Edge Georgia Southwestern 9-8

2008-02-27

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Shawn Keill's bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th inning proved to be the game winner as Valdosta State defeated Georgia Southwestern 9-8 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. Sho Kohata led off the bottom of the 10th inning with a walk before Hurricane reliever Jody Sellars (0-1) entered the game. Kohata proceeded to steal second and moved to third on a throwing error on the play. Sellars proceeded to intentionally walk the next two batters, bring Keill to the plate. The Blazer first baseman laced the first pitch he saw down the left field line, driving in Kohata for the winning run. Georgia Southwestern (4-11) opened the scoring in the top of the second inning as it plated five runs. Francisco Gomez walked to lead off the frame before Byron Haynes popped up. Daniel Stokes followed with a double while Cody Adams%u2019 ground out plated Gomez. Jordan Mullis proceed to triple to score Stokes and Blazer starter Jeremy Forbus hit the next two batters to load the bases before being relieved. Daniel Lynn greeted reliever Will Thompson with a two-run single while Patrick McCarthy McCarty singled to score drive in the final run to give the Hurricanes a 5-0 advantage. Valdosta State (8-5-1) responded with a run in the bottom of the frame to cut its deficit to 5-1. Chase Blackwood doubled to open the inning and moved to third on a wild pitch before coming home on a Jon Koenigsfeld ground out. The Blazers added three more runs to their total in the bottom of the third with the use of a pair of home runs. Logan Pierce led off the frame and battled through a 12-pitch at-bat before blooping a single to left that dropped between the Hurricane leftfielder, shortstop and third baseman. After a long foul out from Keill, Blaine Wilson hit a 2-2 pitch over the fence in left-center field for his second home run of the season. Two batters later, Blackwood hit his first homer of the year, a shot to left, to cut the VSU deficit to 5-4. VSU evened the game in the bottom of the sixth. With one out, Koenigsfeld singled and moved to second on a foul out to left field. A stolen base moved Koenigsfeld to third, allowing him to score on a Curtis Keegan single to right to tie the game at 5-5. The Hurricanes regained the lead in the eighth when Cody Adams reached on a fielder's choice before being lifted for a pinch runner. Jared Allen proceeded to steal second and scored when Zack Stanton homered to left for a 7-5 GSW lead. Koenigsfeld led off the bottom of the eighth with a walk and moved to second on Calem Ray sacrifice bunt. Hurricane pitcher Colin Duffie proceeded to strike out Kohata, before walking Sidney Spell and Pierce to load the bases. Brandon Reeder entered the game and balked to drive in Koenigsfeld before appearing to get a fly out from Keill. However, Nick Rex dropped the ball, allowing Spell and Pierce to score a pair of unearned runs to give the Blazers the lead. Georgia Southwestern evened the game with an unearned run in the bottom of the frame. With one out, McCarthy doubled and moved to third when Wes Hyman bobbled the ball in right field. Gomez proceeded to ground out to plate McCarthy, evening the contest at 8-8. Steve Turner pitched a perfect 10th inning for the Blazers to improve to 2-1 on the season. Keill, Wilson and Blackwood all tallied two hits each for VSU, which tallied 10 hits in the contest. McCarthy and Stokes recorded two hits apiece for the Hurricanes. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 1 when it opens a three-game series with Florida Southern in Lakeland, Fla. First pitch is slated for 4:00 p.m.

Rain Washes Out Baseball Game

2008-02-26

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Rain in the Valdosta area has forced the cancellation of Tuesday's baseball game against St. Leo. The game will be made up on Wednesday, April 23 beginning at 5:00 p.m.

Baseball Drops Pair of Games to No. 1 Tampa

2008-02-24

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Tampa cruised to a 16-2 win in game one and held off a Valdosta State comeback bid to win 3-2 in game two to sweep the Blazers in a non-conference baseball doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. In the day's first game, Tampa (10-2) opened the scoring in the first inning as it took advantage of a game-opening walk. Paul Cruz was the recipient of the free pass and moved to third as Jesus Barroso collected a base hit on a hit-and-run. Jose Jiminez followed with a double play ball that erased Barroso, but allowed Cruz to score for a 1-0 Spartan lead. UT upped its advantage to 3-0 in the third inning as it took advantage of a Jeremy Forbus error. Forbus (1-1) walked Rob Kane to open the inning and moved to third when Forbus tried to throw him out at second on a Junior Mejia bunt. Both runners moved into scoring position on the play, allowing Kane to score on a Cruz sacrifice fly that also moved Mejia to third. Barroso followed with a ground out that plated Mejia before Jiminez walked to chase Forbus. Adam Harmych entered the game and gave up a base hit to Nolan Brannon before hitting Jared Simon to load the bases. Ryan Williams followed with a double to right field that drove in Jiminez and Brannon to give the Spartans a five-run lead. Tampa added two more runs in the fourth before Valdosta State (7-4-1) got on the board in bottom of the inning. With one out in the frame, Jon Koenigsfeld doubled to right-center and came into score two batters later when Daniel Muniz singled, cutting the Blazer deficit to 7-1. The Spartans regained their seven-run lead with a Cruz run-scoring singled in the fifth before using a Brannon sacrifice fly in the sixth to push their advantage to 9-1. Valdosta State responded with a run in the bottom of the sixth as Koenigsfeld singled, moved to third on a Jesse Barfield double and scored on a wild pitch by Spartan starter Scott Chapman (3-1). Tampa added six runs in the eighth, three of which were unearned, and one in the ninth to close out the game one scoring. The Spartans again opened the scoring in the top of the first in game two. Cruz doubled to open the game and moved to third on a Jiminez single. A sacrifice fly from Brannon plated Cruz for a 1-0 UT lead. Cruz again doubled in the third and scored on a Jiminez sacrifice fly to up the Tampa lead to 2-0 before pushing the Spartan lead to 3-0 when he singled and scored from first on a Jiminez single in the fifth. Valdosta State threatened in both the fourth and fifth innings, but came up short each time. In the fourth, Muniz singled and moved to second when Blaine Wilson was hit by a pitch, but a strikeout ended the inning. Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch to open the fifth and moved to second when Logan Pierce drew a two-out walk. Both runners moved into scoring position with a double-steal, only to have Tampa reliever Anthony Perez (1-0) record a strikeout to end the threat. The Blazers got on the board in the bottom of the sixth as they plated a pair of runs. Shawn Keill and Muniz each singled to open the frame and moved into scoring position on a Wilson ground out. Barfield followed with a base hit to center to score Keill while a Blackwood sacrifice fly plated Muniz to slice the VSU deficit to 3-2. Glen Lemke allowed seven hits and three runs while striking out seven in a complete-game, seven-inning outing as he fell to 2-1 on the season. Koenigsfeld finished the day with two hits and two runs scored while Muniz was three-for-five with an RBI and a run scored. Cruz was five-of-six with five runs scored and two driven in on the day to lead the Spartans. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, February 26 when it hosts Saint Leo at 5:00 p.m. in Billy Grant Field.

Baseball Tops No. 1 Tampa 6-5

2008-02-23

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Daniel Muniz went 3-for-4 at the plate, drove in four runs and made the defensive play of the game to lead Valdosta State to a 6-5 non-conference victory over No. 1 Tampa Saturday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. Tampa (8-1) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. Junior Mejia walked to open the game and moved to second as Jesus Barroso singled. Jose Jimenez walked to load the bases before Thomas Tripp relieved VSU starter Steve Turner. Tripp induced a double-play ball that scored Mejia while a Jared Simon single plated Jimenez for a 2-0 Spartan lead. Valdosta State (6-3-1) responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning. Sidney Spell singled to open the VSU half of the frame and, two batters later, moved to second on a Jon Koenigsfeld base hit. A double steal moved both runners into scoring position, allowing both to score on a Blaine Wilson hit to left, knotting the score at 2-2. VSU grabbed the lead in the third as it scored two more runs. Calem Ray singled to open the frame and was sacrificed to second by Koenigsfeld. After a Wilson foul out, Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch. Muniz proceeded to hit a double to right-center, plating both base runners for a 4-2 advantage. The Spartans cut their deficit to 4-3 in the fourth, on a Paul Cruz run-scoring pinch-hit that plated Stephen Merino, and appeared to tie the game in the fifth when Muniz made a game-saving catch. With one out in the frame, Leo Alvarez hit a towering shot to left field that backed Muniz to the fence. With time to position himself under the ball, the senior lept just as the ball appeared to clear the fence and brought the ball back in play to preserve VSU's one run lead. The Blazers upped their lead to three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Ray opened the Blazer half of the fifth with an infield single and moved to second on a Koenigsfeld bloop single over the third baseman's head. After a strikeout, Blackwood was intentionally walked to load the bases, but Muniz singled through the right-side of the infield to score Ray and Koenigsfeld for a 6-3 Valdosta State lead. Tampa responded with a pair of runs off reliever Justin Lamb in the sixth to close to within 6-5. Nolan Brannon singled to open the frame and moved to second when Merino walked. A ground out moved both runners into scoring position, allowing them to score as Cruz singled up the middle. Ray and Koenigsfeld tallied two hits each for Valdosta State, which finished the game with nine hits total. Tripp gave up five hits and one run while striking out four in five innings to improve to 1-0 on the season. Lamb came on and surrendered three hits and two runs over the final four innings to pick up his second save of the season. Barroso and Cruz tallied two hits apiece to lead Tampa as the Spartans tallied 10 total hits in the contest. Kevin Ferguson surrendered eight hits and six runs while striking out 10 to while falling to 2-1 on the year. The two teams complete the three-game series with a double-header beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Blazers Blank Flagler 14-0

2008-02-20

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State registered its second-straight shutout as the Blazers blanked Flagler 14-0 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. VSU (6-3-1) pounded out 14 hits in the contest while holding the Saints (3-10) to just four hits. All 14 runs were scored between the second and sixth innings, during which VSU starter Will Thompson allowed just three hits and struck out seven batters. The Blazers opened the scoring in the second when it plated four runs. Daniel Muniz singled to open the frame and moved to second when Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch. Jon Koenigsfeld followed with a bunt for a base hit and moved up a base on a throwing error on the play that allowed Muniz to score. A Calem Ray sacrifice fly plated Blackwood before Logan Pierce walked. Sidney Spell proceeded to double to score Koenigsfeld while Shawn Keill walked to load the bases. A Blaine Wilson infield hit scored Pierce to post the Blazers to a 4-0 lead. Valdosta State added another run in the third and two more in the fourth before blowing the game open with a five runs in the fifth. The Blazers batted around for the second time in the game during the inning, which was highlighted by a Muniz two-run single with the bases loaded. VSU closed out the scoring with a pair of runs on ground outs in the sixth. Koenigsfeld tallied four hits for VSU while Muniz finished with three hits and three runs batted in. Spell also registered two hits while Thompson picked up the win to improve to 2-1 on the year. Kyle Cancellieri took the loss after surrendering five hits and four runs in an inning and two-thirds while four different Saints registered a hit in the contest. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, February 22 at 1:00 p.m. when it hosts two-time NCAA Division II defending national champion Tampa at Billy Grant Field.

Blazers Top Augusta State 12-0

2008-02-17

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 16 hits to defeat Augusta State 12-0 in non-conference baseball action at Lake Olmstead Stadium Sunday afternoon. The Blazers (5-3-1) broke the game open in the third inning as it scored five runs. Calem Ray reached first on an error to open the frame before moving to second on a Logan Pierce single. Wes Hyman followed with a bunt single to load the bases while Ray and Pierce scored on a Shawn Keill's double down the left field line. Two batters later, Sidney Spell hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Hyman while Keill scored on a Chase Blackwood single. After a pitching change, Blackwood stole second and scored on a Jon Koenigsfeld single up the middle to post VSU to a 5-0 lead. Valdosta State added two more runs in the both the fifth and sixth innings. Spell drove in Hyman and Keill in the fifth while Pierce drove home Koenigsfeld in the six before Ray stole home. Blaine Wilson drove in Hyman in the ninth while Spell followed with his four RBI of the day with a single that plated Keill. Koenigsfeld also picked up an RBI in the frame as he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to plate Wilson. Hyman and Keill tallied three hits and three runs scored apiece while Spell finished with two hits and four RBI in three at-bats. Pierce and Wilson also finished with two hits each for the Blazers, who won their fifth contest in the last seven games. Jeremy Forbus improved to 1-0 on the season as he surrendered just three hits and two walks while striking out six in seven innings of work to lead VSU to its second straight series victory. Five different Jaguars collected a hit in the contest. Patrick Lowe surrendered four hits and five runs in two and two-thirds innings as he fell to 1-1. Valdosta State returns home to Billy Grant Field to host Flagler at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, February 20.

Blazers Split Doubleheader with Augusta State

2008-02-16

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State fell 6-1 in the first game before rebounding for a 4-1 victory in the second contest as the Blazers split a non-conference baseball doubleheader with Augusta State Saturday afternoon at Lake Olmstead Park. The Blazers (4-3-1) opened the scoring in the first game with a run in the second inning. Shawn Keill walked with one out in the inning and moved to second when Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch. A ground ball appeared to get the Jaguars (5-5) out of the inning, but the ball was booted by ASU shortstop Tony Baker, allowing Calem Ray to reach to load the bases. Curtis Keegan followed with a sacrifice fly to plate Keill and give VSU a 1-0 advantage. Augusta State responded with four runs in the bottom of the inning. Alex Walker walked and stole second to open the frame before moving to third on an Alex Sickman bunt single. A sacrifice fly scored Walker while Sickman scored a batter later when Darren Swift reached on a bunt single and advanced to second when Blazer pitcher Steve Turner committed a throwing error. A Justin Roberts double plated Swift while Roberts proceeded to score on a Kevin Owens single for a 4-1 Jaguar lead. ASU closed out the scoring with single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. Steven Voight allowed just four hits and one run in seven innings to improve to 2-0 while Turner fell to 1-1 after giving up five hits and four runs in an inning and a third. Valdosta State also struck first in the second game as it claimed a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Logan Pierce singled to center to open the game and moved to second when Keill walked, allowing him to score on a Blaine Wilson single. Keill moved to third on a throwing error on the play and scored on a Jesse Barfield ground out while Wilson scored a batter later when Blackwood tallied a base hit to center. The Jaguars struck back for a single run in the second as Jorge Virguez doubled and scored on a Tyler Marzofka single while Ray singled and scored on a Pierce double in the fourth for the Blazers. Glen Lemke surrendered six hits and a run to improve to 2-0 on the season for VSU while Justin Lamb pitched a perfect seventh inning to pick up his first save of the year. ASU's Brandon Iverson gave up three hits and all three runs in the first to fall to 0-1. Wilson and Pierce tallied three hits each on the day to lead the Blazers while Ray and Blackwood finished with a pair of hits each. The two teams complete the three-game series Sunday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. at Lake Olmstead Park. Game One Box Score Game Two Box Score

Baseball at Flagler Rained Out

2008-02-13

Valdosta State's baseball game at Flagler University in St. Augustine, Fla. was cancelled today due to rain in the area. No make-up date has been scheduled at this time. The Blazers return to action Saturday, February 15 when it visits Augusta State. Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled for a Noon start.

Baseball Wins 4-3, Second Game Ends in 4-4 Tie

2008-02-09

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Valdosta State came from behind to claim a 4-3 victory in game one before forcing a tie with late runs in the second game in a doubleheader cut short by darkness at Florida Tech Saturday. In the first game, VSU (3-2-1) opened the scoring in the fourth inning with a single run. Blaine Wilson singled to open the frame and moved to third on a pair of ground outs. Jon Koenigsfeld picked up the RBI with a base hit that plated Wilson for a 1-0 VSU lead. The Blazers upped their advantage to 2-0 in the as Logan Pierce doubled to open the inning and scored on a two-out Shawn Keill infield single before the Panthers (3-3-1) gained a run in the bottom of the frame. Florida Tech gained the lead as it plated a pair of runs in the seventh inning, setting up Valdosta State's come-from-behind charge in the final two innings. In the eighth, Chase Blackwood was hit by a pitch with two outs and moved to third as Koenigsfeld reached on an error. Calem Ray followed with a single to drive in Blackwood to even the game at 3-3. In the ninth, Sidney Spell doubled to open the frame and moved to third on a passed ball before scoring on a Blackwood sacrifice fly. Russ Crum picked up the victory as he allowed just one hit over the final two innings. In the second game, the Panthers scored three runs in the first and a single run in the third to grab a 4-0 lead before VSU evened the game. The Blazers plated two runs in the fourth and one each in the fifth and sixth. Each team had a chance to win the game in the final two innings, but neither was unable to score before the game was called. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, February 13 when it travels to St. Augustine, Fla. to face Flagler at 4:00 p.m. Game One Box Game Two Box

Baseball Downs Florida Tech 8-3

2008-02-08

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Jon Koenigsfeld tallied three hits and scored a pair of runs to lead Valdosta State to an 8-3 non-conference victory over Floirda Tech Friday afternoon. The Blazers (2-2) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as they plated a pair of runs. Logan Pierce walked to open the frame before Koenigsfeld hit into a fielder's choice. A Sidney Spell single moved Koenigsfeld to second before both base runners moved into scoring position on a double steal. Daniel Muniz followed with a single to right-center, plating both Spell and Koenigsfeld for a 2-0 VSU lead. Florida Tech (3-2) struck back for a single run in the bottom of the inning. Nick Brennan singled to open the frame and moved to second on a Brendan Twomey ground out. Two batters later, Kevin Villa double, scoring Brennan to slice the Panther deficit to 2-1. Valdosta State upped its advantage to 3-1 in the second as Blaine Wilson doubled to open the inning and scored on a Brandon Atkins base hit while Villa scored on a balk in the bottom of the third for FIT. VSU blew the game open with five runs in the fifth inning. Calem Ray doubled to open the inning and scored when Koenigsfeld singled two batters later. Spell was hit by a pitch to put two men on base and both moved into scoring position on a passed ball. Muniz, who tallied three runs batted in in the contest, followed with a single to score Koenigsfeld while Spell scored when Chase Blackwood's ground ball was misplayed by J.D. Davidson at short. Wilson also reached on an error that plated Muniz while Shawn Keill's sacrifice fly plated Blackwood to post the Blazers to a 8-2 lead. The Panthers closed out the run with a single run in the eighth. Spell and Muniz tallied two hits each for VSU while Will Thompson pitched four innings in relief, allowing just three hits and one run to improve to 1-1 on the year. Bryn McDonnell took the loss for FIT as he allowed eight hits and eight runs, only four of which were earned, in five innings. Brennan, Mitch Saum and Michael Demma registered two hits each to lead the Panther offensive attack. The two teams complete the three-game series with a doubleheader beginning at Noon on Saturday.

Baseball at Columbus State Cancelled

2008-02-06

The Valdosta State baseball game scheduled for Wednesday, February 6 at Columbus State has been cancelled due to inclement weather in the Columbus, Ga. area. No make-up date for the event has been scheduled at this time.

Blazers Blank Francis Marion 8-0

2008-02-03

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Glen Lemke scattered three hits to lead Valdosta State to an 8-0 non-conference victory over Francis Marion Sunday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. Lemke surrendered hits in the second, third and sixth innings, but did not allow a base runner past second base. He also struck out seven while not walking a batter in seven innings of work to improve to 1-0. Justin Lamb came on and allowed two hits while striking out five in the final two innings. Valdosta State (1-2) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it took advantage of an FMU error. Logan Pierce opened the inning by reaching second when his ground ball was misplayed by Keon Graves at third base. A ground ball moved Pierce to third, allowing him to score on Shawn Keill's base hit for a 1-0 Blazer lead. The Blazers upped their advantage to 2-0 in the third. Patriot reliever Brandon White walked Jon Koenigsfeld and Keill to open the inning. Two batters later, Daniel Muniz singled through the right-side of the infield, scoring Koenigsfeld. VSU added anther run in the fourth as Jesse Barfield was hit by a pitch and moved to second when Calem Ray walked. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base, allowing Barfield to score on a Pierce ground out for a 3-0 Valdosta State lead. Valdosta State added a pair of runs in the seventh. Koenigsfeld doubled to open the inning and moved to third on a wild pitch. Sidney Spell proceeded to single up the middle, allowing Koenigsfeld to score. After fielder's choice erased Spell, Wes Hyman entered the game as a pinch runner and scored when Chase Blackwood tripled to right-center for a 5-0 Blazer lead. A three-run Spell home run, which scored Pierce and Koenigsfeld, in the bottom of the eighth closed out the scoring. Francis Marion's (2-1) best scoring chance came in the top of the ninth as pinch-hitters Trent Knight and Bryan Brown reached on a pair of two-out hits. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, but Lamb struck out Jeff Felten to end the game. Spell tallied three hits and five runs batted in to lead the Blazers while Koenigsfeld finished with a pair of hits. Phillip Mozingo allowed just two hits and one unearned run in two innings to fall to 0-1 for the Patriots. Greg Phelps led FMU offensively with two hits. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, February 6 when it travels to Columbus State for a 4:00 p.m. first pitch.

Baseball Swept in Doubleheader

2008-02-02

Valdosta, Ga. - Francis Marion swept a doubleheader as the Patriots defeated Valdosta State 10-2 and 9-8 in non-conference baseball action Saturday afternoon. In the first game, Francis Marion (2-0) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as it took advantage of a pair of lead-off walks. A bunt single loaded the bases before Ryan Hewitt hit a sacrifice fly to plate a run. Keon Graves followed with a hit off the glove of Sho Kohata at third to give the Patriots a 2-0 lead. Valdosta State (0-2) struck back for a run in the bottom of the third as Jon Koenigsfeld led off with a home run to left, slicing the Blazer deficit to 2-1. The Patriots answered with a pair of two-out runs in the fourth and batted around in the fifth while adding four more runs to 8-1 before VSU struck for its second run in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Calem Ray was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a ground out. Sidney Spell's ensuing ground ball was misplayed by Francis Marion shortstop Greg Phelps, allowing Ray to score. FMU closed out the scoring with a pair of runs in the sixth. Patriot starter David Walter gave up just one hit and two runs, only one of which was earned, in six innings of work to improve to 1-0 on the season. Ed Paul gave up just one hit in the last three innings to earn the save. Vince Farfaglia led the FMU offense, which tallied eight hits in the game, with three hits and two runs scored. Will Thompson gave up two hits and two earned runs in two and a third innings to fall to 0-1 on the year. Blaine Wilson and Koenigsfeld collected hits for the Blazers. The bats for both teams came alive early in the second game as the two squads combined for 12 runs in the first two innings. FMU scored an unearned run in the top of the first before VSU answered with two, on a Blaine Wilson home run, in the bottom of the frame. The Patriots strung together four more runs in the top of the second, again using a Blazer error. Ryan Hypke reached on an error by Kohata at third to open the frame, moved to second on a wild pitch and third on a Bryan Brown single. Cameron Asbill's single plated Hypke while Brown came in to score on a Justin Greene single. Jared Barkdoll's base hit drove in Asbill and Greene followed by scoring on a Preston Shuey base hit for a 5-2 Patriot lead. Valdosta State responded with five runs in the bottom of the frame to take a 7-5 advantage. With one out, Shawn Keill singled and Ray walked. Kohata moved both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt, allowing both to score on a Koenigsfeld single. After a pitching change, Spell singled to score Logan Pierce, who had walked prior to the Koenigsfeld base hit, and Wilson was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Chase Blackwood followed with a two-run single to close out the scoring in the frame. The Patriots regained the lead with three runs in the fourth and added another in the fifth to go up 9-7 before VSU struck back with a single run in the bottom of the sixth. Ray singled to open the frame and used a pair of ground outs to move to third before scoring on a Koenigsfeld single to cut the Blazer deficit to one. Erik Sommerville pitched three and a third innings in relief without giving up a run to pick up the win while Zach Farry pitched the final two innings to earn the save. Barkdoll and Shuey finished with three hits each to lead the Patriots. Josh Maxwell gave up three hits and three runs in two-thirds of an inning to fall to 0-1 on the season. Koenigsfeld recorded three hits while Pierce and Keill had two each as the Blazers out-hit FMU 12-11 in the game. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday afternoon. First pitch is slated for 1:00 p.m.

Blazers Swept in Doubleheader

2008-02-02

Chick-Fil-A Blazer Blast is Sunday

2008-01-23

Valdosta, Ga. -- The Valdosta State Baseball and Softball teams will hold the first-ever Chick-Fil-A Blazer Blast Sunday, January 27 at Billy Grant Field and the VSU Softball Complex. Blazer fans are encouraged to come out and mingle with the two teams. Both squads will have stations where various baseball skills can be displayed by the VSU fans. Additionally, hamburgers, hot dogs and Coca-Cola products will be served at the event and team photos will be available for autographs. The Blazer Blast will run from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Registration for the event will take place at the Billy Grant Field entrance.

Baseball To Hold Open Tryouts

2007-06-14

VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State baseball team will hold an open tryout at Billy Grant Field Thursday, June 14 according to an announcement made by new head coach Greg Guilliams Thursday afternoon. The tryout is open to all unsigned high school seniors, junior college players and any player wishing to transfer from another NCAA institution. However, any student-athlete currently at a four-year institution wishing to transfer must obtain a release from their current institution and fax it to VSU Director of Compliance Bobby Tucker at 229.333.5972 prior to attending the tryout. Guilliams indicated that he will hold a Pro-Style workout for the tryout that will include timing of 60 yard dashes; infielders, outfielders and catchers throwing from their respective positions; testing bat speed; and pitcher's throwing in the bullpen. The tryout will be begin at Noon on the 14th. Those wishing to attend the tryout will need to arrive prior to Noon in order to fill out paperwork.

Greg Guilliams Named Head Baseball Coach

2007-05-24

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Greg Guilliams has been named head coach of the Valdosta State baseball team, according to an announcement made by VSU President Dr. Ronald Zaccari Thursday afternoon. Guilliams takes over the Blazer program after spending the last 16 seasons as the head coach at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla. During his tenure with the Eagles, Guilliams led Embry-Riddle to 661 wins, an average of 41 a year, against 256 losses and one tie, a .721 winning percentage. Since the beginning of the 2000 season, Embry-Riddle has tallied a 377-108 record (.777), the best record by any team in the state of Florida, regardless of classification. Guilliams directed the Eagles to 11 NAIA regional tournament and six NAIA College World Series appearances, including a national runner-up finish in 2004, during his 16 years with the school. His squad was ranked nationally in eight of the last nine years and finished among the top five in the nation in five of the last seven years. His squad has finished either first or second every year in the 12-year history of the Florida Sun Conference while compiling a 236-79-1, a .748 winning percentage, league mark during that time. Guilliams' success has not come just against NAIA competition as eight times the Eagles have faced NCAA Division II College World Series participants over the last seven years, tallying a 5-3 mark in those contests. Guilliams' knowledge and ability to teach the game of baseball has been evident in his teams' performance on the field. His 2004 squad led the nation in pitching and defense, tallying a 2.67 team earned run average and a .966 fielding percentage, while the 2005 squad accomplished the feat with a 2.62 ERA and a .970 fielding percentage. Since 1994, his squad has led the NAIA ranks in team ERA a total of five times and has finished among the top 15 teams in the nation 13 times. His ability as a recruiter and teacher has also been evident in accolades won by his players over the years as 44 Embry-Riddle players received All-American accolades under his tutelage, including Frankie Thompson, who was named the 1996 NAIA National Player of the Year. Additionally, a record seven times an Embry-Riddle Eagle was named FSC Player of the Year while 24 former Eagles have signed contracts with Major League organizations. Guilliams' players also succeeded in the classroom as 14 times an Eagle earned All-America Scholar Athlete honors. Guilliams' success has earned him numerous accolades as he has been named the American Baseball Coaches Association Regional NAIA Coach of the Year six times while being recognized as FSC Coach of the Year on seven occasions. In 2003, the Florida Diamond Club chose Guilliams as its Amateur Coach of the Year. Guilliams took over at Embry-Riddle in 1991 and led the team to a 24-24 record, his only non-winning season at the helm of the Eagles. The 24 wins marked a nine-win improvement from the 1990 Eagle squad. He began his career at Penn State-Behrend in 1990 during which his team won 14 games, an improvement of 10 wins from the year before his arrival. Guilliams played collegiately at NAIA's Ohio Dominican, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Education and History in 1984. He was a three-year captain and garnered NAIA All-American honors three times for ODC and was an elected into the school's Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1997. Following his collegiate career, Guilliams signed a professional contract with the Atlanta Braves organization and spent one year in the team's minor league system. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Eastern Kentucky in 1987. "I am extremely excited to have Greg join the VSU team as our new head baseball coach," stated VSU Athletic Director Herb Reinhard. "During his outstanding career at Embry-Riddle, Greg built a national powerhouse. His teams enjoyed outstanding success on the field and in the classroom. During the search process, I received very positive feedback on Coach Guilliams from individuals in the baseball profession. "Valdosta State baseball has enjoyed a rich tradition of success. I firmly believe that Greg is the right person to take the reins of our baseball program and to build on that very rich tradition."

VSU Falls 13-3 to Montevallo to End Season

2007-05-06

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Montevallo scored the first 13 runs of the game to defeat Valdosta State 13-3 in an elimination game of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Sunday Morning at USA Stadium. The loss ended the Blazers' season and spelled the final game for head coach Tommy Thomas, who retired after 40 years at the helm of the VSU baseball program. Thomas retires with an NCAA Division II record 1,308 victories. The Falcons (44-14) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. J.D. Pruitt singled to open the game and stole second. An Eric Moore base hit moved Pruitt to third, allowing him to score on Daniel Tankersley's ground out to first base. UM added two more runs in the second to push its lead to 3-0. With one out, B.J. Holloway walked and advanced to third as Chris Wiley doubled. An intentional walk loaded the bases before Moore reached on an infield single to score Holloway. Tankersley followed with a sacrifice fly to drive in Wiley for the third run of the game. The score remained at 3-0 until the sixth, when Montevallo scored four times. Brantley Clay singled to open the inning and advanced to second when Chris Cooper laid down a sacrifice bunt. Cooper reached first safely on a throwing error by VSU starting pitcher Thomas Tripp (3-5) and advanced a base along with Clay when Holloway laid down a sacrifice bunt. Ryan Norman's sacrifice fly drove in Clay while Cooper scored when Pruitt's fly ball to right was dropped by Daniel Muniz. Moore singled to drive in Pruitt and stole second, allowing him to score on Tankersley's base hit to center for a 7-0 Falcon lead. UM closed out its scoring in the top of the eighth. Holloway and Norman opened the frame with back-to-back singles while Holloway scored on Pruitt's double down the right-field line. Moore singled to score Norman while Pruitt came home on a Tankersley sacrifice fly. Daniel Furuto walked to put men on first and second and scored along with Moore when Clay doubled to right. Cooper's single off reliever Jeremy Forbus plated Clay for the final Falcon run of the game. Valdosta State (27-30) closed out the scoring with three runs in the bottom of the eighth. Justin Huff doubled to open the frame and scored when Rusty Harris followed with a triple to centerfield. Drew Camp's ground out plate Harris before Chris Harris and Jacob Jarvis walked with two outs. Nick Copeland's single to right drove in Chris Harris for the game's final run. Tripp surrendered six hits and six runs, only three of which were earned, in five and two-thirds innings. Copeland led the Blazer offensive, collecting three of VSU's five hits in the game. Zac Blakney pitched a complete game to improve to 7-2 on the year for Montevallo. The Falcons pounded out 14 hits in the game, including a four-for-five outing from Moore and two hits each from Pruitt, Clay and Wiley.

Blazers Fall 7-2 to Ouachita Baptist

2007-05-05

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - West Division No. 1 seed Ouachita Baptist scored three unearned runs in the sixth inning to break a 1-1 tie en route to a 7-2 victory over East No. 4 Valdosta State in the first round of the Gulf South Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon at USA Stadium. The two teams traded runs in the second inning to open the scoring In the top half of the frame Chris Harris got the Blazers (27-29) on the board as he led off with his third home run of the season. Meanwhile, the Tigers (49-6) responded with an unearned run in the bottom of the frame as Destan Makonnen reached on a throwing error by Blazer shortstop Justin Huff and scored on Brock McCorkle's fielder's choice. With one out in the sixth, Jeremy Haworth hit a fly ball to centerfield that was dropped by Sydney Spell. Haworth advanced to third on the play before Justin Pennell was intentionally walked. Makonnen struck out for the second out of the frame, but Pennell stole second to put two men in scoring position. Jim Streicher's single plated both base runners while Chandler Boyce moved Streicher to second with a base hit. McCorkle picked up his second RBI of the game when he singled to center to drive home Streicher for a 4-1 OBU lead. Ouachita Baptist added three more runs in seventh. David Fischer and Chance Beasley opened the inning with back-to-back singles and scored when Haworth homered to left. Valdosta State closed out the scoring in the top of the ninth with a single run as Harris hit his second homer of the day, a shot to left. Chris Davison (3-7) took the loss after surrendering six hits and five runs, only one of which was earned, in six-plus innings of work. Harris finished with two of VSU's five hits while Brandon Atkins, Nick Copeland and Huff tallied one each. Keith Barrett improved to 11-0 as he struck out five in a complete game outing. Streicher finished with three hits and two RBI in four at-bats while Beasley had three RBI. Valdosta State returns to action Sunday morning at 10:30 when it will play Montevallo in a tournament elimination game.

Blazers Place Two on All-GSC Baseball Squads

2007-05-04

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State's Nick Copeland and Brandon Atkins were named to the All-Gulf South Conference baseball squad Friday, according to an announcement made by the league offices. Atkins, a junior third baseman, batted .291 and had a team-high 11 doubles in 2007. The Phenix, City Ala. native also drove in 22 runs and scored 35 times. He counted one triple and two home runs among his 52 hits. Copeland, a senior centerfielder, led the VSU squad with a .306 batting average during the regular season. A Valdosta native, he led the Blazers with 32 runs batted in and scored 27 runs during the season while being successful on 13-of-15 stolen base attempts. The Blazers open the Gulf South Conference Tournament Saturday when they play Ouachita Baptist in the first round at 2:00 p.m.

Will Thompson Named GSC Pitcher of the Week

2007-05-01

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pitcher Will Thompson was named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher of the Week Tuesday, according to an announcement made by the league offices. Facing the pressure of Valdosta State needing a victory in Sunday's regular season finale in order to reach the Gulf South Conference Tournament, Thompson turned in one of the finest pitching performances of his career. The Valdosta native picked up his second complete game of the year and surrendered just four hits and two runs as VSU claimed a 5-2 victory over West Florida. Of the four hits that Thompson surrendered in the game, only one came after the second inning, a fifth inning double. Thompson grew stronger as the game wore on, registering all six of his strikeouts over the course of the final six innings, including three in the seventh when he struck out the Argonauts' No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 batters. Additionally, he retired nine of the final 10 batters that he faced, with only a walk in the ninth keeping him from being perfect over the course of his final nine outs. The Player of the Week honor was the second of the season for Thompson and marked the third time this year that a VSU pitcher has won the honor. Thompson and the remainder of the Blazers open the Gulf South Conference Tournament Saturday, May 5 against Ouachita Baptist at 2:00 p.m. at USA Stadium in Millington, Tenn.

Blazers Down West Florida 5-2

2007-04-29

VALDOSTA, Ga. - A day after surrendering four unearned runs in a loss to West Florida, Valdosta State took advantage of three Argonaut errors to score five unearned runs in defeating UWF 5-2 in Gulf South Conference action at Billy Grant Field Sunday afternoon. With the win, Valdosta State clinched the GSC East Division No. 4 seed in next weekend's Gulf South Tournament in Millington, Tenn. and gave retiring VSU head coach Tommy Thomas a victory in his last home game. The Argonauts (36-17, 10-8) wasted little time in getting on the board as they opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. With two outs in the frame, Bo Williams singled through the left-side of the infield and moved to second when Clay Wallace was hit by a pitch. Jacob Whisenhunt followed with a double to right-center to bring home Williams for the first run of the game. UWF pushed its lead to 2-0 in the second. Kyle Andrews singled to open the inning and stole second. A fielding error on a Logan Whitley ground ball moved Andrews to third, allowing him to score on Kyle Brown's suicide squeeze bunt. The Blazers (27-28, 8-10) struck back in the fifth, scoring three runs for a 3-2 advantage. Calem Ray reached on an error by Wallace at short to open the frame and advanced to third when Richard Flores successfully executed a hit-and-run. Justin Hill followed two batters later with a line drive base hit to left, driving in Ray. Chris Harris was hit by a pitch to load the bases before Nick Copeland singled to right, his first hit in 11 at-bats in the series, to score both Flores and Hill. Valdosta State upped its lead to 4-2 in the seventh as it again took advantage of a West Florida error. Justin Hill reached on an error by Lee Huggins at third to open the inning before being lifted for pinch-runner Nick Phillips. Phillips was sacrificed to second and two batters later, Copeland singled to right-center to bring home Phillips. West Florida's third error of the day led to VSU's fifth run in the eighth. Justin Huff doubled to open the inning and was sacrificed to second by Ray. After a strikeout, Rance Morgan hit a pop up that was dropped by Brown in short rightfield, allowing Huff to score for a 5-2 VSU lead. VSU's Will Thompson allowed just four hits, only one of which came after the second inning, and walked three batters while striking out six as he pitched his second complete game of the season to improve to 4-1. Hill finished the game with two hits, a run scored and a run driven in while Copeland was two-of-four at the plate with three RBI. Jonathan Weaver (4-5) took the loss for the Argonauts after allowing two hits and an unearned run in two-thirds of an inning. Four different UWF players finished the game with a hit. Valdosta State will face the West Division No. 1 seed, which is yet to be determined, on Saturday, May 5 in the first round of the GSC Tournament. VSU will open play in the tournament at 2:00 p.m. Game Stats

Blazers Swept by West Florida

2007-04-28

VALDOSTA, Ga. - West Florida ruined a Valdosta State celebration as the Argonauts swept the Blazers 9-4 and 4-1 in a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. The day began with VSU, local and state politicians and friends and family honoring retiring Valdosta State coach Tommy Thomas, who is leaving his post at the helm of the Blazers after 40 years as head coach. Thomas is NCAA Division II's all-times leader in victories, with 1,307 career wins. The two teams battled to a scoreless tie through the first three innings of the first game before Valdosta State (26-26, 7-8) finally broke through for a pair of runs in the fourth inning. With two outs in the inning, Sydney Spell reached on a bunt base hit. Richard Flores followed with his first career home run, a shot over the wall in left-center field to post the Blazers to a 2-0 advantage. West Florida (34-16, 8-7) cut its deficit in half in the top of the fifth thanks to an error by VSU centerfielder Nick Copeland. Argonaut lead off man Peter Antoske hit a fly ball that chased Copeland to the warning track to open the frame. Copeland appeared to come up with the ball, but it bounced off his glove allowing Antoske to advance to second. A ground out moved Antoske to third, allowing him to score on a base hit by Clay Wallace to slice the VSU lead to 2-1. The Argonauts claimed the lead in the sixth as they scored four runs. Lee Huggins and Kyle Brown reached on back-to-back singles to open the inning and were sacrificed into running position. Antoske followed with a triple down the right field line to score the base runners and, after Jason Kohl walked, came home when Bo Williams singled. Blazer starter Chris Davison (3-5) walked Wallace to load the bases before being lifted for reliever Wade West. A sacrifice fly from Justin Wood brought home Kohl to give UWF a 5-2 advantage. The Blazers scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth, on a run scoring ground out by Calem Ray and an RBI single by Daniel Muniz, only to have West Florida push its advantage to 7-4 in the seventh before scoring the final two runs of the game in the ninth. UWF's Brett McCullough gave up seven hits and four runs in six innings to improve to 9-1 on the season. Kit Powell pitched the final three innings and allowed just three hits while striking out four to earn his first save. Unearned runs proved to be the difference in the second game as the Argonauts took advantage of three VSU errors to score all four of their runs. Valdosta State again struck first in the second game as it gained a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning. Justin Hill was hit by a pitch to open the inning before being erased on a Brandon Atkins fielder's choice. Jacob Jarvis was also hit by a pitch to move Atkins to second, allowing him to score on Chris Harris' two-out single up the middle. West Florida evened the game in the top of the fifth. Jacob Whisenhunt reached on a fielding error by Justin Huff to open the inning and was sacrifice to second base. A ground ball out moved Whisenhunt to third, allowing him to score on a base hit by Antoske to tie the score at 1-1. The Argonauts took advantage of two more Blazer errors to score three more unearned runs in the seventh. Whisenhunt singled to open the inning before being lifted for pinch runner Logan Whitley. Brown followed with a walk before both runners were sacrificed into scoring position. Antoske was intentionally walked to load the bases while Kohl hit a ground ball to VSU first baseman Dustin Rucker. Rucker's throw to the plate was in the dirt and bounced over the head of Jarvis, allowing both Whitley and Brown to score. VSU did record an out on the play as Kohl was caught in a run down while trying to advance to second. Williams followed with a grounder back to VSU starting pitcher Thomas Tripp (3-4), but Tripp was unable to cleanly field the ball which allowed Antoske to score the final run of the game. Jon Sintes allowed three hits and just one run in six innings to improve to 8-4 on the season for UWF. Phil Lawhorn gave up a hit in the seventh, but retired the next three batters to earn his 11th save of the season. Flores was two-of-four in the first game while Atkins picked up three hits in eight at-bats in the two games combined for Valdosta State. Harris was two-of-three in the second game for VSU. Antoske led the Argonauts offensively, finishing the day five-of-nine at the plate while Huggins was four-of-seven. Brown picked up three hits in as many at-bats for UWF. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in Billy Grant Field. The 2007 Blazer seniors will be honored prior to the game. Click for Pictures of Tommy Thomas' Retirement Ceremony Game One Stats Game Two Stats

Blazers Blanked by Georgia College 5-0

2007-04-25

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. - Four Georgia College pitchers combined to shutout Valdosta State as the Bobcats defeated the Blazers 5-0 at Kurtz Field Wednesday afternoon. The Bobcats (42-11) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as they pushed across a run. With one out in the frame, Brett DeFelice walked and moved to third on a Brandon Anderson single. Pete Paris' single drove in DeFelice for a 1-0 GCSU lead. Georgia College added another run in the second as Chandler Snell doubled in Rich Janofsky before upping its lead to 3-0 in the third. Paris singled in the third and scored when Bryan Shaughnessy doubled to right. Valdosta State (26-26) threatened in each of the first three innings but was unable to force a run across. Nick Phillips led off the game with a double, but was stranded at second while Ryan Parsons and Phillips doubled with one out in the second and third innings, respectively. In both instances, the VSU base runner advanced no further. The Bobcats upped their advantage to 4-0 in the fifth as Paris led off with a single and moved to third on a pair of wild pitches before scoring on a Casey Cullen single. A wild pitch also played a role in GCSU's final run of the game as Justin Mills, who had singled to open the eight, came home on an errant pitch by VSU reliever Daniel Muniz. Phillips finished the game two-of-four at the plate to lead the Blazers, who tallied six hits in the game. Landon Gray fell to 2-3 on the season as he surrendered eight hits and four runs in five innings of work. GCSU Sean Heimpel picked up the victory, improving to 4-0, as he allowed just one hit and struck out two in two innings of relief. Paris was three-of-five with two runs scored to lead the Bobcat offense. Valdosta State returns to action as it closes out its 2007 regular season with a three-game Gulf South Conference series against West Florida at Billy Grant Field this weekend. The Blazers and Argonauts will play two games on Saturday and one on Sunday. The weekend will feature the final home games for head coach Tommy Thomas, who is in his 40th season in the dugout for VSU. Thomas will be honored in a ceremony beginning at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday and a cookout will be held for all fans in attendance after Saturday's final game. Sunday's regular season finale will feature Thomas' "Last Trip to the Mound" and commemorative tickets will be issued for the event. Game Stats

Blazers Upset No. 29 Armstrong Atlantic

2007-04-24

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 19 hits, including a season-high three home runs, in upsetting No. 29 Armstrong Atlantic 13-6 Tuesday evening at Billy Grant Field. Armstrong Atlantic (32-17) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning as it plated five runs while batting around. With one out, Tyler Evans walked and stole second. A pair of wild pitches allowed Evans to score before Kenny Cail also walked. Cail stole second and scored on a Sean Hotzak double. Josh Wilson singled and advanced to second as Hotzak scored before coming home on a Marc Noble base hit. Noble advanced to second as the Blazers attempted to throw and scored when Josh Dallas singled through the right-side of the infield for a 5-0 Pirate lead. Valdosta State (26-25) struck back for a run in the bottom of the inning as it pieced together a pair of two out hits. Eddie San Roman singled through the right-side of the infield and scored when Jesse Barfield doubled to right-center, cutting the VSU deficit to 5-1. The Pirates added a run to their lead in the bottom of the second when Eric Hudson walked with two outs and scored on Cail's double down the right field line before VSU evened the game with five runs in the bottom of the third. Nick Copeland was hit by a pitch to open the inning and moved to second on Ryan Parson's base hit. San Roman's fielder's choice put runners at the corner, allowing Copeland to score on Barfield's base hit to right. Nick Phillips' infield single loaded the bases while Rusty Harris' bloop single scored San Roman, but Barfield was thrown out at the plate for the second out of the frame. Jacob Jarvis followed with his first home run of the season, a three-run shot off the scoreboard in left-center to even the game at 6-6. The Blazers plated a pair of runs in the fourth, on Calem Ray's second round-tripper of the year and a San Roman run-scoring ground out, before pushing its lead to 11-6 in the fifth. Jarvis walked with one out in the inning and scored when Drew Camp followed with a triple. A Josh Dallas fielding error on a Copeland ground ball with two outs allowed Camp to score while Copeland stole second to move into scoring position. Parson walked to put two men on while San Roman laced a single to center to drive in Copeland for the third run in the inning. Copeland hit his third home run of the season in the seventh, a solo shot, and Sherard Reynolds scored on a Justin Huff single in the eighth to close out the scoring. Jeremy Jones allowed seven hits and struck out four in six innings of relief to improve his record to 2-1. Parson and Copeland were both three-of-five at the plate to lead VSU offensively while San Roman, Barfield, Harris, Jarvis and Camp all had two hits each. Pirate starter Blake Culberson surrendered 10 hits and eight runs to fall to 3-2 on the season. AASU tallied 14 hits, led by Noble and Dallas with three each. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, April 25 when it visits Milledgeville, Ga. for a contest against Georgia College. The game, which was originally scheduled for April 11 before being delayed by rain, will begin at 5:00 p.m. Game Stats

Baseball Falls 8-2 to Montevallo

2007-04-22

MONTEVALLO, Ala. - Montevallo used four unanswered runs to break a 1-1 tie en route to defeating Valdosta State 8-2 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Johnson Field Sunday afternoon. The Falcons (39-13, 13-5) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning. J.D. Pruitt walked to open the inning and advanced to third as Eric Moore doubled to left. After a strikeout, Travis Fultz hit a sacrifice fly that plated Pruitt for a 1-0 UM lead. The Blazers (25-25, 7-8) responded with a run in the top of the second. With two outs in the inning, Nick Copeland doubled down the left field line and moved to third on a Chris Harris infield single. Sydney Spell followed with a base hit that plated Copeland to even the game at 1-1. Montevallo broke the tie in the third. Moore reached on a fielding error by VSU shortstop Justin Huff before advancing to second on a balk. Daniel Tankersly followed with a single to center that scored Moore for a 2-1 UM lead. The Falcons added three more runs in the fourth. Francisco Perez singled to open the inning and scored two batters later when Ryan Norman homered to left. Two batters later, Pruitt also homered to post Montevallo to a 5-1 advantage. Justin Hill's fourth home run of the season in the sixth cut the VSU deficit to 5-2, but UM answered with a run in the bottom of the frame. B.J. Holloway singled with one out and moved to second on Huff's second error of the game. Two batters later, Moore singled to center, driving in Holloway. The Falcons closed out the scoring in the eighth. Pruitt led off the inning with a single and stole second before scoring on a Tankersley base hit. Fultz was hit by a pitch to move Tankersley to second, allowing him to score on Brantly Clay's base knock to push the Montevallo lead to 8-2. Will Thompson gave up 10 hits and six runs, four of which were earned, in six innings to fall to 3-1 on the season. Hill and Spell led VSU offensively, tallying two hits each, as VSU completed the day with six total hits. Jeremy Joyce surrendered all six VSU hits and two runs in five innings to improve to 5-4 on the season. Zach Andrews did not allow a hit and struck out six in the final four innings to earn his fifth save of the year. Tankersley led the Falcon offense with three hits while Pruitt, Moore and finished with two each. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 24 when it hosts No. 29 Armstrong Atlantic in Billy Grant Field at 6:00 p.m. Game Stats

Montevallo Trips Up VSU, Sweeps Doubleheader

2007-04-21

MONTEVALLO, Ala. - Montevallo posted a pair of come-from-behind victories to sweep Valdosta State in a Gulf South Conference baseball doubleheader Saturday, defeating the Blazers 4-2 and 10-9 at Johnson Field. Valdosta State (25-24, 7-7) opened the scoring in game one with a solo home run from Daniel Muniz, his fourth of the season, in the top of the first inning. Montevallo (38-13, 12-5) quickly responded as J.D. Pruitt singled to open the bottom of the first, stole second, was sacrificed to third and scored on a Travis Fultz ground out. VSU regained the lead in the third. Calem Ray singled to open the frame and moved to second on a wild pitch. A fielding error on a Brandon Atkins ground ball moved Ray to third, allowing him to score on Nick Copeland's fielder's choice for a 2-1 Blazer lead. Valdosta State's lead held until the seventh inning when the Falcons scored three runs. Francisco Perez homered to open the inning, chasing VSU starter Chris Davison in the process. Reliever Wade West (1-3) was greeted by a single by Chris Cooper and then committed a throwing error on a Ryan Norman sacrifice bunt that moved Cooper to third. Norman stole second and B.J. Holloway hit a two-run single to give Montevallo a 4-2 advantage. UM reliever Zach Andrews picked up the win after allowing just one hit and no runs in three and a third innings of relief. In the second game, Dustin Rhodes and Cooper hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to propel the Falcons to victory. Trailing 9-8 at the time, Rhodes homered to centerfield before Cooper followed with a shot on a 3-2 pitch from Blazer pitcher Adam Harmych (2-5) for his seventh round tripper of the season. Valdosta State jumped out to an 8-0 advantage in the game as it scored four runs in both the third and fifth innings. In the third, Richard Flores led off with a walk and moved to second on a Sydney Spell base hit. Justin Huff's bunt single loaded the bases before Ray hit a sacrifice fly to left that plated Flores. A Muniz infield hit drove in Spell while Huff scored on a Justin Hill infield hit. A Dustin Rucker ground out plated Muniz for to post VSU to a 4-0 lead. Muniz opened the fifth inning by reaching on a throwing error and moved to third when Hill followed with a double. Rucker was intentionally walked to load the bases, but three batters later, Flores hit a two-run single that plated Hill and Rucker. Brandon Atkins, who reached on a fielder's choice that erased Muniz at home, later scored when Spell tallied a base hit while Huff drove Flores home with a single to give VSU an 8-0 lead. Montevallo responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to cut its deficit to 8-2. A fielding error allowed Cooper to reach safely to lead off the inning before a single by Holloway and a walk to Pruitt loaded the bases while Cooper and Holloway scored on a throwing error by Ray on a fielder's choice by Eric Moore. The Falcons evened the game with six runs in the bottom of the seventh. Cooper singled to open the inning and Holloway was hit by a pitch before Pruitt loaded the bases with a base hit. John Sirmon relieved VSU starter Thomas Tripp and was greeted by an infield, run-scoring hit by Daniel Futuro before Daniel Tankersley hit a two-run double. A Fultz double scored Futuro and Tankersley while Perez hit a run-scoring single off Harmych to plate Fultz and send the game into extra innings tied 8-8. Hill hit his third home run of the year in the top of the ninth to push VSU to a 9-8 lead, setting up the dramatic finish in the bottom of the inning. Garrett Mims allowed just one hit, Hill's homer in the ninth, and struck out three in two innings to improve to 7-1 on the season. Flores collected four hits in six at-bats on the day to lead VSU offensively while Hill, Huff and Muniz finished with three hits each. Cooper was four-of-eight at the plate to lead the Falcons, who had Pruitt, Holloway and Perez also tally three hits apiece. The two teams conclude the three-game league series Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. Game One Stats Game Two Stats

Montevallo Trips Up VSU, Sweeps Doubleheader

2007-04-21

Blazers Fall 11-9 at Armstrong Atlantic

2007-04-17

SAVANNAH, Ga. - No. 29 Armstrong Atlantic scored a pair of runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to hold off an upset bid by Valdosta State as the Pirates defeated the Blazers 11-9 in non-conference baseball action at Pirate Field Tuesday afternoon. The Pirates (31-14) raced out to a quick lead as they scored one run in the first inning and three more in the second. In the first, Brad Bohannon walked to lead off the inning and stole second before moving to third on a wild pitch. A two-out single by Sean Hotzak drove in Bohannon for the first run in the game. A leadoff walk again began the inning for AASU in the second as Marc Noble reached on a free pass. A Chris Smith single moved Noble to third before Josh Dallas drove him in with an infield hit. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Smith to score on a Bohannon sacrifice fly. Another wild pitch moved Dallas to third before Tyler Evans hit a sacrifice fly to post Armstrong to a 4-0 lead. Valdosta State (25-22) stormed back with four runs in the third. Justin Huff led off with a single and moved to second two batters later when Ryan Parson reached on a base hit. Dustin Rucker walked to load the bases, allowing Sydney Spell to pick up an RBI when he walked to force in Huff. Eddie San Roman followed with a two-run that plated Parson and Rucker while Spell came home when he and San Roman successfully pulled off a double steal to tie the score at 4-4. The Blazers grabbed their first lead an inning later as Parson's RBI single scored Huff and upped its advantage to 6-4 in the fifth. San Roman walked to open the inning before being lifted for pinch-runner Rance Morgan. A Nick Phillips base hit moved Morgan to third, allowing him to score on Huff's sacrifice fly. Armstrong Atlantic with three runs in the sixth to retake the lead. Dallas hit a RBI single to drive in Noble for the first run before scoring when Bohannon homered to give AASU a 7-6 advantage. VSU responded with two runs in the seventh, on run-scoring hits by Phillips and Brandon Atkins, only to have the Pirates respond with a four run average over their next two at-bats. Hotzak reached on a fielder's choice and later scored on a fielding error by VSU left fielder Chris Harris while Noble tripled in a run in the seventh. In the eighth, Bohannon walked and advanced to second on a bunt single by Evans. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, while Kenny Cail drove in Bohannon with a base hit and Evans later scored on a Hotzak single. VSU's Morgan closed out the scoring with his team-leading fifth home run, a solo shot to lead off the inning, in the ninth. Huff was a perfect four-of-four to lead the Blazers offensively while Phillips and Parson tallied two hits each. VSU continued its good hitting from the weekend as Valdosta State collected 13 hits. Landon Gray fell to 2-2 on the season as he allowed two runs on two hits in a third of an inning during the seventh. Six different Pirates tallied two hits as AASU finished the game with 14 hits as a team. Jeremy Horst improved to 3-0 on the year, despite giving up four hits and two runs in the sixth, the only inning he pitched. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 21 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series with a doubleheader at Montevallo beginning at 4 pm. Game Stats

Blazers Fall 11-9 at Armstrong Atlantic

2007-04-17

SAVANNAH, Ga. - No. 29 Armstrong Atlantic scored a pair of runs in both the seventh and eighth innings to hold off an upset bid by Valdosta State as the Pirates defeated the Blazers 11-9 in non-conference baseball action at Pirate Field Tuesday afternoon. The Pirates (31-14) raced out to a quick lead as they scored one run in the first inning and three more in the second. In the first, Brad Bohannon walked to lead off the inning and stole second before moving to third on a wild pitch. A two-out single by Sean Hotzak drove in Bohannon for the first run in the game. A leadoff walk again began the inning for AASU in the second as Marc Noble reached on a free pass. A Chris Smith single moved Noble to third before Josh Dallas drove him in with an infield hit. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Smith to score on a Bohannon sacrifice fly. Another wild pitch moved Dallas to third before Tyler Evans hit a sacrifice fly to post Armstrong to a 4-0 lead. Valdosta State (25-22) stormed back with four runs in the third. Justin Huff led off with a single and moved to second two batters later when Ryan Parson reached on a base hit. Dustin Rucker walked to load the bases, allowing Sydney Spell to pick up an RBI when he walked to force in Huff. Eddie San Roman followed with a two-run that plated Parson and Rucker while Spell came home when he and San Roman successfully pulled off a double steal to tie the score at 4-4. The Blazers grabbed their first lead an inning later as Parson's RBI single scored Huff and upped its advantage to 6-4 in the fifth. San Roman walked to open the inning before being lifted for pinch-runner Rance Morgan. A Nick Phillips base hit moved Morgan to third, allowing him to score on Huff's sacrifice fly. Armstrong Atlantic with three runs in the sixth to retake the lead. Dallas hit a RBI single to drive in Noble for the first run before scoring when Bohannon homered to give AASU a 7-6 advantage.VSU responded with two runs in the seventh, on run-scoring hits by Phillips and Brandon Atkins, only to have the Pirates respond with a four run average over their next two at-bats. Hotzak reached on a fielder's choice and later scored on a fielding error by VSU left fielder Chris Harris while Noble tripled in a run in the seventh. In the eighth, Bohannon walked and advanced to second on a bunt single by Evans. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position, while Kenny Cail drove in Bohannon with a base hit and Evans later scored on a Hotzak single. VSU's Morgan closed out the scoring with his team-leading fifth home run, a solo shot to lead off the inning, in the ninth Huff was a perfect four-of-four to lead the Blazers offensively while Phillips and Parson tallied two hits each. VSU continued its good hitting from the weekend as Valdosta State collected 13 hits. Landon Gray fell to 2-2 on the season as he allowed two runs on two hits in a third of an inning during the seventh. Six different Pirates tallied two hits as AASU finished the game with 14 hits as a team. Jeremy Horst improved to 3-0 on the year, despite giving up four hits and two runs in the sixth, the only inning he pitched.Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 21 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series with a doubleheader at Montevallo beginning at 4 pm.

Sydney Spell Named GSC Player-of-the-Week

2007-04-16

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State's Sydney Spell was named the Gulf South Conference Player-of-the-Week Tuesday according to an announcement made by the league office. Spell led Valdosta State to a 4-0 record last week, including a weekend sweep of GSC rival North Alabama. He batted .385 on the week, collecting hits in five of his 13 at-bats, while producing a .923 slugging percentage. Spell counted a double and two home runs among his five hits and registered three runs scored and five runs batted in. Both of Spell's home runs came at pivotal points in the sweep of North Alabama, as his first homer, a two-run shot in the seventh, closed the Blazers to within 13-12 of a game VSU won 14-13. His second round-tripper closed out VSU's scoring in a 10-6 victory in Sunday's series finale. The two home runs doubled his home run output on the season. Spell, a junior from Alma, Ga., is batting .292 with 13 RBI on the year. The sweep of the Lions propelled Spell and the Blazers into third place in the GSC East Division standings. VSU has six league games remaining, with three coming at second-place Montevallo this weekend before a three-game season wrap-up against fourth-place West Florida on April 28-29. The top four seeds in each division advance to the GSC Tournament.

Blazers Sweep North Alabama with 10-6 Victory

2007-04-15

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 14 hits as the Blazers claimed a 10-6 victory over North Alabama in Gulf South Conference baseball action Sunday afternoon. The Blazers (25-21, 7-5) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning. With one out, Daniel Muniz singled and, two batters later, moved to third when Rance Morgan singled on a bloop hit to right. Brandon Atkins followed with a double to right-center to plate Muniz, giving VSU a 1-0 lead. Valdosta State added a run to its lead in the second as Sydney Spell scored on a Calem Ray bunt base hit with two outs before increasing its advantage to 4-0 in the fourth. Richard Flores singled to open the inning and moved to second on a Spell ground out. Justin Huff followed with a double down the left field line to drive in Flores and scored when Ray singled to center. A Flores sacrifice fly plated Morgan and upped the Blazer lead to 5-0 in the fifth before North Alabama (29-17-1, 5-7) broke through for four runs in the sixth. Daniel Johnson doubled to open the frame and scored when Josh Graham followed with a double down the left field line. A Trey Pollard base hit up the middle moved Graham to third, allowing him to score on Nick Newberry's sacrifice fly. Ross Parker and Caleb Kidd walked to load the bases while Josh Phillips picked up a pair of RBI with a base hit to right that scored Pollard and Parker. VSU responded in the bottom of the inning, scoring four runs to push its lead back to five. UNA reliever Derrick Simpson walked Ray and Muniz to open the inning before being lifted. Chris Harris loaded the bases with a bunt single before Morgan drew a full-count walk to force in Ray. Two batters later, Nick Copeland reached on a bases loaded bunt that drove in Muniz. The throw from Johnson to Graham at first base squirted free, allowing Harris to come home and Morgan to move to third. Flores' second sacrifice fly of the game plated Morgan to give VSU a 9-4 advantage. Spell's fourth home run of the year, and second in as many days, pushed the VSU advantage to 10-4 in the seventh while North Alabama scored a pair of runs in the eighth to close out the scoring. Thomas Tripp gave up nine hits and four runs in six innings of work to improve to 3-3 while Brad Altone surrendered three hits and two runs in the final three innings to pick up his fourth save of the season. Copeland led Valdosta State with three hits in five at-bats while Ray, Harris and Huff tallied two each. Justin Walters surrendered five runs and nine hits in four and a third innings to fall to 5-3. Johnson led UNA offensively, picking up hits in all four of his at-bats while Phillips and Reed had two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 17 when it travels to Savannah, Ga. to face Armstrong Atlantic at 3:30 p.m. Game Stats

Blazers Sweep North Alabama with 10-6 Victory

2007-04-15

Blazers Sweep North Alabama

2007-04-14

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State used a pair of come-from-behind victories to sweep North Alabama 14-13 and 5-4 in a Gulf South Conference doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. North Alabama (29-16-1, 5-6) plated three runs in the top of the first inning. Josh Phillips walked to open the inning before beings sacrificed to second by Matt Horton. Daniel Johnson followed with a base hit to center that plated Phillips. VSU starter Chris Davison walked the next two batters to load the bases before Trey Pollard scored Johnson with a ground out. A throwing error by Blazer catcher Jacob Jarvis allowed Josh Graham to score to give the Lions a 3-0 advantage. Valdosta State (24-21, 6-5) cut its deficit to two in the bottom of the inning as Calem Ray scored before UNA pushed its lead to 6-1 in the third. Johnson doubled to open the frame and moved to third on Graham's base hit. Brandon Atkins' fielding error on A.J. Reed's grounder allowed Johnson to score before a wild pitch moved both Graham and Reed into scoring position. A Pollard base hit scored Graham and chased Davison. VSU reliever Wade West walked Nick Newberry to load the bases before registering a pair of outs on a line out and a strike out, but also walked Phillips to force in Reed for the third run in the frame. The Blazers added three more runs in the bottom of the fourth before taking advantage of four UNA errors in the fifth to score grab its first lead. Ray singled to lead off and moved around to third when Phillips misplayed the ball in center. Daniel Muniz followed with a ground ball to score Ray and reached safely when Reed mishandled the grounder. Nick Phillips pinch-ran and was thrown out attempting to steal second while Chris Harris struck out for the second out in the inning. Rance Morgan followed with a single and moved to second on an error by Ross Parker in left before scoring when Brandon Atkins singled to left. Parker's throw eluded Johnson at third and went into the VSU dugout to put Atkins on third. Nick Copeland singled to score Atkins while pinch-hitter Dustin Rucker doubled to center to plate Copeland. Despite the errors, all four runs in the inning were earned as VSU claimed an 8-6 advantage. North Alabama scored three runs in both the sixth and seventh and one in the eighth while VSU added a single run in the sixth and two in the seventh, on Sydney's Spell's third home run of the season, to post UNA to a 13-11 lead heading to the bottom of the eighth. Valdosta State took advantage of the ninth UNA error of the game to push three runs across in the bottom of the eighth for the win. With one out and Newberry (1-1) having moved from catcher to pitcher, Harris walked and reached second safely when Jackson Agee dropped the throw on Morgan's fielder's choice. Atkins walked to load the bases while Copeland doubled to drive in Harris and Morgan. Pinch-hitter Jesse Barfield was intentionally walked and Huff was hit by a pitch to force in Atkins for the winning run. North Alabama loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the ninth, but a pair of ground outs and a pop up ended the game without a run scoring. Brad Altone allowed just one hit in the final two innings to improve to 3-2 on the season. The Blazers pounded out 17 hits, the third-most by VSU this season, led by Atkins, Morgan and Copeland who had three each. The Blazers committed six errors in the game and surrendered four unearned runs. Newberry gave up just one hit and three runs, only one of which was earned, in two thirds of an inning to fall to 1-1 on the season. Johnson collected four of UNA's 12 hits in the game, but the Lions surrendered six unearned runs as they committed nine errors in the game. North Alabama again scored three runs in the top of the first in game two to grab an early lead. Phillips doubled to open the game and scored as Horton singled. Johnson was hit by a pitch to put two men on base. A pair of fly outs allowed Horton to score while Andrew Knerr's single scored Johnson for a 3-0 UNA lead. The Lions added another run in the top of the third before VSU plated their first run in the bottom of the inning. With one out Huff singled and moved to second on Ray's ground out. A Muniz bloop single to shallow right allowed Huff to score, cutting the UNA lead to 4-1. VSU further cut into its lead in the fourth as Atkins singled and eventually scored on a Spell base hit before the game was delayed due to rain for an hour and fifteen minutes in the bottom of the fifth. When the game resumed, Huff, who had singled and been sacrificed to second before the rain delay, scored with two outs when Morgan singled to left, cutting the Blazer deficit to 4-3. Valdosta State evened the game at 4-4 in the bottom of the seventh. Richard Flores and Justin Huff were both hit by pitches to open the inning. With one out, Daniel Muniz singled, driving home Rusty Harris who was pinch-running for Flores. Justin Hill closed out the game as he hit a 1-0 pitch from UNA starter Richard Brindle (6-2) over the left field wall for his second home run of the year. John Sirmon pitched the final three inning, allowing just two hits and striking out three, to improve to 5-1. Huff and Muniz each had two hits for VSU in the game. Horton led North Alabama offensively in the game, registering three hits in five at-bats. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. Click for Game Photos Game One Stats Game Two Stats

VSU TO HOLD TOMMY THOMAS RETIREMENT WEEKEND

2007-04-13

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State will honor retiring baseball coach Tommy Thomas during the last home weekend of the season, April 28 and 29, when VSU hosts West Florida at Billy Grant Field. Thomas is retiring after 40 years as head coach with the Blazers at the end of the 2007 season. He will retire as NCAA Division II's all-time winningest coach, currently standing with 1,303 career victories. Thomas' retirement celebration will begin prior to VSU's doubleheader against the Argonauts when he will be honored by the office of Governor Sonny Purdue as well as Lowndes County and the City of Valdosta. All baseball alumni are invited to take part in the ceremony, which will also be attended by six of Thomas' current or former assistant coaches. The VSU Athletics Department will hold a cook out after Saturday's second game. All fans in attendance at the game are invited to the cookout. Sunday's final game will feature commemorative tickets for Thomas' "Last Trip to the Mound." Baseball alumni interested in attending the weekend are encouraged to contact Whit Chappell in the VSU Athletic Department at 229-249-2631 or at wchappel@valdosta.edu.

Blazers Edge Albany State 6-5

2007-04-12

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning as the Blazers defeated Albany State 6-5 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Thursday afternoon. The Blazers (22-21) trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the fifth before rallying for the winning run. Brandon Atkins singled to open the inning and advanced to second when Chris Harris walked. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Atkins to score on a Sherard Reynolds ground out. Harris, who moved to third on the ground out, stole home for the second run of the inning before Daniel Muniz walked. Nick Copeland followed with a fly ball to right-center that appeared to end the inning, but ASU centerfield Darren Jenkins dropped the ball, allowing Muniz to score for a 6-5 VSU lead. Albany State (32-12) opened the scoring in the first inning as it plated three runs. With one out in the frame Jenkins singled and scored on Chuncey Ward's triple to right-center. After a ground out, Undre Smith singled to plate Ward. Smith moved to third on a throwing error on a failed pickoff attempt and scored when Blazer starter Luke Taylor threw a wild pitch to put ASU up 3-0. The Blazers evened the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the second on Drew Camp's first home run of the year. Justin Hill singled to open the inning, stole second and moved to third on a throwing error by the catcher Ward. A pair of outs followed before Rusty Harris walked to put men on the corners for Camp, who hit the first pitch he saw from Golden Rams starter Brandon Griffin over the left field wall to tie the game. The Golden Rams regained the lead in the fourth. Willie Watkins walked to open the frame and stole second before scoring on B.J. Stewart's single to right field to give ASU a 4-3 advantage. ASU added another run in the top of the fifth. Demario Cash singled to open the inning and was sacrificed to second by Smith. An Alexander Wyche ground out moved Cash to third, allowing him to score on Watkins' base hit to right. Jeremy Jones picked up the win for Valdosta State after allowing two hits and a run in an inning and a third to improve to 1-1. Brad Altone pitched a perfect ninth inning to earn his third save of the year. Atkins led VSU with two hits in five at-bats in the game. Griffin allowed five hits and six runs, five earned, while walking five and striking out four to fall to 10-1 on the year. Stewart, Smith and Diante Blanton registered two hits each for the Golden Rams, who out-hit Valdosta State 12-6 in the game. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, April 14 when it opens a three-game Gulf South Conference series against North Alabama at Billy Grant Field. The Blazers and Lions will play a doubleheader on Saturday, with first pitch slated for 1:00 p.m. Game Stats

West Georgia Downs Blazers 5-2

2007-04-07

VALDOSTA, Ga. - West Georgia spoiled a complete game from Valdosta State starter Thomas Tripp as the Wolves defeated the Blazers 5-2 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Saturday afternoon. West Georgia (21-16, 3-6) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. With one out, Demontae Edwards walked and stole second. After a strike out, Nolan Childers singled through the left-side of the infield to give the Wolves a 1-0 lead. The Wolves added two more runs to their lead in the fourth. Davan Abney doubled to open the inning and moved to third when Childers reached on an infield single. Alex Parker's sacrifice fly scored Abney while Childers scored on Bradley Abell's double down the left field line for a 3-0 UWG lead. Valdosta State (21-21, 4-5) struck back for a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning as it took advantage of a West Georgia error. Dustin Rucker opened the inning with a squibber that was fielded by Wolf pitcher Jason Moore. Moore's flip to first went over the head of Alex Parker, allowing Rucker to advance to second. Nick Copeland doubled to left-center to move Rucker to third, allowing him to score on Calem Ray's sacrifice fly. Richard Flores' suicide squeeze drove in Copeland to cut the Blazer deficit to 3-2. UWG increased its lead back to three runs in the seventh. With one out Adam Matos singled and moved to third two batters later on an A.J. Renfroe base hit. Renfroe stole second and came around to score along with Matos when Edwards' two-out ground ball was booted by Justin Huff at short to give the Wolves a 5-2 advantage. Tripp's complete game was his second of the season. The sophomore righthander gave up six hits and five runs, three of which were earned, while striking out 10 as he fell to 2-3 on the season. Ray was two-of-four with an RBI to lead the Blazers at the plate. Moore allowed five hits and two runs, neither of which was earned while striking out four in seven innings to improve to 4-1 on the year. Justin Orenstein registered the final six outs of the game to pick up his first save of the season. Childers collected two hits in four plate appearances. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, April 11 when it travels to Milledgeville, Ga. to face Georgia College at 5:00 p.m. Game Stats

Blazers Split Doubleheader with West Georgia

2007-04-06

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State claimed a 4-3 victory in the first game of a Gulf South Conference doubleheader while West Georgia won 6-4 in eight innings in the second game Friday afternoon at Billy Grant Field. Valdosta State (21-20, 4-4) opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning as it plated a pair of runs. With two outs, Nick Copeland singled and stole second. Chris Harris followed with a double to plate Copeland before scoring on a Richard Flores base hit. The Blazers upped their lead to 3-0 in the fourth as Nick Copeland doubled and scored with two outs on a double steal attempt with Flores, who had walked, before the Wolves (20-16, 2-6) struck back for a run in the top of the fifth. With two outs in the fifth, Robert Cooper singled and scored when Davan Abney followed with a double to right field, cutting the VSU lead to 3-1. Valdosta State added another run in the sixth, as Rance Morgan led off with a single, moved to second on a ground out by Dustin Rucker before stealing third and scoring on a wild pitch on the same pitch from UWG starter Jordan Towns. West Georgia cut their deficit to one in the seventh, again taking advantage of two-out hits to score a pair of runs. A.J. Renfrow led off with a single before Cooper and Abney were retired. Nolan Childers doubled to drive in Renfrow and moved to third as Alex Cooper's base hit bounced off the glove of Chris Harris in left field. Bradley Abell followed with a double to left-center that scored Childers to slice the Blazer lead to 4-3. Blazer starter Chris Davison surrendered nine hits and three earned runs while striking out eight in seven innings to improve to 3-5 on the year. Wade West allowed just one hit in two innings to register his second save of the season. Towns registered his third complete game of the year and surrendered just five hits, but also gave up four runs to fall to 5-3. VSU again jumped out to an early lead in the second game as it plated a single run in the first inning. Nick Phillips walked to open the inning and moved to second on Ryan Parson's ground out. After Morgan walked and Daniel Muniz flew out to left, Brandon Atkins hit a chopper over the out-stretched arm of Abell at third to plate Phillips. The Wolves took advantage of a pair of Blazer errors in the second to take a 2-1 lead. With two outs, Adam Matos was hit by a pitch and stole second. VSU appeared to get out of the inning when Jesse Springston hit a ground ball to second base, but the ball got by Phillips to allow Matos to score. A throwing error on a pickoff attempt moved Springston to third and Dan Williams was hit by a pitch before Renfrow hit a grounder through the right-side of the infield to score Springston. Valdosta State struck back immediately as it plated single runs in the second and third. In the second, Jacob Jarvis was hit by a pitch and moved to third on a Rusty Harris single before scoring on a Phillips' double. Meanwhile Muniz and Atkins singled in the third and moved up a base on a passed ball, allowing Muniz to score on a Copeland ground out to give VSU a 3-2 lead. West Georgia regained the lead in the sixth with a pair of runs. Alex Parker reached on an infield single to open the frame and moved to second on an Abell sacrifice bunt. Parker just beat the throw home as Adam Matos tripled to left for the first run in the frame while Matos scored on a sacrifice fly to centerfield to give UWG a 4-3 lead. VSU evened the game in the bottom of the inning Nick Copeland reached second on a throwing error by Matos at second, moved to third on a Justin Hill sacrifice bunt and scored when pinch-hitter Jesse Barfield grounded out to second base. Two more Blazer errors led to a pair of UWG runs in the eighth. Childers reached on a fielding error by Rusty Harris to open the inning and moved to second as Alex Parker walked. A ground out and an intentional walk loaded the bases before Springston's ground ball went through Harris' legs to score both Childers and Parker to give the Wolves a 6-4 lead. West again came on in relief in the game and gave up four hits and four runs, only two of which were earned, in five and a third innings as he fell to 1-2. Brian Futral gave up five hits and four runs while striking out four in eight innings to improve to 4-3. Atkins led Valdosta State offensively in the game, tallying three hits in seven at-bats while Copeland scored a pair of runs. Abney and Renfrow collected three hits each to lead the Wolves. The two teams conclude the three-game series Saturday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. with a single game. Game One Stats Game Two Stats

Blazers Down Thomas 13-3

2007-04-03

Blazers Doubled Up by West Alabama, Fall 4-2

2007-04-01

LIVINGSTON, Ala. - West Alabama raced out to a 4-0 lead and withstood a late-inning Valdosta State rally as the Tigers defeated the Blazers 4-2 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Tartt Field Sunday afternoon. The Tigers (26-10, 7-2) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning as it plated a pair of runs. Darryl Brown walked to open the frame and moved to second on Clark Humber groundout. A throwing error on a failed pickoff attempt moved Brown to third, allowing him to score on Jake DeRoy's single to left. Rob Dahlberg, who reached after being hit by a pitch, also scored in the inning to give UWA a 2-0 lead. West Alabama upped its lead to 4-0 in the sixth as Brent Bumgarner reached on a fielder's choice before scoring as Dallas Rogers and Brown followed with back-to-back singles. Humber's suicide squeeze bunt drove in Rogers for the second run of the inning. The Blazers (19-19, 3-3) threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with only one out, but failed to plate a run in the inning before finally breaking through in the ninth. Nick Copeland singled to open the ninth and moved to second on a wild pitch prior to Chris Harris being hit by a pitch. After a pair of strike outs, Rusty Harris singled to load the bases, allowing Copeland and Chris Harris to score on Drew Camp's base hit up the middle. Thomas Tripp surrendered three hits and two runs in two and a third innings to fall to 2-2 on the year. Copeland and Calem Ray led VSU offensively with two hits each. Stephen Barnett gave up five hits and struck out four in six and a third innings to improve to 3-2. DeRoy tallied two hits in four at-bats to lead the Tigers at the plate. Valdosta State returns to action Tuesday, April 3 when it hosts Thomas University at 5:00 p.m. at Billy Grant Field. Game Stats

Blazers Doubled Up by West Alabama, Fall 4-2

2007-04-01

Blazers Split Doubleheader with West Alabama

2007-03-31

Game One Stats Game Two Stats LIVINGSTON, Ala. - Valdosta State gave head coach Tommy Thomas the 1,300th win of his career as the Blazers split a doubleheader with West Alabama in Gulf South Conference play Saturday evening at Tartt Field. VSU won the first game 5-2 before falling 3-0 in the second game. Valdosta State (19-18, 3-2) scored the first five runs of the first game, beginning with a single run in the first inning. Justin Huff and Sydney Spell singled to open the game before moving up a base each on Rance Morgan's ground out. Daniel Muniz followed with a ground out to plate Huff for a 1-0 VSU lead. The Blazers added two more runs in the sixth. With one out, Morgan singled and moved to second on a failed pickoff attempt. Brandon Atkins' base hit moved Morgan to third, allowing him to score on Nick Copeland's single up the middle. Atkins moved to third on the play and scored when Chris Harris hit reached on a bunt single. VSU added its final two runs in the eighth. With one out, Atkins walked and advanced a base on a Copeland base hit. Both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch and scored on a Harris base hit to left-center to up the VSU lead to 5-0. Clint Moody tripled and scored for West Alabama (25-10, 6-2) in the bottom of the eighth while Rob Dahlberg reached on an error and scored on a Tres Avans triple in the ninth to close out the scoring. Chris Davison gave up just three hits and two runs, only one of which was earned, while striking out seven in eight and two-thirds innings of work to improve to 2-5 on the season. West Alabama's Noel Baca surrendered 10 hits and three runs while striking out eight in seven innings to fall to 5-4. In the second game, West Alabama opened the scoring in the bottom of the first. Darryl Brown singled up the middle to open the inning and moved to second on Clark Humber's sacrifice bunt. A wild pitch moved Brown to third, allowing him to score on Dahlberg's sacrifice fly. The Tigers upped their lead to 2-0 in the fourth. Moody led off with a double down the left field line and moved to third on a Dallas Rogers ground out. After a walk put runners on the corners, Corey Coward drove Rogers home with a ground out. UWA added its third run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Clark Humber singled to open the inning and advanced to third on a throwing error by VSU pitcher Adam Harmych on a failed pick off attempt. Dahlberg's sacrifice fly plated Humber for a 3-0 Tiger lead. Harmych surrendered six hits and three runs in four and a third innings to fall to 2-4. UWA's Brandon Wheeler gave up just three hits in five innings to improve to 5-2. Spell, Atkins, Copeland, Harris and Calem Ray each had two hits each for VSU in game one, during which the Blazers pounded out 12 hits, while Dustin Rucker finished with two in the second game. The two teams conclude the three game series Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. at Tartt Field.

Tommy Thomas to Be Featured on ESPNU

2007-03-29

VIEW COACHES THOMAS' INTERVIEW HERE (click "Making History at Valdosta St. on Right Under College Sports) VALDOSTA, Ga. - Valdosta State head coach Tommy Thomas will be the subject of a feature story on ESPNU's SportsCenter U tonight. The Blazer head man, who is in his 40th and final season in the dugout for Valdosta State, will be interviewed live via the telephone at approximately 7:40 p.m. EDT. Thomas and the rest of the Blazers will be en route to Livingston, Ala. for a Gulf South Conference series against West Alabama this weekend during the interview. ESPNU, a member of the ESPN family of networks, is dedicated solely to collegiate athletics. SportsCenter U is hosted by Mike Hall, who will conduct the interview with Thomas. Hall has worked with ESPN since 2004, when he won the show's first season of Dream Job, a reality show that provided the winner a position as an ESPN anchor. In January of 2005, Hall was named the top anchor for ESPNU. ESPNU is available locally only through satellite providers. However, at the conclusion of the show, which ends at 8:00 p.m., the broadcast will be fed to the ESPN studios in Bristol, Conn. and will be available over the internet on ESPNU at http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/espnu/index. Thomas is NCAA Division II's all-time leader in victories with 1,299 career wins. His next victory will move him into 12th all-time in NCAA history, regardless of division. In addition to his coaching duties, Thomas also served as a professor in VSU's Kinesiology and Physical Education Department for 37 years. He will retire at the end of the season and will be honored during VSU's final home weekend series on April 28 and 29.

Blazers Fall 13-3 To Columbus State

2007-03-28

COLUMBUS, Ga. - Valdosta State surrendered 11 runs in the first three innings as the Blazers fell 13-3 to No. 12 Columbus State in non-conference action Wednesday evening at Ragsdale Field. Rodney Rutherford tripled home three runs for the Cougars (28-7) in the first inning while Kurt McKee and Trent Bianco each hit home runs in a five-run second for CSU. Brad Bowen, David Brown and Bianco each collected an RBI in the third with singles. Valdosta State (18-17) got two runs back in the top of the sixth on a Chris Harris double. Drew Camp, who reached on an error, and Rusty Harris, who had doubled, scored on the play. Columbus State responded with two runs in the bottom of the frame on a home run by Rutherford before Rusty Harris closed out the scoring in the eighth. Harris' single off the glove of Cougar third baseman Brad Linton scored Nick Phillips, who had walked and moved to second on a wild pitch. Russ Crum dropped to 0-1 on the season as he allowed six earned runs in an inning and two-thirds. Brandon Atkins, who broke up a no-hit bid by CSU starter Justin Lee in the fifth, tallied the final of four hits for the Blazers. Columbus State pounded out 18 hits as each Cougar starter registered a hit in the game. Rutherford collected three hits and five RBI in the game to lead CSU at the plate while Drew Candlin also had three hits. Lee gave up three hits and two runs while walking one and striking out five in six innings of work to improve to 4-0. Valdosta State returns to action returns to action Saturday, March 31 when it continues Gulf South Conference play at West Alabama. First pitch for the doubleheader is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. Game Stats

Blazers Score Five in Ninth to Claim Victory

2007-03-25

HUNTSVILLE, Ala.- Valdosta State scored five runs in the top of the ninth inning to defeat Alabama-Huntsville 8-4 in Gulf South Conference baseball action at Joe Davis Stadium Sunday afternoon. VSU (18-16, 2-1) trailed 4-3 entering the final inning, during which it managed just two hits. Daniel Muniz walked to open the frame, but was erased when Brandon Atkins hit into a fielder's choice. Nick Copeland followed with an infield single and Jesse Barfield walked to load the bases before Ryan Parson also walked to force in Atkins. Calem Ray scored both Barfield and Copeland when he reached on a throwing error by Charger Will Davis at second while Justin Huff's base hit plated both Parson and Barfield. For the third time in as many games in the series, Valdosta State opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. Huff opened the game with a walk and moved to second on a wild pitch. Sydney Spell moved Huff to third with a fly ball, allowing him to score on Rance Morgan's ground out for a 1-0 VSU lead. The Chargers (17-19, 1-5) evened the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth. With one out in the frame, Ray Bearden singled and moved to second on a Will Evans base hit. After a fly out, Davis singled to left, scoring Bearden. The Blazers added two more runs in the seventh as Atkins hit his second home run of the season to drive in Dustin Rucker, while UAH claimed the lead with three runs in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Davis was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a Will Staggers base hit. A fly out registered the second out of the frame, but Nick Huckaby hit an infield single to load the bases. Adam Kenuum's single scored both Davis and Staggers while Huckaby came home on a Jon Taylor base hit to left. John Sirmon (4-1) allowed just two hits in the final two innings to pick up his second win in as many days for the Blazers. Thomas Tripp started for VSU and surrendered nine hits and four runs while striking out six in six and two-thirds innings. Huff registered two hits in as many at-bats while also driving in two runs to lead VSU offensively. UAH starter Tom Longyear allowed Valdosta State just two hits in seven innings, but also surrendered three runs. Kyle Dempsey took the loss, falling to 3-3, as he gave up two hits and four runs in an inning and a third. The Chargers out-hit VSU 11-5, led by three hits by Staggers. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 28 when it plays at Columbus State at 5:00 p.m. Game Stats

Blazers Split Doubleheader at Alabama-Huntsville

2007-03-24

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Valdosta State rebounded from giving up three runs in the bottom of the ninth in a game one loss to score 11 runs in a game two victory as the Blazers split a Gulf South Conference doubleheader against Alabama-Huntsville at Joe Davis Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Blazers (17-16, 1-1) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning of the first contest as it scored a pair of runs on a Brandon Atkins double that plated Rance Morgan and Daniel Muniz. The Chargers (17-18, 1-4) responded with a single run in the bottom of the frame before Ryan Parson put VSU back up by two in the third, on a base hit that scored Morgan. The two teams traded runs over the next four innings, with UAH scoring a single run in the fourth and Valdosta State a run in the seventh, before the Alabama-Huntsville took advantage of a VSU error to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. With one out in the frame, Will Davis singled and moved to second as Nick Huckaby reached on an error by Atkins at third. Blake Butler's base hit loaded the bases, allowing Davis and Huckaby to score on Jon Taylor's single. Shannon Anderson followed with a single that scored Butler for the game winner. Wade West fell to 1-1 on the season as he allowed three runs and four hits in an inning and a third of work while Andrew Reeves improved to 3-1 after surrendering just two hits and no runs in two innings. VSU scored single runs in the first and third innings while giving up one in the second and four in the fifth in the second game. Muniz picked up both of the VSU early RBI as he singled in the first to score Sydney Spell and doubled in the third to again plate Spell. The Blazers began their comeback by scoring three runs in the top of the sixth. With one out in the inning, Nick Copeland singled and Richard Flores was hit by a pitch. Calem Ray's base hit scored Copeland from second while Dustin Rucker's pinch-hit double plated both Flores and Ray. UAH added two more runs in the bottom of the inning only to have Valdosta State score six in the top of the seventh. The first three VSU batters in the inning reached base as Morgan doubled, Muniz was hit by a pitch and Atkins walked. Copeland followed with a double that plated Morgan and Parson, who had entered the game as a pinch runner for Muniz, while Chris Harris singled to drive in Atkins. Jesse Barfield pinch hit for Flores and connected on his first home run of the season. The Chargers added a single run in the bottom of the seventh to close out the scoring. John Sirmon gave up two hits and a run in an inning and a third to improve to 3-1 on the season. Kyle Dempsey gave up two runs while registering one out in the sixth as he fell to 3-2. Muniz picked up five hits in eight at-bats to lead VSU offensively on the day. Ray also was five-of-eight, including four hits in as many at-bats in the first game. Taylor tallied four hits in six plate appearances while also registering six RBI in the two games to lead Alabama-Huntsville. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday at 2:00 p.m. with a single game at Joe Davis Stadium Game One Stats

Blazers Split Doubleheader at Alabama-Huntsville

2007-03-24

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. â�� Valdosta State rebounded from giving up three runs in the bottom of the ninth in a game one loss to score 11 runs in a game two victory as the Blazers split a Gulf South Conference doubleheader against Alabama-Huntsville at Joe Davis Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Blazers (17-16, 1-1) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning of the first contest as it scored a pair of runs on a Brandon Atkins double that plated Rance Morgan and Daniel Muniz. The Chargers (17-18, 1-4) responded with a single run in the bottom of the frame before Ryan Parson put VSU back up by two in the third, on a base hit that scored Morgan. The two teams traded runs over the next four innings, with UAH scoring a single run in the fourth and Valdosta State a run in the seventh, before the Alabama-Huntsville took advantage of a VSU error to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. With one out in the frame, Will Davis singled and moved to second as Nick Huckaby reached on an error by Atkins at third. Blake Butlerâ��s base hit loaded the bases, allowing Davis and Huckaby to score on Jon Taylorâ��s single. Shannon Anderson followed with a single that scored Butler for the game winner. Wade West fell to 1-1 on the season as he allowed three runs and four hits in an inning and a third of work while Andrew Reeves improved to 3-1 after surrendering just two hits and no runs in two innings. VSU scored single runs in the first and third innings while giving up one in the second and four in the fifth in the second game. Muniz picked up both of the VSU early RBI as he singled in the first to score Sydney Spell and doubled in the third to again plate Spell. The Blazers began their comeback by scoring three runs in the top of the sixth. With one out in the inning, Nick Copeland singled and Richard Flores was hit by a pitch. Calem Rayâ��s base hit scored Copeland from second while Dustin Ruckerâ��s pinch-hit double plated both Flores and Ray. UAH added two more runs in the bottom of the inning only to have Valdosta State score six in the top of the seventh. The first three VSU batters in the inning reached base as Morgan doubled, Muniz was hit by a pitch and Atkins walked. Copeland followed with a double that plated Morgan and Parson, who had entered the game as a pinch runner for Muniz, while Chris Harris singled to drive in Atkins. Jesse Barfield pinch hit for Flores and connected on his first home run of the season. The Chargers added a single run in the bottom of the seventh to close out the scoring. John Sirmon gave up two hits and a run in an inning and a third to improve to 3-1 on the season. Kyle Dempsey gave up two runs while registering one out in the sixth as he fell to 3-2. Muniz picked up five hits in eight at-bats to lead VSU offensively on the day. Ray also was five-of-eight, including four hits in as many at-bats in the first game. Taylor tallied four hits in six plate appearances while also registering six RBI in the two games to lead Alabama-Huntsville. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday at 2:00 p.m. with a single game at Joe Davis Stadium

Georgia Southwestern Tops Blazers 9-5

2007-03-21

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Ricky Hutchison's solo home run in the top of the eighth inning broke a 5-5 tie and propelled Georgia Southwestern to a 9-5 victory over Valdosta State in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday evening. Georgia Southwestern (9-12) opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. Carlos Height walked to open the inning and stole second before moving to third on a Rusty James ground out. Clayton Trenary walked to put runners at the corner while Shane Newmans drove in Height with a ground out to give GSWU a 1-0 lead. Daniel Muniz gave Valdosta State (16-15) the lead in the bottom of the fourth as he hit his third home run of the season. Nick Copeland, who had walked and stolen second, also scored on the play, giving VSU a 2-1 advantage. The Hurricanes regained the lead in the top of the fifth as it took advantage of a couple of passed balls by Blazer catcher Richard Flores. With one out in the frame Trenary singled and moved to second on a D.J. Decker pinch-hit base hit. Two of the next three pitches eluded Flores, allowing Trenary to score. Ricky Hutchison followed with a walk and Michael Baker tallied a bloop single, scoring Decker for a 3-2 Geogia Southwestern edge. VSU evened the game in the bottom of the frame on a run-scoring single by Ryan Parson only to have the Hurricanes get a home run from Decker and a sacrifice fly from Patrick McCarthy in the seventh to regain a 5-3 lead. The Blazers answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the seventh to once again even the game. Pinch hitter Dustin Rucker started the VSU rally by drawing a one-out walk before being lifted for pinch runner Sherard Reynolds. Reynolds stole second and scored when Parson tallied a two-out hit. Parson moved to second as the Hurricanes attempted to throw Reynolds out at home, allowing him to score on Rance Morgan's base hit through the left side of the infield. After Hutchison's home run gave Georgia Southwestern a 6-5 lead in the top of the eighth, Valdosta State threatened in the bottom of the inning as it loaded the bases on three walks, but was unable to force across the tying run. Georgia Southwestern closed out the scoring with three runs in the top of the ninth. Muniz tallied three hits to lead VSU at the plate while Parson and Morgan finished with two hits each. Landon Gray surrendered Hutchison's home run, one of three hits he gave up in two innings of work to fall to 2-1 on the season. Matt Hyer relieved GSW starter Ryan Lackey with two outs in the seventh and surrendered one hit before registering the final out of the frame to improve to 1-3 on the year. Byron Haynes registered four hits for the Hurricanes while Trenary finished with three. Decker, Hutchison and Michael Baker each tallied two hits each. Valdosta State returns to action Saturday, March 24 when it opens Gulf South Conference action with a doubleheader at Alabama-Huntsville. First pitch is slated for 2:00 p.m.

Blazers Race By Albany State 11-2

2007-03-15

ALBANY, Ga. - Valdosta State rolled to its third straight victory as the Blazers defeated Albany State 11-2 in non-conference baseball action at Golden Rams Park Thursday afternoon. The Blazers (16-14) wasted little time in getting on the board as they scored a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. Justin Huff walked to open the inning and moved to third as Sydney Spell followed with a double to left center. Rance Morgan drove in Huff with a sacrifice fly while Spell moved scored on a passed ball and an error by the ASU catcher. The Golden Rams (21-5) responded with a single run in the bottom of the frame, only to have Valdosta State respond with seven straight runs. After reaching on an error, Nick Copeland moved to third on a Jacob Jarvis base hit and stole home in the second to post VSU to a 3-1 lead before the Blazers exploded for five runs in the fifth. With one out in the fifth, Spell and Morgan reached on an error and base hit before scoring on Chris Harris' second home run of the season. Brandon Atkins also reached on an error and came around to score as Copeland hit his second round tripper of the year to push the Blazer lead to 8-1. Spell also hit his second homer of the season, a solo shot in the sixth, before Albany State ended its scoring drought with a single run in the seventh. Nick Phillips closed out the scoring with a two-run single in the top of the ninth that plated Harris and Eddie San Roman. Adam Harmych allowed four hits and one run while striking out six in six innings of work to improve to 2-3 on the year. Spell led the VSU offense with two hits and three runs scored while Harris finished with a team-best three RBI. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 21 when the Blazers return home to Billy Grant Field to host Georgia Southwestern at 5:00 p.m.

Blazers Down Thomas 12-5

2007-03-14

THOMASVILLE, Ga. - Valdosta State pounded out 12 hits and took advantage of seven Thomas errors as the Blazers defeated the Night Hawks 12-5 in non-conference baseball action at Varnedoe Field Wednesday afternoon. The Blazers (15-14) opened the scoring in the first inning with a pair of runs. Sydney Spell singled with one out and stole second before scoring on Rance Morgan's base hit. Brandon Atkins also singled, moving Morgan to third, allowing him to score when Nick Copeland reached on a error by TU third baseman Ken Zarrillo. VSU added a single run in the second, on a Spell RBI ground out, to up its lead to 3-0 before Thomas struck for a single run in the fourth. With two outs in the inning, Matthew Blanton homered off Blazer reliever Wade West. Valdosta State responded by scoring three runs in the fifth and two more in the sixth. Dustin Rucker, Richard Flores and Calem Ray picked up RBIs in the fifth while Nick Phillips and Sherard Reynolds both drove in runs in pinch hitting roles in the sixth. The Night Hawks added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth, only to have VSU score a pair of runs in both the eighth and ninth. Eddie San Roman and Nick Phillips each scored on an error in the eighth while San Roman and Ryan Parson tallied RBIs in the ninth. Thomas closed out the scoring with a single run in the ninth. West allowed three hits and four runs while striking out three in two and a third innings to improve to 1-0 on the season. John Sirmon also struck out three and surrendered five hits and a run in three and two-thirds to earn his first save of the season. Ray and Morgan each tallied two hits to lead VSU at the plate. Night Hawk starter Brett Palmer gave up three hits and two runs, one earned, in one inning of work to fall to 1-4 on the year. TU used six different pitchers in the game. Justin Majors and Eric Johnson each tallied two hits for the Night Hawks, who surrendered just six earned runs in the game. Valdosta State returns to action on Thursday when it visits Albany State for a 3:00 p.m. first pitch.

Blazers Upset No. 4 Florida Southern 5-0

2007-03-11

LAKELAND, Fla. - Thomas Tripp pitched Valdosta State's second complete game shutout of the year as the Blazers defeated fourth-ranked Florida Southern 5-0 Sunday afternoon at Henley Field. Tripp allowed just six hits and walked one while striking out five to improve to 2-1 on the season. Only one Moc baserunner advanced to third base on Tripp, who was aided by two double plays on the day. Valdosta State (14-14) wasted little time in getting on the board as the Blazers scored in each of the first two innings. In the first, Justin Huff walked to open the game and moved to second on Daniel Muniz's base hit. Rance Morgan's bunt single loaded the bases, allowing Huff to score on a Chris Harris' double play. After Brandon Atkins walked, Nick Copeland drove in Muniz with a base hit to right, give VSU a 2-0 advantage. The Blazers added two more runs in the second. With one out in the frame, Calem Ray hit his first home run of the season while Huff singled to left. A Muniz base hit moved Huff to third, allowing him to score on Morgan's ground out.VSU closed out the scoring in the top of the ninth. Dustin Rucker reach on a pinch hit single to open the frame before being lifted for pinch runner Sherard Reynolds. Jacob Jarvis sacrificed Reynolds to second, allowing him to score on Ray's base hit to center. Ray, Huff and Muniz tallied two hits each for the Blazers, who collected 11 hits on the day. Kyle Patrick and Arden McWilliams registered two hits each for Florida Southern. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 14 when it visits Thomas College in Thomasville, Ga. First pitch is slated for 4:00 p.m.

Blazers Upset No. 4 Florida Southern 5-0

2007-03-11

LAKELAND, Fla. - Thomas Tripp pitched Valdosta State's second complete game shutout of the year as the Blazers defeated fourth-ranked Florida Southern 5-0 Sunday afternoon at Henley Field. Tripp allowed just six hits and walked one while striking out five to improve to 2-1 on the season. Only one Moc baserunner advanced to third base on Tripp, who was aided by two double plays on the day. Valdosta State (14-14) wasted little time in getting on the board as the Blazers scored in each of the first two innings. In the first, Justin Huff walked to open the game and moved to second on Daniel Muniz's base hit. Rance Morgan's bunt single loaded the bases, allowing Huff to score on a Chris Harris' double play. After Brandon Atkins walked, Nick Copeland drove in Muniz with a base hit to right, give VSU a 2-0 advantage. The Blazers added two more runs in the second. With one out in the frame, Calem Ray hit his first home run of the season while Huff singled to left. A Muniz base hit moved Huff to third, allowing him to score on Morgan's ground out. VSU closed out the scoring in the top of the ninth. Dustin Rucker reach on a pinch hit single to open the frame before being lifted for pinch runner Sherard Reynolds. Jacob Jarvis sacrificed Reynolds to second, allowing him to score on Ray's base hit to center. Ray, Huff and Muniz tallied two hits each for the Blazers, who collected 11 hits on the day. Kyle Patrick and Arden McWilliams registered two hits each for Florida Southern. Valdosta State returns to action Wednesday, March 14 when it visits Thomas College in Thomasville, Ga. First pitch is slated for 4:00 p.m.

Florida Southern Tops Blazers 8-4

2007-03-10

LAKELAND, Fla. - Florida Southern scored six runs in the seventh inning to break a 2-2 tie to defeat Valdosta State 8-4 in non-conference baseball action at Henley Field Saturday afternoon. The Mocs (20-2) opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning as Kyle Patrick hit his fifth home run of the season. The lead stood until the sixth inning when Valdosta State (13-14) plated two to take a 2-1 lead. Rusty Harris struck out to open the inning, but reach first on a wild pitch on the third strike. A pair of ground out moved Harris to third, allowing him to score on Rance Morgan's infield base hit. Chris Harris was hit by a pitch to move Morgan to second, allowing him to score on Brandon Atkins' base hit. Florida southern quickly answered, scoring a run in the bottom of the inning as Fred Popp doubled, moved to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch, before breaking the game open in the seventh. Patrick opened the inning by drawing a walk from VSU reliever Brad Altone before Tristan Rainone was hit by a pitch. A wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, allowing Patrick to score on Derek Lokey's base hit. Luke Taylor relieved Altone and was greeted by an Arden McWilliams run scoring single. The next two batters walked, forcing in Lokey and chasing Taylor from the game while reliever Will Thompson also walked the first batter he faced. Back-to-back singles scored two more before Patrick closed out the scoring with a sacrifice fly. The Blazers attempted a comeback in the ninth, scoring two runs in the process. Danny Muniz walked to open the inning before being lifted for pinch-runner Sherard Reynolds. Reynolds moved to second on a balk and third on an Atkins base hit before scoring on Eddie San Roman's pinch hit single. Dustin Rucker's pinch hit single loaded the bases, allowing Atkins to score on a Ryan Parson dround out. Atkins collected three hits to lead VSU while Morgan was two-of-four. Altone (2-2) took the loss after allowing three runs without registering an out. Jeremy Thorne picked up the win after allowing four hits and two runs while striking out five in seven innings. Brian Schulz led the Mocs offensively, tallying two hits. The two teams conclude the three-game series Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. at Henley Field.

Blazers Fall 4-1 to Florida Southern

2007-03-09

VALDOSTA, Ga. - No. 4 Florida Southern took advantage of two Valdosta State errors to score four unearned runs in defeating the Blazers 4-1 at Henley Field Friday evening. The Mocs (19-2) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with a pair of runs. Bryan Brown reached on a Justin Huff fielding error to open the game and, after a pop-out, stole second. Fred Popp walked to put two men on and advanced a base with Brown when Brian Schulz grounded out. Will Cherry followed with a single up the middle, plating both base runners and giving FSC a 2-0 lead. Valdosta State (13-13) cut its deficit in half in the top of the third. With one out in the inning, Huff reached on a bunt single and stole second before scoring on Rance Morgan's run-scoring single with two outs. Florida Southern answered with two more runs in the bottom of the fourth. The error again came on the first at-bat of the frame, as Nick Phillips was unable to come up with a Cherry ground ball. Tristan Rainone's base hit put two men on before Kyle Patrick's sacrifice bunt moved both runners into scoring position. Blazer starter Chris Davison induced a ground out for the second out of the inning, but Arden McWilliams singled to drive in both runners, giving the Mocs a 4-1 lead. Davison surrendered four hits and one walk while striking one in four innings of work as he fell to 1-5 on the season. Wade West also pitched four innings, giving up four hits while striking out four. Jesse Barfield led the Blazers offensively, collecting two hits in three plate appearances. Rainone, Derek Lockey and McWilliams collected two hits each to lead the Mocs. Dan Albritton surrendered six hits and struck out five in seven innings to improve to 6-0 on the year. The two teams continue the three-game series Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m.

Georiga College Defeats Valdosta State 5-2

2007-03-07

VALDOSTA, Ga. - Georgia College scored three runs in the third as the Bobcats defeated Valdosta State 5-2 in non-conference baseball action at Billy Grant Field Wednesday afternoon. Valdosta State (13-12) opened the scoring the bottom of the first inning. Justin Huff walked to open the inning and moved to third as Sydney Spell followed with a double just over the head of Bobcat first baseman Daniel Heflin. A Chris Harris ground out plated Huff while Spell scored on a wild pitch by Bobcat starter Clete Jessup to give the Blazers a 2-0 lead. Georgia College (15-4) took advantage of a pair of two-out walks in the third to claim a 3-2 lead. After retiring the first two batters of the inning, Blazer starter John Sirmon allowed free passes to Justin Mills and Hans Stancil. Brandon Anderson followed with a triple to left center to plate both runners and scored on a Heflin single. The Bobcats upped their lead to 4-2 in the top of the fourth with the use of a suicide squeeze. Bryan Shaughnessy doubled to open the inning and moved to third on a Jeff Kolve ground out before Chandler Snell also grounded out. Rich Janofsky followed with a bunt that stopped rolling just inside the foul line to bring home Shaughnessy. GCSU added a single run in the sixth, taking advantage of a Nick Phillips fielding error, to close out the scoring. Sirmon allowed seven hits and four earned runs in four and a third innings as he fell to 2-1 on the season. Russ Crum relieved Sirmon and allowed two hits and struck out six in four and two-thirds. Richard Flores led Valdosta State offensively with two hits in as many plate appearances while Huff and Spell finished with one hit each. Jessup allowed four hits and two earned runs in four innings before departing after being hit in the knee by a Flores line drive in the bottom of the fifth. Matt Howard came on and allowed just two base runners in three innings to improve to 3-0 on the season while Michael Newman picked up his second save of the season. Shaughnessy, Heflin and Anderson collected two hits each for the Bobcats. Valdosta State returns to action Friday, March 9 when travels to Lakeland, Fla. to open a three-game weekend series with Florida Southern. First pitch for Friday's game is slated for 7:00 p.m.