2005 Gulf South Conference 
Baseball Championship
May 7-11, 2005

GSC Tournament Schedule

May 11, 2005
UWA WINS 2005 GSC CHAMPIONSHIP

By John Weaver, GSC
Millington, TN-Thirteen was the lucky number tonight for No. 3 East seed West Alabama (45-17) as they claimed its second GSC since 1992 defeating No. 1 East seed North Alabama (39-19), 9-4 in a winner take-all Gulf South Conference Championship. UNA forced the "if" game beating UWA 7-6 in 11 innings.

After trailing 2-0 heading into the bottom of the third West Alabama broke out the big sticks plating five runs on six hits with two outs highlighted by Jacob Townsend's two RBI single to third base sending Roy McDaniel and Kelvin Ayala home opening up a 5-2 UWA lead.

The Lions closed the lead to 5-4 in the top of the fifth when Steven Agee scored on a Mike Klug fielder's choice and Daniel Johnson scored on a single by James Barksdale, but was called out trying to stretch the hit to a double.

West Alabama's Dustin Roberts gave the Tiger faithful an insurance run slamming a solo homerun over the left field wall, giving the Tigers a 6-4 advantage. The Tigers pushed across two more runs in the sixth thanks to a two RBI double by Lewis Bradford just out of the reach of a sliding Barksdale in centerfield.
UWA plated one more run in the bottom of the seventh rounding out the scoring on the night and giving the Tigers the 9-4 victory and GSC Championship.

May 10, 2005
EAST FOES UNA AND UWA SET TO DO BATTLE IN GSC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

By John Weaver, GSC
Millington, TN-The GSC Championship will feature the first all East division title game since 1998, with No. 1 East seed North Alabama and No. 3 East seed West Alabama battling on the diamond.

In the first game today, No. 3 East seed West Alabama (44-16) continued its winning ways through the Gulf South Conference Tournament eliminating No. 4 West seed Arkansas-Monticello (33-25), 7-4. The Tigers are now in the Championship Game slated to start at 1:00 pm. UAM got on the board first plating Ken Merrill on a Cody Ellis single to center field. UWA wasted no time tying the game in the second scoring Jonathan Lindsey on a Damon Brabson. The Tigers put two more on the board in the third and fourth, giving UWA a 5-2 lead, highlighted by Lindsey's two RBI double down the left field line. UAM mounted a come back scoring solo runs in the fourth and fifth innings, but the Tigers silenced at all hopes of a come back pushing across two more runs in the bottom of the seventh thanks to another Lindsey RBI double down the left field line. UAM pushed across Ryland Kathrein closing the lead to 7-4. The Boll Weevils had their chance to score more with the bases loaded, but Merrill grounded out to the shortstop ending the game.

The second game today showcased the No. 1 seeds on both sides as North Alabama (38-18) oustedthe two-time defending GSC and National Champions Delta State (48-8), 9-4.
The Statesmen scored first, but UNA pushed across four runs in the top of the fourth highlighted by Steven Agee's two RBI double to right center scoring Kyle Yeats and Aaron Hauser. The Lions added two more runs in the next inning on an error by DSU pitcher Ryan Terry plating Mike Klug and a ground out to second base pushing across Brian Jenkins. The runs kept coming for the Lions, adding two more in the seventh and another in the eighth giving UNA a 9-2 advantage. DSU scored two runs in the bottom of the eight thanks to Brett Donahoo's two RBI single into centerfield cutting the lead to 9-4. That would be all the scoring for the Statesmen as UNA relief pitcher Shane Chappell struck out Wade Whitaker looking to end the game.

West Alabama and North Alabama will meet tomorrow (Wednesday, May 12) in the GSC Championship Game slated for 1:00 pm. With West Alabama entering the title game undefeated, UNA has to beat the Tigers twice to claim its first GSC title since 1999, or UWA has to win the one o'clock game to claim its first championship since 1992.

May 9, 2005
UWA REMAINS UNDEFEATED IN TOURNAMENT, SQUARES OFF AGAINST UAM
...DSU FACES UNA IN AN ELIMINATION GAME

By John Weaver, GSC
Millington, TN-Anyone who thought that the Tigers were a phantom menace had better guess again.
West Alabama righthander Jason Herman silenced the Delta State bats for most of the game, allowing one run on five hits, leading UWA past the defending GSC and National Champions.
UWA improves to 3-0 in the Tournament and faces the other Cinderella team, Arkansas-Monticello (a 4-3 upset winner over Southern Arkansas) at 1 p.m. Delta State gets North Alabama, which eliminated Montevallo 7-3, in the other Semi-Final, at 4:15 p.m.

After a two hour and 25 minute rain delay, No. 4 West seed Arkansas-Monticello (32-24) eliminated No. 3 West seed Southern Arkansas (34-25), 4-3.
UAM broke on top in the top of the first on Ken Merrill's sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Cody Tornberg. SAU wasted no time tying the game when Daniel Moseley came around to score on a single by Scooter Hendrickson.

Five scoreless innings ended when the Boll Weevils' Nick Tillsley ripped a double to left field, driving in second basemen Josh Reagan in the top of the eighth. UAM designated hitter Cody Ellis launched a homerun over the right field wall in the top of the ninth, giving the Boll Weevils an insurance run they would need. SAU rallied in the bottom of the ninth when Mulerider catcher Ross Boudreaux led off with a double and eventually scored scored on a sacrifice bunt by Derek Weldon cutting the lead to 4-3. UAM relief pitcher Randy Schrock ended the rally, striking out the next two SAU batters to record the save.

The second game pitted No. 1 East seed North Alabama (37-18) against in-state rival No. 4 East seed Montevallo (36-22), the Lions emerging victorious, 7-3. UM wasted no time getting on the board, scoring in the top of the first on a Daniel Furuto ground out that brought left fielder Trent Preuitt home. North Alabama's Aaron Hauser put UNA back on top in the bottom of the first, slamming a two-run homerun over the left field fence. The Lions tallied again in the bottom of the second, thanks to a RBI double by Mike Klug that chased home Matt Crane, giving the Lions' a 3-1 advantage. UNA pitcher Brian Jenkins shut down the Falcons until UM scored in the top of the sixth on a Chris Stano single that brought home Jake Wells. The Lions' completed their scoring in the bottom of the eighth platting two runs highlighted by another RBI by Klug.

The final game matched UWA and DSU, the former a surprise, the latter the dominant program in the GSC. Enter Herman, who had "Tommy John" surgery about a year ago. The lanky righty struck out three, walked none and pitched no-hit ball through 4.1 innings en route to the five-hit, 4-1 victory. UWA has now beaten both of the number one seeds.

The Tigers' got on the board early, Brandon Boles scoring on an error by DSU third basemen Norwood Taylor in the first inning. UWA made it 2-0 in the third, thanks to Dustin Robert's single to left field scoring, catcher Roberto Martinez. West Alabama pushed across two unearned runs in the top of the sixth. DSU answered with its only run in the bottom of the sixth on a Brett Donahoo RBI double scoring Clay Smith.

The 2005 GSC Tournament resumes tomorrow with West Alabama facing Arkansas-Monticello at 1:00 pm and the to No. 1 seeds North Alabama and Delta State locking horns at 4:30 pm.

May 8, 2005
UWF AND ATU ELIMINATED
...DSU, SAU, UAM, UM ADVANCE TO WINNERS BRACKET

By John Weaver, GSC
Millington, TN-UWF and ATU were the first two eliminated from the GSC Baseball Tournament. DSU and UWA remain the only two unbeaten, while SAU, UAM, UM and UNA live to see another day of action.

No. 4 East seed Montevallo (36-21) upset and eliminated No. 2 East seed West Florida (33-21), 3-2. The Falcons held on to a 2-0 lead until the top of the seventh inning when the Argonauts pushed across two runs of their own tying the game at two apiece. The Falcons answered back plating the game winning run in the bottom of the seventh. Center fielder Millard Dawson led off the bottom of the seventh with a single and scored the game winning run on a Blake Lewis RBI double to left field. The Falcon's left fielder Trent Preuitt extended his hitting streak to 22-games.

The second game featured No. 1 West seed Delta State (48-6) and No. 3 West seed Southern Arkansas (34-24), in the first "Winners Bracket" match up. The two are familiar opponents in the post-season. The Statesmen sent the Muleriders into the loser's bracket with a 12-10 victory. SAU jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first, but the Statesmen tied the game with one run in the top of the second and third. SAU took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the third before the Statesmen scored a barrage of runs (7) in the next two innings highlighted by a grand slam over the left field fence by first basemen Bert Pickard in the top of the fifth. DSU took a 12-5 lead into the bottom of the fifth, but SAU did not go down easy, plating five runs in the bottom of the ninth. DSU holds a 4-2 record against SAU in the GSC tournament dating back to 1999.

No. 2 West seed Arkansas Tech and No. 4 West seed Arkansas-Monticello met for the first time in the conference tournament with the Boll Weevils coming away victorious, 14-10 in a see- saw elimination battle. This was UAM's first ever win in the GSC tournament. UAM and ATU traded leads three times before the Boll Weevils took the lead for good with three runs in the bottom of the fifth giving UAM a 6-5 advantage. UAM added two runs in the sixth and seventh and four runs in the bottom of the eighth. ATU mounted a slight come back in the top of the ninth plating four runs before UAM reliever Josh McClain struck out Jantzen Blac ending the game.

The final game on tap for the day saw No. 3 East seed West Alabama (42-16) defeat No. 1 East seed North Alabama (36-18), 9-5 in the longest game of the tournament thus far. West Alabama snapped UNA's 18-game conference winning streak. The last time these two met in the GSC Tournament UNA claimed a 9-4 victory in the semifinals in 1995. UNA got on the board early scoring a run in the first and second inning. The Tigers were scoreless until they put a three spot on the scoreboard in the fourth and two in the fifth giving them a two more runs in the bottom of the fifth. UNA put up one spots over the next two innings cutting the UWA lead to 5-4. The Tigers shut the door on the Lions plating four runs in the bottom of the seventh claiming the 9-5 victory.

The 2005 GSC Baseball Tournament resumes tomorrow with Arkansas-Monticello and Southern Arkansas meeting in an elimination game at noon. Montevallo ties up with North Alabama in the second elimination game of the day at 4:00 pm. The night cap features Delta State and West Alabama in the "Winner's Bracket" game at 7:30 pm.

May 7, 2005
EAST AND WEST SPLIT ON DAY ONE OF THE 2005 GSC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT
...DSU, SAU, UNA, UWA ADVANCE TO WINNERS BRACKET

By John Weaver, GSC
Millington, TN-The first day of the 2005 Gulf South Conference Baseball Tournament opened with an upset and ended with one too.

No. 3 West seed Southern Arkansas (34-23) opened the Tournament with a 6-4 upset of No. 2 East seed West Florida (33-20). UWF jumped on the board early plating two runs in the first on a Peter Antoske's fielder's choice scoring center fielder Josh Lossier. Antoske crossed the plate next giving the Argonauts a 2-0 lead, but SAU answered with two runs of its own tying the game, 2-2, in the top of the second. Center fielder Aharon Eggleston singled up the middle scoring shortstop Derek Weldon, while second basemen Armando Alvarez scored on an error by Antoske.
The sixth proved to the Mulriders' big inning, sending four across. Weldon and Tyler Murray scored on a Scooter Hendrickson single up the middle. Hendrickson and Alvarez crossed the plate for the final two runs of the inning on Eric Moya's double to leftfield. The Argonauts mounted a comeback scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh and another in the eighth, but SAU's four-run sixth proved to be the enough to seal the game.

Tournament favorite, No. 1 West seed Delta State (47-6), defeated No. 4 East seed Montevallo (35-21) for the fourth time this season, 9-2. Montevallo scored its only two runs of the game in the top of the first. DSU hurler Rusty Rayborn pitched a complete game giving up two hits and allowing only two runs in the game in the first. He retired 20 out of the last 21 UM batters including the games final 14. The Statesmen fought back from an early 2-0 deficit en route to scoring eight runs in the next six innings sealing the day one victory. UM's leftfielder Trent Preuitt had one of the two hits for the Falcons extending his hitting streak to 21 games.

No. 1 East seed North Alabama (35-17) plated eight runs in the sixth inning breaking a one all tie en route to a 9-2 triumph over No. 4 West seed Arkansas-Monticello (30-24) in the third game of the day. Cody Ellis put UAM up early with the tournament's first homerun over the right centerfield wall. UNA's Matt Crane answered with a homerun of his own tying the score at one. The sixth inning catapulted the Lions' to victory highlighted by a Mike Klug two-run homerun. UNA's Matt Hancock hurled a complete game allowing five hits and two runs, while UAM pounded out five hits, four of which were contributed to Ellis who hit for the cycle.

In the final game of the first day, No. 3 East seed West Alabama (41-16) scored 13 unanswered runs on five Wonder Boys errors en route to a 14-4 victory over No. 2 West seed Arkansas Tech (28-21) via the 10-run mercy rule. ATU jumped out early with a two-run homerun by designated hitter Kevin Johnson giving the Wonder Boys a 2-0 lead. The Tigers trailed 4-1 heading into the top of the fifth, plating four runs thanks to Brandon Boles' two RBI single followed by Boles' go-ahead score on the same play on a throwing error by the third basemen. Dustin Roberts highlighted the next inning with a bone-shattering homerun to leftfield giving the Tigers a 7-4 advantage. UWA was not through scoring, adding three more runs in the sixth, two more in the seventh and eighth rounding out the Tiger scoring. Boles led UWA going 5-for-5 with three RBI and three runs scored.

Sunday's action begins at 9:30 am with Montevallo taking on East Division rival West Florida in the first elimination game followed by West Division foes Southern Arkansas and Delta State facing off in "Winner's Bracket" action at 1:00 pm. A pair of in-state rivals lock horns in the final two games of the day. Arkansas-Monticello and Arkansas Tech face off in the second elimination match-up at 4:15 pm, while North Alabama and West Alabama meet in the second "Winner's Bracket" contest at 7:30 pm.

May 1, 2005
Defending National Champions and #1-ranked Delta State looks to repeat as Gulf South Conference baseball tournament opens in Millington

MILLINGTON, TN - The road to defending their 2004 baseball national championship begins in Millington for #1-ranked Delta State. The Statesmen are looking for their third consecutive GSC title - a feat that has not been accomplished in more than 20 years as Troy State took the titles from 1980-1982. Their defense will be a tough one as six of the seven other teams in the tournament have been ranked in the top 30 in the nation this season. The remainder of the eight-team field includes #9 North Alabama, #14 West Florida, Arkansas Tech, West Alabama, Southern Arkansas, Montevallo, and Arkansas-Monticello. The tournament was expanded to eight teams in 2004 for the first time in conference history. USA Stadium will be the hosting the event for the fourth consecutive year.

The tournament begins on Saturday, May 7 at 9:30 a.m. with Southern Arkansas (33-23, 3rd in West) against West Florida (33-19, 2nd in East). West Division champ Delta State (46-6) will take on Montevallo (35-20, 4th in East) at 1:00 p.m. Arkansas-Monticello (29-22, 4th in West) will meet the East Champions North Alabama (34-17) at 4:15 p.m., while the nightcap, beginning at 7:30 p.m. will feature West Alabama (40-16, 3rd in East) against Arkansas Tech (28-20, 2nd in West).

The tournament will continue through Wednesday, with the championship being played Wednesday afternoon at either 1:00 p.m. or 4:30 p.m.

Daily ticket prices are $8.00 for adults and $5.00 for students, senior citizens, and military. A tournament pass is $20.00 for adults and $15.00 for students, senior citizens, and military. Local area groups and teams can contact USA Stadium at 872-8326 for discounted tickets.

Remaining Schedule
Sunday
Game 5 - 9:30 am - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2
Game 6 - 1:00 pm - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2
Game 7 - 4:15 pm - Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4
Game 8 - 7:30 pm - Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4

Monday
Game Times - 12:00 pm, 4:00 pm, 7:30 pm

Tuesday
Game Times - 1:00 pm, 4:30 pm

Wednesday
Championship - 1:00 pm, (4:30 pm - if necessary)