LORMAN, Miss. – Alcorn State baseball opened its final home series of the season with a tightly contested 4-3 loss to Florida A&M on Thursday evening at Rat McGowan Stadium. The Braves (6-41, 1-27 SWAC) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead but were unable to hold off a late rally from the Rattlers (28-23, 22-6 SWAC), who plated all four of their runs after the fifth inning.
Jermel Ford sparked the Braves with a triple, a single, and two runs scored, while
Jaylon Burrell extended his strong stretch at the plate with two RBIs on a pair of hits. Kalum Banks added an RBI single as part of Alcorn's three-run third inning.
Despite a solid start from
Hayden Konkler and a gritty relief effort from
Myles Dews, the Braves committed three errors and were held hitless over the final four innings, allowing
Florida A&M to escape with the comeback win.
GAME RECAP
Strong Start for Alcorn
- Ford led off the bottom of the first with a triple and came home two batters later on an RBI single by Burrell to give Alcorn a 1-0 lead.
- In the third, Ford reached again with a single and stole second. Davis followed with a single and advanced on an error, setting up another RBI single from Burrell to make it 2-0.
- Banks followed with a sharp single to left, scoring Davis and extending the lead to 3-0.
Florida A&M Mounts a Comeback
- The Rattlers broke through in the fifth with a two-out RBI single by Jay Campbell, followed by a two-RBI double from Justen Crews to tie the game at 3-3.
- In the seventh, an error by the Alcorn pitcher extended the inning, and Ben Kim capitalized with a go-ahead RBI single to center, giving Florida A&M a 4-3 lead.
Late-Inning Defense Holds for FAMU
- Florida A&M pitchers Cody Williams and Garrett Workman combined to shut out Alcorn over the final six innings.
- The Braves were retired in order in the eighth and ninth innings, including a strikeout and lineout to end the game.
OFFENSIVE LEADERS
- Jermel Ford: 2-for-4, triple, single, 2 runs, stolen base
- Jaylon Burrell: 2-for-4, 2 RBIs
- Kalum Banks: 1-for-2, RBI, hit-by-pitch
- Ben Martin: 1-for-3, single
- Team Total: 7 hits, 3 RBIs, 1 stolen base
PITCHING SUMMARY
- Hayden Konkler: 5.0 IP, 4 hits, 3 runs (0 earned), 2 walks, 3 strikeouts
- Myles Dews (L, 2-7): 4.0 IP, 3 hits, 1 unearned run, 0 walks, 4 strikeouts, 3 hit batters
BY THE NUMBERS
- 7 – Hits recorded by the Braves
- 3 – Errors by Alcorn that led to three unearned runs
- 4 – Consecutive innings Alcorn was held hitless to end the game
- 1 – Stolen base by Ford, his 10th of the season
UP NEXT
Alcorn State (6-41, 1-27 SWAC) continues its final series of the regular season against Florida A&M on Friday, May 16, at Rat McGowan Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. CST in Lorman, Miss.
