Baseball will return home on Friday and Saturday to continue conference play against Walters State. Friday's game will start at 2:00 ET and Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 12:00 ET.
The Cougars are currently on a four-game winning streak after a win over Piedmont's JV team and a sweep of conference foe Columbia State. They are ranked third in the TCCAA with a conference record of 9-4 and are 19-11 overall. They are also 12-4 at Cougar Field so far this season.
This is a crucial matchup for Cleveland State as Walters State is first in the TCCAA and is currently ranked second in the NJCAA Division I baseball poll. They have won their last eight games and are 12-1 in the TCCAA, sitting at 33-5 overall.
The Senators are led by Bryce Hodge on offense. He is batting .429 and 39 RBI, which are both good for third in the TCCAA. Brandon Combs is also a force with the bat, ranking first in the TCCAA with 43 RBI and second in home runs with 10. They also have two pitchers ranked in the top five in the TCCAA in ERA with both Corey Stone and Alex Haynes posting marks under 2.00.
The Cougars were swept 4-0 by Walters State in the season series last year. After this series, they will travel to Tusculum College on Wednesday to face the Pioneers JV team.
LAST THREE SERIES:
April 1 vs. Piedmont JV, 1-0
March 29 & 30 at Columbia State, 3-0
March 26 at Piedmont JV, 1-1
NEXT THREE SERIES:
April 10 at Tusculum JV, doubleheader beginning at 4:00 ET
April 12 & 13 at Volunteer State, 4/12 at 3:00 ET, 4/13 doubleheader beginning at 1:00 ET
April 17 at Shorter University JV, doubleheader beginning at 1:00 ET
CSCC TEAM LEADERS:
BA: Lance Dockery, .394
RBI: Rhett Baldwin & Jonathan Hickman, 31
HR: Andrew Carpenter, 5
R: Lance Dockery, 32
SB: Tucker Mendenhall, 20 (third in TCCAA)
ERA: Ethan Walls, 3.75 in 36.0 IP (fifth in TCCAA)
K: Ryan Inches, 59 in 41.1 IP (third in TCCAA)
WSCC TEAM LEADERS:
BA: Bryce Hodge, .429 (third in TCCAA)
RBI: Brandon Combs, 43 (first in TCCAA)
HR: Brandon Combs, 9 (second in TCCAA)
R: Jerry Hammons, 47 (t-first in TCCAA)
SB: Jerry Hammons, 8
ERA: Corey Stone, 1.66 in 43.1 IP (second in TCCAA)
K: Alex Haynes, 52 in 42.0 IP (t-fourth in TCCAA)
TCCAA Standings:
1. Walters State, 33-5 overall, 12-1 TCCAA
2. Motlow State, 26-10 overall, 11-2 TCCAA
3. Cleveland State, 19-11 overall, 9-4 TCCAA
4. Dyersburg State, 25-11 overall, 9-6 TCCAA
5. Chattanooga State, 20-10 overall, 6-6 TCCAA
6. Columbia State, 11-22 overall, 6-9 TCCAA
7. Jackson State, 22-15 overall, 5-8 TCCAA
8. Volunteer State, 15-18 overall, 5-9 TCCAA
8. Roane State, 7-14 overall, 3-10 TCCAA
10. Southwest Tennessee, 10-25 overall, 2-13 TCCAA
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