MONTGOMERY, Ala. — For the final time this season, the Wildcats will hit the road for a weekend SWAC series as they travel to the Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex to take on the Alabama State Hornets. B-CU will look to distance themselves from the rest of the SWAC in the standings, with eyes on the regular season title and the top seed in the conference tournament.



Friday-Sunday, May 8-10
Opponent: Alabama State (26-19, 16-8)
Time: 7 p.m. | 7 p.m. | 2 p.m.
Location: Montgomery, Ala. | Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex
Watch: https://tv.swac.org/
Live Stats: https://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?gid=alst

B-CU lost to Stetson 15-2 in seven innings at Melching Field.

Stetson got on the board in the first inning. After a single and a stolen base put a runner in scoring position, Anthony Gonzalez delivered an RBI double before Samuel Fernandez followed with an RBI single to give the Hatters a 2-0 lead.

In the top of the second, Jeter Polledo was robbed of a home run by Stetson left fielder Andrew Ezell, keeping the Wildcats scoreless.

The Hatters added to their advantage in the bottom of the frame when Landon Russell launched a two-run home run to extend the lead to 4-0.

Bethune-Cookman (33-16) got its first run in the third. Darryl Lee blasted a solo home run to right field to cut the deficit to 4-1.

Stetson responded with a decisive six-run third inning. The Hatters capitalized on timely hitting, highlighted by a two-RBI double from Andrew Ezell and a two-RBI single from Russell to push the lead to 10-1.

The Wildcats picked up another run in the fifth inning when Andrey Martinez hit a solo home run to make it 10-2.

Stetson continued to pour it on in the fifth, plating five more runs. Samuel Fernandez delivered a two-run home run, while additional runs came across on a sacrifice fly, an RBI single, and a bases-loaded walk to extend the lead to 15-2.

Bethune-Cookman was unable to generate any further offense as Stetson's pitching staff closed out the game.

Dallis Moran earned the win in relief for the Hatters, while David Morrissey was charged with the loss for the Wildcats.

The Hornets are the hottest team in the SWAC right now, currently sporting a six-game winning streak. After being swept by Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Alabama State has won 13 of 15 against SWAC opponents, including a recent sweep over Texas Southern.

ASU is an average offensive team, sitting seventh in the conference in batting average, runs, and total bases. However, they are one of the top home run hitting teams in the league, ranking third behind only Texas Southern and Bethune-Cookman. The Hornets do not steal a ton of bases with just 31 total on the season.

Graduate student Miguel Oropeza is the current team leader in RBI with 44. He is coming off a four-hit series against TSU, including two home runs and four driven in. Trey Callaway and Jackson Williams are also major power threats, both sitting with over 10 homers on the year.

Bama State deploys a strong pitching staff which ranks second in the league in ERA behind the Wildcats. They have kept the ball in the ballpark better than any team while also walking hte least amount of batters.

Jordan LaBoy leads the Hornets in innings pitched. He is 7-4 with a 4.72 ERA in 68.2 innings. James Peterson has been the team's top arm out of the bullpen with a 3.24 ERA in 23 appearances.

The Hornets have been excellent defensively this season, topping the league in fielding percentage and managing the fewest errors.

• Following a 1-for-2 game against Stetson, Michael Rodriguez has pushed his batting average to .400 on the year.
• Jose Fernandez kept his hitting streak alive against the Hatters. It has now reached 15 games.
• Maikol Lucena is currently on a 14-game hitting streak and he has thrown out 22 potential base stealers behind the plate.
• Harbersting Abreu has allowed just five earned runs in his previous 12.0 innings with 11 strikeouts over that span.
• The Wildcats have not lost a SWAC series in over a year.
• B-CU hit a season-high seven batters in the loss to Stetson.

The Hornets hold a narrow edge in the all-time series against the Wildcats 13-12. However, Bethune-Cookman is currently on a six-game winning streak dating back to 2024.

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