VALDOSTA, Ga. – Valdosta State (10-15, 8-7 GSC) secured a massive victory and the series sweep over Delta State (13-10, 9-6 GSC) Saturday afternoon with an 11-4 victory at Billy Grant Field. The series was the first series swept by the Blazers over Delta State in their 67-game history dating back to 2003.
Senior Drake LaRoche led the team to the victory behind a strong 6.1 innings of two-run baseball. LaRoche claimed the pitching win, his fourth of the season.
Valdosta State opened the scoring in the third inning courtesy of a sacrifice fly from junior Luke Flading. The Blazers added another offensive surge in the fourth inning, finding home runs off the bats of junior Charlie Banks and senior Brent Howard. The team plated six runs in the seventh inning to extend the lead even further.
Junior Matt Keller led the offensive effort with a 3-for-5 performance that included his first home run of the season along with three RBI and three runs scored. Banks and Brent also homered for the Blazers, while Howard finished with two hits and an RBI.
Senior Will Beckham provided quality defense at catcher and delivered an efficient performance at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and two walks. Junior Jason Mack added an RBI while reaching base three times, and Flading drove in a run.
Redshirt freshman Ty Macera and senior Preston Wetherell each provided scoreless relief appearances before junior Ryan Strachan worked the final inning.
Valdosta State finished the afternoon with 13 hits while drawing 10 walks in the victory. Delta State collected 10 hits in the contest and scored twice in the seventh and ninth innings, but the Blazers maintained control after building the early lead.
Looking Forward
The Valdosta State baseball team will be back in action at Billy Grant Field on Tuesday at 5 p.m. when it hosts Saint Leo (11-10).
Find live stats, written coverage, streaming links, and more on vstateblazers.com and follow @VState_Blazers as well as @VState_Baseball to stay up to date with the team throughout the season.
