Alcorn Drops First Game to Southern, 8-4

LORMAN, Miss. – Southern (La.) erased a two-run deficit with a stunning five-run seventh inning and went on to defeat Alcorn 8-4 in the opener of a three-game Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Baseball series Friday night at Willie E. "Rat" McGowan Stadium in Lorman, Mississippi.
 
Southern (16-20, 9-6 SWAC), who entered the game at 16-20 overall and 9-6 in conference play, trailed 4-2 heading into the seventh before Jaguars designated hitter Glenn Green III delivered the knockout blow with a bases-clearing triple through the right side that went all the way to the wall in right-center plating three runs and breaking the game open.
 
The three-run triple capped a five-run frame that turned a two-run deficit into a three-run cushion Southern would never relinquish.
 
Alcorn (8-30, 2-14 SWAC) actually had the better of the early going, taking a 3-1 lead through three frames behind timely hitting and patient at-bats.
 
Before ultimately coming out due to an injury, Braves first baseman Cooper Harris was an offensive catalyst for the Purple and Gold, delivering a two-RBI single to center field in the bottom of the third that scored Rayfield Adams III and Julian Jarrett to give Alcorn a 3-1 advantage.
 
Right fielder Keatan Hawk added to the lead with an RBI double to center in the fifth inning that scored Kanious Davis and pushed the Braves' lead to 4-2 at the time.
 
Southern chipped away, however, and pulled even in the seventh on a two-RBI single by former Braves student-athlete and first baseman Jaylon Lucky that scored KJ White Jr. and Beny Bikar Jr. before Green's triple finished the damage with three more runs crossing the plate.
 
The Jaguars added an insurance run in the eighth when Ryan Hunter scored on a wild pitch to make it 8-4.
 
Starting hurler Bobby Spencer earned the win on the mound for Southern, working six innings and allowing four runs on six hits while striking out four. Caleb Ellis came on in relief and closed out the final three frames on the bump without allowing a run, scattering two hits and striking out two to earn his fourth save of the season.
 
José Cherena took the loss out of the bullpen for Alcorn, falling to 1-3 on the campaign after allowing four runs in 3.1 innings of work. Starter Devin Kriley gave up two runs over 3.1 innings before Cherena entered, and Jacob Wingard finished the game with 2.1 innings of work for the Purple and Gold, respectfully.
 
Green finished the night as Southern's offensive standout, going 2-for-5 with a triple and three RBIs. White went 3-for-5 with a stolen base, and Hunter was 2-for-4 at the top of the Jaguars lineup with two stolen bases and two runs scored.
 
For the host Braves, Harris went 2-for-2 before coming out of the game with two RBIs, and designated hitter Jaylyn Bennett finished 2-for-5 at the dish.
 
The two teams return to McGowan Stadium on Saturday for Game 2 of the series with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. CDT.
 
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