NCAA South 2 Region Notes | NCAA South 2 Region Tournament Central
CLEVELAND, Miss.: No. 5 /18 Delta State University (39-12) welcomes three-teams for the four-team double elimination NCAA Division South 2 Region Tournament starting Thursday, May 16-18 at Harvey Stadium-Ferriss Field.
 
Game one features No.3 seed Eckerd College against No. 6 seed Valdosta State University at 3:30 p.m. followed by No. 2 seed Delta State versus No. 7 seed Embry-Riddle University at 7 p.m. The tournament winner advances to the NCAA Division II South Super Regional against the winner of the NCAA South 1 Regional which is being held by No. 1 seed the University of Tampa.  

33rd NCAA Tournament Appearances: Delta State is making its 33rd NCAA postseason appearance and making its 7th NCAA South Regional Tournament appearance in eight years. The Statesmen are hosting an NCAA Regional Tournament for the 12th (1978, 1982, 1985, 1988, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2017, 2019) time in school history and for the second time in three years. Delta State owns 12 regional titles, including 6 under Head Coach Mike Kinnison. Delta State has a 70-44 NCAA regional tournament record and is 18-11 in the NCAA South Regional. The Statesmen defeated the University of West Alabama 6-4 to claim their last regional crown in 2017. The Green-and-White defeated Stillman College (5-2,10-7) twice on the final day to claim the 2012 regional crown and went on to finish runner-up in the NCAA Division II National Championship in Carey, N.C. The Statesmen are 28-21 all-time in the NCAA Division II World Series and are 98-69 all-time record in NCAA postseason play.  DSU finished runner-up to eventual National Champion Nova Southeastern in the 2016 NCAA Division II South Regional in Tampa, Fla.

ARMED & DANGEROUS: The DSU pitching staff leads the GSC in ERA (2.69/1st NCAA), shutouts (8 /4th NCAA), fewest hits allowed (338), hits allowed per nine innings (7.38/2nd NCAA), fewest runs (157), fewest earned runs (123), and opponent batting average (.222). The Statesmen are 3rd in saves (11), 5th in fewest walks (163) and strikeouts (366).  Dalton Minton is tied for 1st in wins (10/5th NCAA) and 5th in ERA (2.50)  Hunter Riggins is tied for  1st in wins (10/5th NCAA), ERA (2.13) and games started (14) while ranking 2nd in innings pitched (93.0), T3rd in strikeouts looking (21) and 6th in strikeouts (75). Seth Hougesen is 2nd in ERA (2.19/35th NCAA), T2nd in wins (8), 6th in fewest runs allowed (15), 5th fewest earned runs allowed (13) and 8th in batting average against (.214). Melvin Frazier is 1st in hits allowed per nine innings (5.19/3rd NCAA), and opponent batting average (.171) T4th in wins (6), 12th in strikeouts (60) and 9th in ERA (3.36).

STATESMEN CLAIM 15TH GSC TITLE: Hunter Riggins tossed a two-hit, complete game shutout with four strikeouts to toss No. 13 Delta State University baseball to its 15th GSC Baseball Championship with 6-0 win over No. 3 West Florida on Tues., May 7 in Oxford, Ala. The GSC baseball title is the 3rd in the last four years and 8th since 2000. Delta State broke a scoreless tie with a run in the bottom of the seventh. Hayden White singled and Matt Majeur was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. After a strikeout, White slid under the tag at home plate on a Brett Young sac-fly to center. The Statesmen found some breathing room with a five-run eighth to take a 6-0 lead. Jake Barlow and CJ Estave singled with one out to start the rally. Barlow scored on a White single and pinch runner Luke Ketchum and White scored on a Michael Allen two-run single through the left side. Josh Russell reached on an error and scored on a Weber Herbison sac-fly  to cap the scoring.

3 STATESMEN EARN GSC ALL-TOURNAMENT: Hunter Riggins (RHP) was named GSC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player and was joined on by David Herrington (3B) and Darek Sargent (SS) on the 2019 Gulf South Conference All-Tournament team. Riggins posted a 2-0 record in the tournament, tossing 16 scoreless innings with nine strikeouts and scattering eight hits. The sophomore tossed a complete game two-hit shutout in the championship game against top seed and No. 3 ranked West Florida.  Herrington hit .464 with six runs scored, four RBIs and four doubles while Sargent .385 with four doubles, two triples, a home run, six RBIs and seven runs scored.

vs. RANKED OPPONENTS: Delta State is 11-4 against teams ranked in either the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper or the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Polls this season.  2019 Ranked Opponents: Arkansas Tech (1-1), Mississippi College (2-1), Southern Arkansas (3-0), Arkansas Monticello (2-0), and West Florida (3-2).

Against Tournament Field: The Statesmen are 28-22 overall and 24-16 under head coach Mike  Kinnison against this year's  NCAA South 2 Region Tournament field. Delta State is 27-22 and 2-0 this season versus Valdosta State and is 1-0 all-time against Eckerd College. The Statesmen only meeting against Eckerd came in the 1977 NCAA Division II World Series in Springfield, Ill., (DSU W, 8-6) while the Statesmen and Embry-Riddle will meet for the first time on the diamond.

DOUBLE-DIGIT HITS
The Statesmen have double-digit hits in 9 of the last 10 games and posted double-digit hits in 5 of 6 games in the GSC Tournament. DSU collected a season-high 18 hits in a 10-0 win over Valdosta State (5.3.19) in the GSC Tournament opener. The Green-and-White have recorded double-digit hits in 24 games of 51 games this season.  David Herrington leads the team with 21 multi-hit games, including 4 three-hit outings.  Jake Barlow has 17 multi-hit games, including 7 games with three-plus hits.

GOING WITH TWO
Delta State scored 49 runs in the GSC Tournament that included 17 two-RBIs. CJ Estave led the Statesmen in the tournament with seven two-out RBIs followed by David Herrington with three. DSU has scored 344 runs have 100 two-out RBIs this year.  Matt Mejeur leads the Statesmen with 14 two-out RBIs followed by Jake Barlow and Estave with 12.

GSC OFFENSIVE NUMBERS
Jake Barlow's name is scattered atop he GSC statistics, ranking 1st in triples (5/22nd NCAA), T2nd in home runs (11), 4th in slugging (.633) and RBIs (53) and 8th hits (63). Darek Sargent is 6th in RBIs (47), 1st in sac-flies (7 /12th NCAA). David Herrington is 9th in stolen bases (13) and T8th in hits (63). Josh Russell is T3rd with five sac-flies.

BARLOW RECORD WATCH
Jake Barlow has 5 triples and needs one triple to tie for fourth on the Delta State single-season triples list. Brandon Cummins owns the DSU Single-season record with nine.  Additionally, Barlow has belted nine home runs and needs five homers to move into the top 10 on the school's single-season home runs list.

SAVES WATCH 
Junior righty TJ Childree is tied for 2nd in the GSC with 6 saves which are also one shy tying teammate Hunter Riggins for 5th on DSU's single-season list.

R-E-L-I-E-F
Through  51 games, the Statesmen bullpen has a 4-2 record and ranks 3rd in the GSC with 11 saves. The 11 saves are one away from moving into 3rd in a single season. Relievers have a combined 2.91 ERA, 127 strikeouts and 62 walks while yielding 53 runs, 46 earned, on 114 hits in 142.0 innings. Opponents are hitting .219 against the Statesmen pen. Tyler Walton has a 2-1 record with two saves and a 0.64 ERA while allowing two runs on 15 hits with 18 strikeouts against eight walks in 28.0 innings.  Tommy Childree has a 1.29 ERA with 15 strikeouts against two walks and is tied for T2nd in the GSC with six saves.  The junior has allowed just three runs, two earned, in 14.0 innings pitched.

FINDING SOME POP
The Statesmen moved up to 3rd in the GSC with 35 home runs after belting 5 in the GSC Tournament.  Jake Barlow hit two home runs in the GSC Tournament and is tied for 2nd with 11 home runs. Matt Majeur and Darek Sargent are behind Barlow with six home runs followed by Hayden White and Weber Herbison with four. The Statesmen belted a season-high four home runs against West Florida (3.24.19) and Montevallo (5.5.19/GSC Tourn.) and have 8 multi-home run games this season. Delta State has had at least one player hit 10 or more home runs in 14 of the last 20 seasons (since 1999).

MINORS REPORT
Zach Shannon (Arizona Diamondbacks), Trent Giambrone (Chicago Cubs) and Dalton Moats (Tampa Bay) spent the 2019 Spring Training with their respective Major League Baseball clubs.  Shannon is assigned to Class A affiliate Kane County Cougars in Geneva, Ill. Giambrone is with the Triple-A affiliate Iowa Cubs in Des Moines, Iowa. Moats returns for another season with Double-AA Montgomery Biscuits in Montgomery, Ala.

Shannon, who is battling through a couple of injuries, has played in 12 games so far for the Cougars. He has seven hits in 42 at bats with two double, one home run and five RBIs. Giambrone has played in 35 games, hitting .220 with 10 doubles, seven home runs and 18 RBIs.  Moats has made nine appearances and two starts, posting 15 strikeouts while opponents have a .261 average against. Moats has a 4.50 ERA and has yielded 10 runs, nine earned, on 18 hits in 18 innings.