DSU Game Notes: GSC TOURNAMENT
Complete Notes and Stats

CLEVELAND-- The No. 8 Delta State University baseball team heads off this week to Rome, Ga. for the Gulf South Conference Championships. The Statesmen locked up the regular season GSC title last weekend, and they go into the GSC Championships as the No. 1 Seed. In the first round, the Statesmen will face Christian Brothers this Friday at State Mutual Stadium with first pitch at 4:30 EST.

SIDEBARS, STREAKS, & STORYLINES
•   The No. 8 ranked Statesmen of Delta State University (35-11, 17-7 GSC) finished the 2012 regular season in style with a sweep of the Wolves of West Georgia. The sweep not only locked up the No. 1 seed in the GSC Tournament for the Statesmen, but it also gave the Statesmen the outright regular season GSC title.
•   Delta State entered the 2012 season with the most wins all-time in Gulf South Conference history.  The Statesmen are 1,766-878-11 in program history, including 11 GSC titles and the 2004 NCAA Division II National Championship. 
•   Defending NCAA DII and GSC champion West Florida was picked to repeat as league champions this year in the annual GSC Preseason Coaches Poll.  The Statesmen (40) were picked third behind the UWF (44) and the North Alabama (43).
•   Coach Mike Kinnison is in his 16th season as skipper of the Statesmen.  Over the 15+ seasons, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer has compiled an enviable 689-212-1 record with four GSC championships, four NCAA DII College World Series appearances, and the 2004 NCAA DII National Championship.
•   Josh Branstetter, a junior right-hander from Pensacola, Fla., returns as one of the top pitchers in the league this season and was named to the Preseason-All-GSC Team. In 76.1 innings last season, Branstetter was 7-2 on the bump with a career-best 2.59 ERA.  He walked a mere 11 batters with 49 strikeouts while the opposition hit just .237 against him. This season, Branstetter has a 4-3 record with a 3.34 ERA. In 86.1 innings of work, Branstetter has given up 32 earned runs on 79 hits, walked 17, and struck out 73 batters.
•   Senior pitcher Aaron Newcomb has been impressive as well on the mound for the Statesmen. Newcomb took advantage of  run support, as he threw seven innings in a victory over West Florida. The performance earned Newcomb his second GSC  Pitcher of the Week award for the 2012 season, and the third time he has been given the award in his career. Newcomb followed with another solid outing against UNA on Apr. 6 . Newcomb picked up his eighth victory of the season when the Statesmen defeated West Georgia. In 81.1 innings, Newcomb has given up 24 earned runs, walked 17, and struck out 78.
•   Colton Mitchell, a junior left-handed pitcher from Lake, Miss., pitched the first perfect game in Statesmen history in a 4-0 victory over New Orleans on Apr. 14. The no-hitter was the 11th in program history, as Mitchell sat down the 21 batters he faced, striking out seven. For the performance, Mitchell was named the GSC Pitcher of the Week, and the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association Pitcher of the Week. Mitchell ran his record to 7-0 this past weekend against West Georgia. Mitchell has pitched 74.1 innings, given up 25 earned runs, walked 29, and struck out 68.
•   Statesmen senior catcher Jon Carnahan, has been clutch for the Statesmen offense throughout the second half of the season. Carnahan had a week to remember during the last week of the season, as he drove in 12 runs, hit two homers, and was 7-16 from the plate over the last five games of the season.
•   Brandon Hardin, has solidified the closer position for the Statesmen all season long. Out of the bullpen, Hardin has a 3-4 record with a 1.21 ERA. In 16 appearances, Hardin has allowed just three earned runs, walked only five batters, and struck out 29. He has pitched 23.1 innings, and also picked up four saves. 

DSU MAKING 28th GSC TOURNAMENT APPEARANCE
The Statesmen are making their GSC-record 28th appearance in the Gulf South Conference Tournament this week at State Mutual Stadium in Rome, Ga. DSU's 26 Tournament appearances, are just tip the iceberg. The Statesmen are 61-35 all-time at the tournament and boast GSC Tournament records for wins (61), semifinals appearances (24), finals appearances (14), and championships (11). No other school has more than five titles.

Delta State's GSC Championship Teams
1978  43-19 (14-4)
1979  32-20 (12-6)
1985  38-20 (7-5)
1988  44-13 (13-1)
1991  33-12 (11-2)
1994  45-13 (19-4)
1996  53-8 (15-1)
2000  48-12 (13-3)
2003  52-10 (28-4)
2004  54-11 (19-3)
2008  48-11 (17-1)

DELTA STATE VERSUS THE FIELD
Delta State will be quite familiar with the competition at this week's GSC Tournament in Rome, Ga. In fact, the Statesmen have faced all of the teams at the event. In those games, DSU is 15-6.

GSC Field 2012 RECORD  Overall
West Florida (6)  3-0  20-20
North Alabama (3)  2-1  42-38
Valdosta State(5)  1-2  10-11
Alabama-Huntsville(4)  2-1  30-14
West Alabama (2) 1-2 79-35
West Georgia (7)  3-0  7-3
Christian Brothers (8)  3-0  74-11


STATESMEN RANK NO.1 ALL-TIME IN WINS IN GSC
Delta State University baseball holds the distinction of owning the most conference titles (11) in Gulf South Conference history.  DSU also holds the honor of being the all-time winningest program in league history with 1,766 victories.  Since 1933, the Statesmen are 1,766-878-11. 

NEWCOMB SETS NEW CAREER HIGH
Aaron Newcomb, the Statesmen right hander set a career high for strikeouts against Alabama-Huntsville earlier this season. Newcomb fanned 12 batters, and allowed just one earned run in a complete game victory.

The performance earned Newcomb Pitcher of the Week honors from the Gulf South Conference. 

MITCHELL PERFECT ON THE MOUND
History was made at Ferriss Field on Apr. 14 as junior pitcher Colton Mitchell tossed the first perfect game in program history for the Statesmen. The performance was the 11th no-hitter in Statesmen history, and came on the day of the 50th anniversary of the first no-hitter thrown by a Statesmen. A.C. Williams pitched the first no-hitter back on April 14, 1962 against Mississippi College.

Mitchell's perfect game, a 4-0 victory over New Orleans capped off a double header sweep for the Statesmen over the Privateers. In 7 innings of work, Mitchell faced and sat down 21 batters, while also striking out seven. For his performance against UNO, Mitchell was named the Gulf South Conference Pitcher of the Week for he first time in his career. He was also named the NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week.

STACKING UP AGAINST THE REGION
The first NCAA region poll came out this past week, and the Statesmen are No. 2 in the poll, and only trail the University of Tampa. Six GSC teams are represented in the top 10 poll. Against teams in the region poll the Statesmen this season are a combined, 11-6.

KINGSLEY TIES GSC SEASON HIT STREAK
Ben Kingsley, a junior transfer from Meridian Community College, had his 17-game hitting streak come to an end against Valdosta State. The 17 games ties the season high for any GSC player. Micah Reeves of West Alabama had a 17-game hitting streak earlier this season. Statesmen catcher Jon Carnahan followed Kingsley with an 11-game hitting streak.

THE LONG BALL MAKES IT'S RETURN
After going about a month without a home run, the Statesmen broke out the long ball over the past week. It started with three home runs in the first inning of game one against CBU. The Statesmen hit two more against the Bucs as well, and added another one this past week against Henderson State. As a team the Statesmen now have 21 home runs with Michael Vinson leading the way with four.

HARDIN SHUTS DOWN OPPONENTS
Statesmen pitcher Brandon Hardin has been clutch out of the bullpen this season. . Hardin has a 1.16 ERA this season in 16 appearances out of the bullpen. Hardin also picked up his fourth save of the season against West Georgia on Sunday.

WHEN IN ROME
This season the Gulf South Conference  will be played at State Mutual Stadium in Rome, GA.

The Rome Braves are a Class A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.  The GSC Tournament is scheduled for May 4-8 and tickets will go on sale March 15 at GSCSports.org or by calling the Rome Braves' Ticket Office at (706) 368-9388.

PITCHING STAFF AMONG THE GSC BEST
The Statesmen pitching staff has been solid this season, and it ranks as the best pitching staff in the Gulf South Conference. As a staff, the Statesmen have a 3.13 ERA, and have held opposing batters to just a .242 average. The Statesmen have also allowed the fewest earned runs (136), allowed the second fewest walks (115) and have the most strikeouts (368). The Statesmen pitching staff is also averaging 8.46 strikeouts per nine innings and allowing just 2.64 walks per game.

THE NATIONAL PICTURE
The Statesmen come into this week ranked highly across the nation in offensive and defensive categories. The squad's eight runs per game is the 11th highest average in the nation; and its' 367 runs are the 15th most. The pitching staff's 3.13 ERA is the 16th best in the nation. The 2.65 walks allowed per nine innings  is the 12th best in the country.

STATESMEN SWEEP THE WOLVES
The Statesmen closed out the 2012 regular season in style, as they swept the Wolves of West Georgia last weekend at Ferriss Field. The sweep locked up the No. 1 seed in the GSC tournament for the Statesmen, and earned the outright regular season GSC title.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
The Statesmen hit double figures this past weekend, as 11 players have now posted double digit RBIs on the season. Five of those 11 have RBI totals above thirty with Sam Kidd leading the club with 38. Michael Vinson (36), Jon Carnahan (35), Ben Kingsley (34), Brent Kakwitch (32), Brent Langston (28), Jordan Chovanec (23), Jonathan Andrews (23), Tyler Aldridge (15), Kris Koerper (12) and Josh Crowdus (10) follow Kidd. As a team, the Statesmen have recorded 320 RBIs


CARNAHAN TURNS IN CAREER WEEK
Statesmen catcher Jon Carnahan used the last week of the season to carry the Statesmen offense. Carnahan was 7-of-16 at the plate during the week, and crushed two home runs in game one against West Georgia. In total Carnahan drove in 12 runs in five games, and scored four of his own. He also had a slugging percentage of .875, and had on-base percentage of .444.

MITCHELL PUTS STREAK TOGETHER
Junior Colton Mitchell has been solid on the mound this season for the Statesmen. In addition to his perfect game against UNO, Mitchell threw 21.1 scoreless innings before giving up a run to West Georgia. Mitchell picked up the victory against the Wolves to run his record to 7-0 on the season, and improved his ERA to 3.03.

STATESMEN RUN STREAK TO NINE
The Statesmen have been on a roll in the late part of the season, and they will enter the GSC Tournament this Friday riding a season high nine-game winning streak. The Statesmen's last defeat came at the hands of New Orleans on April 15. In addition to the nine game run, the Statesmen have won 12 of their last 13 games, and eight of their last nine games in conference play.

LANGSTON STARTING TO HEAT UP
Sophomore Brent Langston, has been heating up at the plate at the right time for the Statesmen. Langston is currently on an eight game hitting streak, his longest hitting streak of the season. Since April 21st when he began his streak, Langston has improved his batting average almost 40 points from .225 to .265. He also has seven RBIs while on the eight game streak as well.

Nine STATESMEN NAMED TO ALL-GSC teams
After a successful season, the Statesmen placed nine players on the All-GSC teams. Three players made the First Team. Sophomore outfielder Jordan Chovanec, senior pitcher Aaron Newcomb and junior pitcher Colton Mitchell were named First Team All-GSC.

Senior catcher Jon Carnahan, senior third baseman Brent Kakwtich, junior outfielder Sam Kidd, junior outfielder Michael Vinson, junior pitcher Josh Branstetter, and senior pitcher Brandon Hardin were all named to the All-GSC Second Team.