MOBILE, Ala. – After clinching a spot in the Sun Belt Conference tournament last weekend, the University of South Alabama baseball team will travel to Troy, Ala., to take on Troy in a three-game SBC series to close the regular season.
Saturday’s regular-season finale, scheduled for 6 p.m., will be broadcast on the Sun Belt Network and will be available in the Mobile area on Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS).
Each game of the three-game set is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., beginning with game one Thursday evening at Riddle-Pace Field.
All three games will be broadcast on WNSP 105.5 FM in Mobile, and can be accessed nationwide at www.wnsp.com. Live stats will be available through the multimedia section at www.usajaguars.com, while in-game updates will be provided via Twitter at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Live webcast of each game will also be available for purchase through the All-Access section at www.usajaguars.com.
South Alabama (20-31, 14-13 SBC) punched its ticket to the Sun Belt Conference with two wins over Western Kentucky last weekend, marking the 27th consecutive year the Jags have qualified for the SBC tournament. USA is 4-6 in its last 10 games, but has taken two consecutive SBC series during that span.
USA holds a 35-26 all-time series lead over Troy after taking two of three games March 16-18 at Stanky Field. South Alabama is 9-15 all-time at Troy and has dropped the last three series in Troy, dating back to 2006. The Jags have dropped nine of their last 11 games in Troy, dating back to 2004. The series dates back to 1965, which marked South Alabama’s inaugural baseball season.
Whitt Dorsey ranks 10th in the Sun Belt Conference in batting average (.337), and carries a four-game hitting streak into the weekend. Jordan Patterson is tied for eighth in the league in doubles (14). He has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 games, and has multiple hits in six of those contests. Nick Zaharion ranks fifth in runs scored (24) in conference games. Nolan Earley ranks seventh in slugging percentage (.531) in SBC games. He enters the weekend having reached base safely in 12 consecutive games, and has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games. Dustin Dalken ranks ninth in league contests with a .430 on-base percentage.
Jaguar closer Kyle Bartsch is tied for second in the league with 10 saves, while Jarron Cito leads the SBC with six wins in conference games.
Left-hander Phillip Byrd (3-3) will make his 11th start of the season in Thursday’s series opener, and will square off against SBC preseason pitcher of the year Tyler Ray (4-5).
Neither school has announced a Saturday starter, but Payton Gardner (1-5) will make his eighth start of the season in Saturday’s series finale for South Alabama, while Troy has not announced a starter for Sunday’s contest either.
Troy (24-28, 12-15 SBC) enters the weekend tied for sixth in the SBC. The Trojans have won three consecutive conference series, and have taken four of their last five SBC series. Troy has won 10 of its last 11 SBC series at Riddle-Pace Field. The Trojans are 15-10 at Riddle-Pace Field this season, and have won four of their last five home contests.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
-USA-
Game Notes
