Five-Game Homestand for No. 23 Alabama Begins with South Alabama, Jacksonville State in the Midweek

[Diamond Tide]

The Crimson Tide welcomes the Jaguars to town on Tuesday followed by a Wednesday contest with the Gamecocks

3/8/2021


TUSCALOOSA, AL – The 23rd-ranked Alabama baseball team kicks off a five-game homestand with single midweek matchups against South Alabama and Jacksonville State. The Crimson Tide and Jaguars will meet on Tuesday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium followed by a Wednesday pairing with the Gamecocks. Both contests are scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT first pitch. Tuesday's game will be broadcast nationally on SEC Network with the duo of John Schriffen and David Dellucci on the call while the Wednesday contest will air live on SEC Network+, Eli Gold and Lance Cormier are your hosts.

Follow the Tide
Fans can follow the midweek games via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network (Tuesday) | SEC Network+ (Wednesday)
Listen: 100.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com

Probable Starting Pitching Matchups
TUESDAY: UA – William Freeman (R-Sr., RHP) vs. USA – Matt Boswell (Jr., RHP)
WEDNESDAY: UA – Connor Shamblin (Jr., RHP) vs. JSU – TBA

Leading Off

• Alabama and South Alabama will meet for 109th time in series history when the two teams square off for a nationally televised midweek matchup on Tuesday evening. The Crimson Tide holds the all-time series advantage, 60-48, including a 39-17 advantage in Tuscaloosa.
• The two in-state foes last met on March 3 of last season for a midweek pairing in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide downed the Jaguars, 12-2, thanks to a dominant all-around performance by UA. The Tide offense totaled 12 runs on 14 hits and three walks with all nine starters contributing at least one run on the day.
• Alabama and Jacksonville State will square off for the 43rd time in series history and second time this season when the two teams meet at The Joe on Wednesday evening. The Crimson Tide holds the all-time series advantage, 32-10, including a 26-7 mark in Tuscaloosa.
• The two teams met earlier this season on Feb. 23 in Jacksonville with UA claiming a 5-2 win thanks to a pair of home runs and an impressive pitching performance from William Freeman. Alabama's win extended the Tide's winning streak against JSU to four games.
• Alabama continues with its usual midweek duo of righties William Freeman and Connor Shamblin. Freeman will get the start on Tuesday evening while Shamblin will take the mound for Wednesday's contest.
• South Alabama will send junior right-hander Matt Boswell to the mound on Tuesday night. Boswell has made two starts this season and owns a 4.50 ERA across his 8.0 innings of work.
• Jacksonville State's starter is still to be announced.

About Alabama

• Alabama wrapped up its week at 4-1 overall. The Crimson Tide first traveled to Jacksonville State on Tuesday and picked up a 5-2 win before falling to UT-Martin a day later at home. UA bounced back on the weekend, sweeping Wright State across a three-game series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.
• The Crimson Tide leaned on the long ball early and used a seventh-inning two-RBI single from William Hamiter to put the game out of reach as the Crimson Tide downed Jacksonville State, 5-2, at Rudy Abbott Field on Tuesday.
• Peyton Wilson got UA on the board first, leading off the game with a home run. The Gamecocks answered in the second with things staying even at one until the fifth when Sam Praytor sent a two-run home run over the wall in left, giving UA the lead once again. JSU came within one, scoring a run in the bottom of the fifth but would come no closer as Hamiter's two-RBI single in the seventh put things out of reach.
• The Crimson Tide's arms were solid on Tuesday, first with William Freeman. The Tide starter tossed 4.0 innings, allowing a run on four hits while striking out five. He was followed by Landon Green who worked 2.2 frames and struck out three for the win. Chase Lee came in to close it out, tossing the final 2.1 with four punchouts to pick up the save.
• Alabama baseball suffered its first loss of the 2021 season, falling to the UT-Martin Skyhawks by a score of 9-4 on Wednesday in Tuscaloosa. Alabama received a solid outing from starter Connor Shamblin. The junior tossed 4.0 innings of scoreless baseball, allowing just two hits while striking out three. The Crimson Tide was led at the plate by Hamiter and Owen Diodati, who each posted two hits on the day.
• Tyler Ras put together an impressive start on Friday and the Tide paired his performance with three home runs to down Wright State, 8-4, in the series opener. Ras made the start in place of Connor Prielipp and didn't skip a beat. The junior tossed a career-long 6.0 innings, allowing only one run on one hit with two walks and five strikeouts. He retired 13 of the final 15 batters he faced before exiting the game after the sixth.
• The offense gave Ras a cushion early with Wilson homering to lead off Friday's game. The bats then added two in the second and three in the fourth to widen the gap. Wilson was joined by Zane Denton and T.J. Reeves, who each added a homer of their own.
• Alabama completed the sweep of Wright State thanks to two wins in Saturday's doubleheader. The Crimson Tide won game one, 8-7, in 11 innings before coming away with a 1-0 victory in the nightcap to complete the sweep.
• Hamiter sent a single over the head of the WSU left fielder to help Alabama walk off the Raiders, 8-7, in 11 innings in game one of Saturday's doubleheader.
• Alabama got out front early with two runs in the first and another pair in the third, but the Raiders did not lay down, chipping away at the lead and eventually taking a two-run advantage. The Tide then posted two runs in the home half of the eighth to tie things up and eventually send the game to extras. The offense was able to load the bases in the 11th with Hamiter delivering the walkoff single for UA.
• The Tide's arms were solid despite what the scoreboard said as Antoine Jean, Jacob McNairy and Lee combined to allow just two earned runs across 11.0 innings of work. Jean, who started, tossed 4.2 innings allowing five runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks with five punchouts. McNairy then contributed 4.1 frames of two-run baseball (none earned) with four strikeouts while Lee worked the final 2.0 innings, using the strikeout to record four of his six outs for the win.
• Praytor's RBI-double in the bottom of the sixth was all the Crimson Tide needed as UA completed the sweep of the Raiders with a 1-0 win in game two of the day.
• The nightcap featured strong pitching performances from both sides. Alabama's starter Dylan Smith was electric in game two, striking out a career-high seven across 5.2 scoreless frames. He was followed by Green, who tossed 1.1 innings with three strikeouts for his second win of the season.

About South Alabama

• Mark Calvi is in his 10th year at the helm of the South Alabama program in 2021 and entered the new season with a career record of 277-211, all at USA. The fifth head coach in the history of the South Alabama baseball program, Calvi is joined by assistant coaches Alan Luckie, Nick Magnifico and Brad Phillips.
• The Jaguars were selected to finish tied for fifth overall and tied for second in the East Division in the Sun Belt Conference's preseason poll, as voted on by the league's head coaches.

About Jacksonville State

• Jim Case is in his 20th year at the helm of the Jacksonville State program and entered the 2021 campaign with a career record of 593-474 - all at JSU. A 1983 graduate of Louisiana Tech, Case is assisted by Mike Murphree and Evan Bush.
• The Gamecocks were selected to finish second in the Ohio Valley Conference in the league's preseason poll, as voted on by the conference's head coaches and communications directors.

On Deck
Alabama remains at home for its final non-conference weekend series before Southeastern Conference play begins. The Crimson Tide will welcome the Stetson Hatters to The Joe from Friday through Sunday, March 12-14. The series opens on Friday with a 6 p.m. first pitch followed by a 2 p.m. start on Saturday. Things wrap up on Sunday at 1 p.m. with all three games airing live on SEC Network+.


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RTR,

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