Team
Elisabetta Zengaro
2
Shorter University SU 14-20, 9-17 GSC
8
Winner Delta State DSU 20-14, 14-8 GSC
Shorter University SU
14-20, 9-17 GSC
2
Final
8
Delta State DSU
20-14, 14-8 GSC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Shorter University SU 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 7 1
Delta State DSU 0 1 0 0 2 0 4 1 0 8 9 2

W: Waddell, Cody (3-0) L: Russell Crosby (2-7)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Waddell pitches Statesmen to series sweep of Hawks 8-2

CLEVELAND, Miss. – Junior right-hander Cody Waddell (3-0) pitched a career-high 7.0 innings and struck out six Monday, April 20 to lead Delta State University baseball to an 8-2 victory over Shorter University at Ferriss Field. The Statesmen (21-14) earned their second Gulf South Conference series sweep of the year and improved to 15-8 in league play, while the Hawks fell to 14-21 and 9-18 in the GSC. Landon Thibodeaux, Jacob Swiney and Ben Pickard led the Statesmen at the plate with two RBIs apiece.   
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final Score: Statesmen 8, Hawks 2
Records: Statesmen (21-14, 15-8 GSC), Shorter Hawks (14-21, 9-18 GSC)
Location: Ferriss Field | Cleveland, Miss.
Series: DSU leads series 8-1; Last Meeting: W, 7-5 and 6-0 on April 19, 2015
Video Highlights: GoStatesmen TV on YouTube
Get Social: @DSUStatesmen | @DSUScores | @DSUBaseball
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • Landon Thibodeaux's solo home run in the second inning gave the Statesmen the early 1-0 lead. The blast was Thibodeaux's second of the season and the seventh of his career.
  • After a leadoff single by Matt Barrett and a hit-by-pitch to Brandon Cummins, Jacob Swiney delivered an RBI double down the left field line to extend Delta State's lead to 2-0. Ben Pickard followed with a sac-fly RBI to right to make it 3-0 after the fifth inning.
  • Shorter finally got to Statesman starter Cody Waddell in the top of the sixth. Taylor Cato walked to open the inning and George Ragsdale doubled off the right field wall to plate the leadoff man from first and cut the DSU lead to 3-1.
  • The Statesmen answered back in the bottom of the seventh, scoring four runs on three hits, to extend their lead to 7-1. Ben Pickard and Ethan Gill delivered back-to-back RBI singles to right, while Trent Giambrone's sac-fly RBI to right-center brought home the three runs.
  • Delta State made it 8-1 in the bottom of the eighth on Jacob Swiney's second RBI double of the game. Brandon Cummins doubled to right to setup the scoring opportunity after Jonathan Andrews was retired.
  • Shorter didn't quit, scoring their second run in the top of the ninth off reliever Nick Goza. Dustin Lawson was hit on the first pitch of the inning and Ian Redetzky followed with an RBI double to right. Goza settled in and ended the threat with a pair of strikeouts and a groundout to end the ninth.
  • Cody Waddell (3-0) picked up the win for the Statesmen with a career-best performance Monday. The junior from Vicksburg, Miss., pitched 7.0 innings while giving up one run on five hits with a walk and six strikeouts. Waddell's innings pitched and strikeouts equaled or bettered his previous bests.
  • Russell Crosby (2-7) took the loss for the Hawks after throwing 6.0 innings and surrendering three runs on four hits. The senior left-handed pitched walked one and struck out three in the loss. Brandon Reynolds (1.0), Chadd Felder (0.2) and Hansel Lazo (0.1) all pitched in relief.  

STAT OF THE GAME
  • 7.0 – Junior pitcher Cody Waddell pitched a career-high seven innings in DSU's 8-2 win over Shorter on Monday. The former Northwest Mississippi CC transfer tied his career-high with six strikeouts to help lead the Statesmen to the series sweep.

BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
  • Delta State men's basketball guard and 2015 NCAA Slam Dunk champion LaQuavious Cotton threw out the Kossman's Community Spotlight ceremonial first pitch prior to Monday's contest. Two weeks earlier, the 6-foot-6 senior from Cleveland, Miss., electrified DSU fans by winning the State Farm/College Slam Dunk Championship during Final Four weekend on ESPN.
  • Landon Thibodeaux slammed Delta State's 36th home run of the year in the second inning, eclipsing the 2010 Statesmen (35) for the highest total this decade.
  • The Statesmen never trailed in the final 22 innings of the series. Shorter led 5-0 after four innings in game one Saturday.
  • The Statesmen improved to 15-8 (.652) in the Gulf South Conference, placing Delta State in at least fifth place in the race for postseason play. Delta State has three league games remaining on the regular season schedule, closing out the year with a three-game series at West Florida next weekend.  
 
UP NEXT
  • The Statesmen host Henderson State on Wednesday, April 21 in the final home game at Ferriss Field this season. Game time is set for 3 p.m. Matt Jones and Keith Latham will have the call on WMJW 107.5 FM and online at www.GoStatesmen.com.
 
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