MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Alcorn State University baseball program fell to the Alabama State Hornets by a combined score of 34-3 in Saturday's doubleheader as both games were completed in seven innings.
Game one saw seniors Brandon Barna and Kirt Cormier both log an RBI while freshman Tristin Garcia clubbed his team-high third triple in the ballgame.
Cormier was the only run-producer in the second game, as his RBI single in the fourth brought junior Brandon Rembert around to score Alcorn's lone run on the night. The Braves continued to pile up the triples in the series with Rembert notching his first of the campaign to give the purple and gold four three-baggers through three games this weekend.
Senior Devon Key was the lone bright spot on the mound for the boys from Lorman, hurling a scoreless frame in game one while striking out one Hornet batter.
Game One
Alabama State 21, Alcorn 2
Alabama State got the bats going immediately in game one, knocking in two runs in the first and one in the second to take a 3-0 upper-hand. ASU would then open the floodgates in the third as 16 Hornets came to bat and 12 would score in a massive offensive explosion to bury the Braves early, 15-0 ASU.
The home nine added three runs apiece in the fourth and fifth inning to pile onto the huge advantage. Barna and Cormier would keep Alcorn from getting shutout with an RBI single and RBI double in the top of the sixth respectively, but the black and gold coasted to an easy 21-2 victory in game one of the doubleheader and the first two games of the series.
Starter Carlos Lopez (1-5) was given the loss, allowing 10 runs on seven hits while striking out three over 2.1 innings.
Game Two
Alabama State 13, Alcorn 1
Alcorn and Alabama State were both held scoreless to begin the ballgame before the hometown Hornets put one on the board to begin the festivities in the bottom of the second. Neither side seemed to have much of an answer for starters Jose Fernandez and Ricardo Rivera as the two sides were deadlocked at one after four when Cormier laced an RBI single to left center in the fourth to knot the proceedings.
The ASU Hornets followed a similar path to its game one victory by putting together its second double-digit run inning of the day, exploding for ten runs in the fifth to effectively end the Braves hopes in game two by going up 11-1.
Alabama State tacked two more runs onto its total in the sixth and that's where the score would remain as the black and gold home nine took a 13-1 win into the locker room.
Senior Starting pitcher Jose Fernandez (3-3) received the loss as he gave up nine runs on 11 hits in 4.2 innings of work and managed to record four punchouts.
Alcorn baseball will try to avoid a four-game sweep tomorrow as the Braves will be considered the home team when they play a makeup game from March 10 that was postponed due to rain in Lorman.
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