MADISON, Ala. – The Alcorn State University baseball program got another fantastic pitching performance from
Jose Fernandez but only mustered six baserunners in a 2-0 loss to Prairie View in the SWAC Tournament Opening Round.
The Braves (6-19, 6-16 SWAC) have struggled to give Fernandez run support all season long, averaging only 4.78 runs per game in his nine starts and it dwindles down to 1.44 runs if you remove the 30 combined runs the Braves put up in his two outings against the winless Delta Devils.
Fernandez was nearly flawless against the Panthers, tossing a complete game (8.0 innings) with zero earned runs allowed (two unearned), six strikeouts and five hits allowed over 110 pitches.
The veteran southpaw came into the tournament boasting the ninth-best ERA for a single season in program history at 2.70 and lowered that mark even further to 2.35, which moves him into seventh place on the list.
The Baseball Braves' two hits were both singles off the bats of
Tyler Daniels and
Tristin Garcia while
Kyle Jenkins,
Jarius Colley and
Jamil Betancourt were able to coax free passes.
Khalil Smith was also able to reach safely on a hit-by-pitch.
Prairie View A&M (13-16, 12-7 SWAC) rode the right arm of ace Kyle Smith who was dominant, tossing nine complete innings with double-digit Ks (10) and two hits given up.
The men from PVAMU had two doubles among its five hits (Brayden Johnson, Andrew Garcia) and only needed a run apiece in the fourth plus the seventh to advance into the winners bracket.
Alcorn dropped to 10-14 all-time against the Panthers on the baseball diamond.
The Baseball Braves will attempt to stave off elimination tomorrow at noon against the SWAC East's #2 seed, Alabama State.
#FearTheBrave
