TAMPA, Fla. - The Valdosta State baseball team (13-24, 10-14 Gulf South Conference) hits the road Tuesday for a midweek matchup at No. 2 Tampa (28-5) at Tampa Baseball Field. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.
Tuesday's contest will be the second meeting between the two programs this season after Tampa earned a win at Billy Grant Field in March. Valdosta State holds a 7-5 advantage in the all-time series dating back to 2011, though the Spartans have taken the last two meetings.
The Blazers enter Tuesday's contest with momentum following two wins over Auburn Montgomery on Saturday, highlighted by a walk-off grand slam from senior Brent Howard.
Offensively, junior Charlie Banks continues to lead the Blazers in several categories with a .297 batting average, 10 home runs, and 37 RBI. Sophomore Parker Ladd has been a steady presence since joining and eventually moving to the top of the lineup, hitting .333, while Howard is batting .284 with 10 doubles, five home runs, and 24 RBI.
Additional consistent production has come from junior Luke Flading (.255) and senior Jackson Webster (.259), while junior Jason Mack has driven in 22 runs on the year.
Graduate Trey Jackson has started on the mound in several midweek games for the red and black this season, but after earning a weekend start on Saturday, the Blazers could turn to usual weekend-rotation member junior Garrett Moody or another arm Tuesday. Seniors Keaton Fuller and Vinny Del Negro have been reliable options for the Blazers out of the bullpen in recent weeks.
Tampa enters the contest as the second-ranked team in all of Division II, presenting a strong offensive lineup led by Jordan Evans, who is hitting .400 with 19 extra-base hits. Brayden Woodburn adds a .385 average and a .510 on-base percentage, while Jhoander Irigoyen is hitting .363 with 38 RBI. The lineup is filled with bats that mix a combination of contact and power.
On the mound, the Spartans could turn to Tobin Moran, who started this season's previous meeting against the Blazers and has posted a 2.11 ERA with a 0.94 WHIP across four midweek starts this season.
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.
