VALDOSTA, Ga. – Coming off their sixth-straight series win, the Valdosta State baseball team will host Georgia Southwestern State for a single game on Tuesday, April 16 at 5 p.m. before hosting Christian Brothers for the final home series of the 2024 season on Friday, April 19 at 5 p.m. followed by a doubleheader on Saturday, April 20 at 1 p.m. with the senior day ceremony to commence before game one of the doubleheader.
 
Valdosta State enters the second to last week of regular season play with a 22-14 (14-10 GSC) record while being 13-7 at Billy Grant Field. Head coach Greg Guilliams' team has been hot as of late, as the Blazers have won nine of their last 12 games and has gotten Guilliams close to a career milestone, as he is five wins away from 500 in his career at Valdosta State. For his career, Guilliams is in his 34^th season and has accumulated well over 1,000 wins, going 1,172-574-2 across his career. On Tuesday, Valdosta State defeated number seven Saint Leo in a 7-6 thriller as the Blazers are now 2-1 versus ranked opponents this season. Sophomore Dennis Pierce was a menace at the plate this past week, going 7-14 for a .500 batting average, a .929 slugging percentage, and nine RBIs while only striking out one time. The Quakertown, Pa. native went 4-5 with five RBIs on Friday night in a 18-1 win over Delta State. For the game, Dennis hit one of his three doubles for the week and launched his tenth home run of the season. On the season, the slugger is ranked first in the GSC in OBP, second in slugging, fourth in batting average, and second in RBIs. Redshirt junior Zac Dodson was masterful in his lone start this week for Valdosta State, going seven innings for a complete game in an 18-1 win over then second place Delta State on Friday. In his seven innings of work, Dodson allowed four hits for one run and walked two batters while fanning four on 98 pitches. The Boca Raton, Fla. native earned his second win in his ninth start for VSU. Junior Jovanni Canegitta sparked a Blazer comeback win on Saturday, as the right fielder hit a two-run homer down 3-0 to help ignite nine straight Blazer runs to secure the series win over Delta State.
 
On Tuesday, Valdosta State will play host to Georgia Southwestern at 5 p.m. The Hurricanes will enter this matchup with a 29-13 (13-8 PBC) record after they won the weekend series versus Columbus State. GSW and VSU matched up earlier this season in Americus, Ga. as the Hurricanes downed the Blazers 10-1. Valdosta State was only able to muster three hits together while Georgia Southwestern had 12. GSW is led by sixth year head coach Josh McDonald, who holds a record of 140-122 during his time in Americus, Ga. On offense, the Hurricanes are led by Brant Deerman, who is batting .406 on the season while leading the Peach Belt Conference in RBIs with 55 and hits with 71. This team also features slugger Kalvin Alexander, who has a team-leading 16 home runs and is second on the team in RBIs with 48. On the mound, GSW is led by redshirt senior Nick McCollum, who is 6-1 with a 2.72 ERA in 11 starts this season. Right behind him is graduate student Andrew Geiger, who is 5-1 in his 11 starts with an ERA of 3.14.
 
Valdosta State will look to win their seventh straight series this weekend, as they host Christian Brothers on Friday, April 19 at 5 p.m. followed by a doubleheader on Saturday, April 20 starting at 1 p.m. The Buccaneers enter Titletown with a 14-27 (6-21 GSC) record pending their Tuesday game versus Lane. CBU is led by first year head coach Adrian Dorsey. Dorsey's offense is anchored by junior outfielder Cory Steinhauer, who is batting .406 on the year and leads the team in hits, batting average, OBP, and walks in 39 starts. The only qualified pitcher for the Buccaneers is AJ Gamboa, who is 1-8 in ten starts with an ERA of 10.07 where opponents bat .352 off of him.
Following this week's home games, Valdosta State will hit the road for their final four games, as they travel to Daytona Beach, Fla. to take on Embry-Riddle before making the quick trip to West Georgia to face the Wolves one last time.