JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Bethune-Cookman baseball will make the short trip north on I-95 to face the in-state rival Jacksonville Dolphins at John Sessions Stadium. The midweek action is set to begin at 7 p.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.



Tuesday, March 24
Opponent: Jacksonville (11-13, 2-4)
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Jacksonville, Fla. | John Sessions Stadium
Watch: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/f7c82ef0-4bd2-43c5-8c81-8ca36ead2aff
Listen: youtube.com/cateyenetwork 
Live Stats: https://judolphins.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary

Bethune-Cookman again opened the scoring in the first inning. Erick Almonte singled and later scored on Jeter Polledo's RBI single to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead.

The Wildcats added another run in the second inning on Darryl Lee's sacrifice fly, extending the lead to 2-0.

B-CU created separation in the third inning with five runs. Michael Rodriguez and Darryl Lee picked up RBI knocks, while Erick Almonte walked with the bases loaded. As a result, the lead ballooned to 7-0.

Alcorn State (6-19) got on the board in the bottom of the third on a fielder's choice by Jamir Hollway, cutting the deficit to 7-1.

The Braves added two more runs in the fourth inning. Asher Friedman and Kanious Davis recorded RBI singles to make it 7-3.

B-CU responded in the fifth inning on another RBI from Darryl Lee, pushing the lead to 8-3.

The Wildcats put the game out of reach in the sixth inning with a six-run frame. Five Wildcats picked up RBIs, including the first of the season for Caleb Scott, to finish off the dominant win.

Bethune-Cookman finished with 13 hits, while Alcorn State managed seven.

Tanner Boccabello (2-0) earned the win, allowing three runs on six hits over six innings while striking out nine. Andris Barroso pitched a scoreless inning in relief.

Jacksonville started the season 8-1 but have lost 12 of its last 15 since to droop to 11-13 on the year. They recently suffered a series loss on the road to the Queens Royals after a midweek seven-inning loss to South Florida. The Dolphins are 8-5 at home this season.

JU currently ranks third in the ASUN with a .296 team batting average and sit fourth in runs scored. The Dolphins top hitters are Cade Walter, Roger Vergara, and Derek Bermudez, who each have 4+ homers and rank in the top 10 in the league with 24+ RBI. 

The Dolphins also deploy a strong pitching staff that ranks third in the ASUN in ERA. Alex Walsh and Brendan Holland make up the top of the team's rotation, both sporting an ERA below four. However, the Wildcats are likely to face either Gavin Dicks or Ben Baker-Livingston. Dicks holds a 10.80 ERA in 18.1 innings while Baker-Livingston has a 3.60 ERA in 15.0 innings.

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• The Wildcats scored 37 runs in their three-game sweep of Alcorn State.
• B-CU is 2-2 against ASUN opponents this season (FGCU and UNF).
• Maikol Lucena finished with seven RBI against the Braves.
• Lucena, along with Jeter Polledo and Erick Almonte, rank top 10 in the SWAC in RBI.
• Wildcat relief pitchers worked just four innings versus Alcorn State.
• Christopher Watson managed six hits, including a triple, and three RBI in the series over the weekend.

The Dolphins have dominated the WIldcats historically, winning 52 of the 68 meetings. B-CU's last win came in 2024, but they have lost 16 of the previous 19 matchups.

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