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GAME 50 ♦ MAY 12, 2009 ♦ MOBILE, ALA.
ALL TIMES CENTRAL (HOME TEAMS LISTED FIRST)
TUESDAY:
South Alabama vs. Southern Miss, 6 p.m.
USA hosts Southern Miss Tuesday at 6 p.m. The Golden Eagles took the first meeting between the teams in the first week of the season, but that game was in Hattiesburg. USA will be wrapping up its fourth home-and-home series (Mississippi State, Auburn, Alabama, Southern Miss) of the 2009 season, and the home team has won each of the previous seven games.
South Alabama and Southern Miss have met for home-and-home series in each of the last four seasons, and all four years have seen the series split. With Southern Miss’ February win in Hattiesburg, the home team has won each of the last seven games in the series.
All South Alabama home games and select road games are broadcast on WNSP 105.5 FM in Mobile and live on the internet at www.wnsp.com. Live video for home games is available through Jaguar Nation at www.usajaguars.com. Subscriptions can be purchased for $7.95/month or $69.95/year.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
TUESDAY
USA - RHP Ryan Bohanan (1-1, 5.79 ERA, 2 G, 1 GS, 4.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K)
USM - RHP Seth Hester (2-2, 7.52 ERA, 11 G, 5 GS, 32.1 IP, 45 H, 30 R, 27 ER, 10 BB, 18 K)
COACHES
SOUTH ALABAMA: Steve Kittrell (South Alabama, 1971)
Career Record: 1,021-602-1 (27th season)
Record at USA: 988-583-1 (26th season)
SOUTHERN MISS: Corky Palmer (Southern Miss, 1977)
Career Record: 952-488 (28th season)
Record at Southern Miss: 447-276 (12th season)
INTERNET FEEDS
Live Stats: www.usajaguars.com
Live Video: www.usajaguars.com
Live Audio: www.wnsp.com
SOUTH ALABAMA-SOUTHERN MISS SERIES
USA leads the all-time series 51-25 ... The Jags and Golden Eagles will play a home-and-home series for the fifth consecutive season in 2009 ... All four previous years have been split, and the home team has won each of the past seven meetings ... The Jags reeled off a streak of 24 consecutive wins in the series from 1972 through 1987, giving USA a 28-5 advantage in the series ... However, since Southern Miss snapped the 24-game streak, the series has been played much more closely ... USA holds a slim 23-19 lead since 1988 ... The Jags lead 29-9 in Mobile and 22-16 in Hattiesburg.
FOUR JAGS RECEIVE PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Senior David Doss was named the first team catcher in all four preseason all-conference rankings (SBC, Baseball America, SEBaseball.com, Rivals.com), and three other Jags received various honors.
Senior first baseman Ryan Bohanan was selected to the first team by Rivals and to the second team by SEBaseball, and senior RHP Greg Johnson earned a slot as one of two relievers on SEBaseball's second team.
Junior RHP Matt Jackson, a transfer from Chipola Community College, also earned second-team honors from SEBaseball. Jackson was the only player selected to either team who is entering his first season in the Sun Belt Conference.
SOUTH ALABAMA AMONG NATION'S BEST PROGRAMS OVER LAST 20 YEARS
Since 1989, South Alabama has gone to 16 NCAA Regionals. Only 10 teams have made more postseason appearances in those 20 years. Florida State and Miami top the list after going to a regional in all 20 years. They're followed by Wichita State (19), Clemson (19), Texas (18), Georgia Tech (18), Cal State Fullerton (18), LSU (18), Stanford (17) and Long Beach State (17).
STANKY FIELD CELEBRATES 30 YEARS
The Jags celebrate 30 years of baseball at Eddie Stanky Field with the 2009 season. USA holds an all-time record of 659-235 at its home park. Named after legendary coach Eddie Stanky, who coached the Jags from 1969-79 and 1981-83, the stadium is one of the most impressive facilities in the nation. After a multi-million dollar transformation in 2004, the stadium now seats 3,575.
USA has never posted a losing record at home in the stadium's history. Over the past 30 years, the Jags have lost five games or fewer at home in five seasons: 1992 (28-4), 1997 (19-5), 1999 (21-5), 2001 (31-3) and 2003 (27-4).
USA TAKES 30-PLUS FOR EIGHT STRAIGHT SEASONS
South Alabama has won at least 30 games in every season since 2001 and 22 of the past 23 years. The Jags' only seasons without 30 wins since Stanky Field opened in 1980 were in 1985 (22-32) and 2000 (27-33). Even with a losing record, USA made its way to a regional in 2000 by sweeping all four games in the Sun Belt Conference tournament.
JACKSON TAKES COCA-COLA CLASSIC MVP
Matt Jackson was selected MVP of the Coca-Cola Classic after pitching 7.1 innings and collecting 10 strikeouts in USA’s 9-2 win over Mercer. Jackson allowed just two hits and walked one batter.
Jackson’s selection was the first time a Jaguar has been selected MVP of the Coca-Cola Classic since Clark Secchiari won the award in 2004.
JACKSON NAMED FIRST SBC PITCHER OF WEEK IN 2009
Matt Jackson was named the first Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week for the 2009 season. Jackson's honor is the first time a USA pitcher has been selected since Joey Doan won the award on May 14, 2007. Last season was the first time USA did not have a Pitcher or Player of the Week since the awards were first given out in 1985.
FREE BASEBALL EARLY IN SEASON
Two of USA’s first four games went 10 innings. The Jags didn’t play their second extra-inning game in 2008 until March 26, and they played only two extra-inning games during the entire 2007 season.
The extra-inning game vs. Liberty (Feb. 21) was the earliest in the season a USA team has gone to extras since 2000, when the Jags beat UAB 5-4 in 12 innings, also in their third game of the season. The Jags went to extra frames for the third time in game 11 of the season. All three have gone 10 innings.
DOSS' HAT TRICK MAKES HISTORY
When David Doss hit three home runs against UAB in the Jags’ second game at the 2009 QTI Baylor Classic, he made more than just South Alabama history.
Doss became just the third player to homer three times in one game at Baylor Ballpark, which opened in 1999. Baylor’s Aaron Miller and McNeese State’s Ben Broussard were the only previous players to accomplish the feat in the park’s 11-year history.
Doss also became just the seventh Jag to accomplish the hat trick. Josh Touchstone was the last player to do so when he hit three in a 25-24 win over Eastern Illinois on March 17, 2004.
Other Jags to hit three homers in a game are:
Glenn Borgmann (1971), Forrest Crowder (1974), Tony Barylski (1976), Greg Meier (1978), and Ryan Mulhern (2002).
Each of Doss’ three home runs moved him up one slot from 12th place on USA’s all-time home runs list. He tied Joey Choron in 11th with 26, then tied Jerry Poston in 10th with 27 and Mike Mordecai in ninth at 28.
DOSS CLIMBS USA RECORDS LISTS
Doss knocked his 55th double of the season against Mississippi State on March 24. With the double, he passed Tyrone Dixon and became USA’s all-time doubles leader.
In the same game, Doss also hit two home runs. His first homer was the 32nd of his career. It moved him into a tie for sixth place with Luis Gonzalez and Jeff Cunningham, and he took sole possession of sixth place when he later hit number 33.
He also took sole possession of fourth place on the all-time runs list when he scored his 161st run in the first inning of that game. While he has more work to do, he is on pace to also become the Jags’ all-time hits, RBI, and runs leader.
DOSS ONE OF TWO SBC CATCHERS NAMED TO JOHNNY BENCH AWARD WATCH LIST
University of South Alabama senior catcher David Doss has been selected as one of 44 student-athletes named to the 2009 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award Watch List.
"I’m honored to be named to the watch list for the Johnny Bench Award," Doss said. "There are a lot of great catchers on the list, and it’s nice seeing my name among some of the best in the nation."
Since 2000, the Johnny Bench award has been given annually to the nation’s top Division I collegiate catcher. The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission named Florida State’s Buster Posey as the Johnny Bench Award winner in 2008.
Doss is joined by Nick Criaris of Florida Atlantic as the only two Sun Belt Conference catchers named to the watch list.
The 10 semifinalists for the award will be announced May 14, and statistics will be compiled and sent to the national voting panel at the end of May to determine the three finalists, which will be announced June 3.
All finalists will be brought to Wichita, and the winner will be announced at the 12th-annual Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on June 26.
JACKSON TAKES SECOND SBC PITCHER-OF-THE-WEEK HONOR
Matt Jackson was named Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second time in the 2009 season on March 23. He earned the honor after pitching 7.0 innings and allowing just three hits in Friday’s 10-1 win over New Orleans. He allowed his lone run in the first inning, and the only hit he allowed the rest of the way was a two-out double in the third.
The Haughton, La. native retired the last 10 batters he faced in order, and allowed only three balls to be hit out of the infield after the first inning. The lone base runner he allowed over the last 14 batters he faced came when he hit a batter in the fourth.
With the award, he becomes the first pitcher to be honored twice during the 2009 season, and the first Jag to win the award twice in a season since P.J. Walters did so in 2006. He has been named SBC Pitcher of the Week after each of his first two starts at home.
DOSS BECOMES JAGS' ALL-TIME HITS LEADER
David Doss doubled in the fifth inning of USA's series opener with Louisiana-Lafayette, giving him 278 hits in his career, enough to surpass Mike Mordecai as the Jags' all-time hits leader.
With the double, Doss extended the doubles record he already held, and he currently sits in third place on the career RBI list, five behind leader Luis Gonzalez. Additionally, Doss is 18 at-bats from tying Tyrone Dixon for the most by a Jag, and he ranks third in runs scored with 177.
BAXTER MAKES HISTORY, EARNS SBC PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Lance Baxter, a junior from Robertsdale, Ala., recorded saves in each of the Jags’ four wins last week. After spending the first half of the season as a weekend starter, he switched to a relief role in an effort to stabilize the bullpen.
Baxter notched the first save of his career in Tuesday’s 5-2 win over Auburn. He allowed one hit and struck out five batters in 2.2 innings to help the Jags to their third win of the season against Southeastern Conference opponents.
He went on to save all three games of USA’s weekend sweep on the road against Louisiana-Lafayette. The sweep was the first road sweep for the Jags since 2006, and the first time USA swept the Ragin’ Cajuns since 1999.
RECORD CROWD WATCHES JAGS KNOCK OFF NO. 22 ALABAMA
A Stanky Field record 4,436 fans came out to watch South Alabama defeat No. 22 Alabama 21-16 on April 22. The previous attendance record of 4,407 - set when the Jags lost 10-9 against Alabama on April 14, 1998 - had stood for more than 11 years.
Jake Overstreet hit a three-run homer and a three-run triple in the same inning as the Jags plated 10 in the third to jump out to a 14-5 lead.
O'REILLY NAMED SBC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior shortstop Derek O’Reilly was named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week on May 4.
O’Reilly hit .692 (9-for-13) on the week, helping the Jags take both games of a rain-shortened series on the road against Louisiana-Monroe. He doubled twice, hit his first triple of the season, drove in five runs and scored four times. He was also successful on both of his attempts to steal a base.
With hits in all three games, O’Reilly extended his career-best hitting streak to 13 games. He has hit safely in 22 of the last 23 contests, with the only hitless game coming when he went 0-for-1 with a walk and two sacrifices. Over that 23-game span, O’Reilly has raised his batting average from .211 to .370.
His .446 batting average in conference games leads the league by 24 points over the next closest player, and his .370 batting average in all games ranks ninth in the conference.
O’Reilly’s award marks the fourth time a Jaguar has earned a weekly honor and the first time a USA player has been named Player of the Week this season. Matt Jackson (twice) and Lance Baxter have both earned Pitcher-of-the-Week honors.
The last time a Jag was named Player of the Week was when Clint Toomey won the final award of the 2007 season.
WEEKEND PREVIEW
The Jags host in-state rival Troy for the final Sun Belt Conference series of the season. With a series win, the Jags would clinch a berth in the Sun Belt Conference Baseball Championship. Even with only one win in the series, there are numerous scenarios where the Jags would still qualify for the tournament.
SUN BELT CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS
If the Jags win the series against Troy they will be assured a bid in the Sun Belt Conference Championships in Troy, Ala.
However, there are a number of ways they can qualify for the tournament without winning the series:
Should the Jags go 1-2 to finish 12-17, they need ONE of the following things to happen:
· Arkansas State doesn’t sweep UALR.
· Florida Atlantic loses series against Florida International.
· New Orleans either gets swept by Louisiana-Lafayette or wins the series. As long as UNO doesn’t go 1-2, the Jags would get in, with one exception. If Lafayette goes 1-2 and Florida Atlantic goes 2-1, that would create a four-way tie with ULM, ULL, USA and FAU. Two of the four would get in if Arkansas State sweeps UALR, but anything less and three of the four would get in the tournament.
Should the Jags go 0-3 to finish 11-18, they need TWO of the following things to happen:
· Louisiana-Lafayette gets swept by New Orleans.
· Arkansas State loses series to UALR.
· Florida Atlantic gets swept by Florida International.
