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Courtesy Florida A&M Sports Information
Head Coach Jamey Shouppe was all smiles after the upset win over then No. 6 Florida
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TALLAHASSEE, Florida – Florida A&M (19-23, 11-9 MEAC) split four road games last week, going 2-2, with a huge win over then No. 6 Florida in Gainesville, but went 1-2 over the weekend at North Carolina Central in a key MEAC series.
The Rattlers would have put themselves in great position for first place in the Southern Division with a series win, but are definitely still in contention for the top spot heading into the final conference series of the season against North Carolina A&T.
FAMU trails division leader Bethune-Cookman (20-26, 12-9 MEAC) only by a half game in the Southern Division standings.
Florida A&M had its chances all weekend as they took a 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth inning of game one, but fell 8-5. After winning game two 7-3 in dominating fashion, FAMU led Sunday’s game three 11-4 in the fifth before Central took the lead for good in the bottom of the sixth as the Rattlers fell in a heartbreaker 15-11.
Week (2-2): Pitcher of Record
Wednesday @ Florida W, 4-3 - Brandon Fleming (3-3)
Saturday Gm 1 @ NC Central L, 8-5 - Brandon Fleming (3-4)
Saturday Gm 2 @ NC Central W, 7-3 - David Duncan (3-4)
Sunday @ NC Central L, 15-11 - William Carrasco (3-4)
The pitching staff had an up and down week. Against then No. 6 Florida, the staff worked nine strong innings only allowing three earned runs on six hits with seven strikeouts. In the series at NC Central, the short field in right (290 feet) wasn’t too kind to Florida A&M as the Eagles belted six home runs in the series. In the two losses, the Rattlers allowed 27 hits, including nine for extra bases, with a staff ERA of 12.94. In the win against Central, David Duncan earned the win after only giving up three runs on six hits with four strikeouts. William Carrasco pitched the final two scoreless innings, in the win, only giving up one hit.
Here’s a look at the pitching staff as a whole for the week.
Starting Pitchers for the Week:
W/L ERA IP H Runs ER BB K’s 2B 3B HR WP HBP
1-0 4.50 18.0 17 10 9 9 14 2 1 4 1 2
Relief Pitchers for the Week:
W/L ERA SV IP H Runs ER BB K’s 2B 3B HR WP HBP
1-2 12.21 1 14.0 23 19 19 4 10 2 2 3 2 8
The offense hit .290 as a team for the week with seven doubles and five home runs, including
Marlon Gibbs first career home run. Catchers
Jeremy Barlow and Ferdinand Rondon split time behind the dish, each having two starts. Both went 4-for-7 (.571) on the week while Barlow had a slugging percentage of 1.000.
Michael Birdsong had a productive week hitting .429 (6-for-14) from the DH spot with a home run and two doubles. Birdsong was a triple short of the cycle against Central on Sunday as he went 3-for-4 with four RBI and two runs scored.
Here’s a look at the offensive starters for the week.
C,
Jeremy Barlow (2 Starts) - .571, 4 Hits, 1 Run, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1.000 SLG%
Ferdinand Rondon (2 Starts) - .571, 4 Hits, 2 Runs
1B,
Bennie Robinson (4 Starts) - .294, 5 Hits, 5 Runs, 1 HR, 5 RBI
2B,
Devin Perry (2 Starts) - .400, 2 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 RBI
Kendal Weeks (3 Starts) - .125, 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 RBI
3B,
Ryan Kennedy (4 Starts) - .250, 4 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 HR, 3 RBI
SS,
Ryan Hutson (4 Starts) - .067, 1 Hit
LF,
Marlon Gibbs (4 Starts) - .333, 5 Hits, 3 Runs, 1 HR, 2 RBI
CF,
Blake Quillin (4 Starts) - .375, 6 Hits, 4 Runs, 4 2B, 3 RBI, .625 SLG%
RF,
Peter Jackson (2 Starts) - .167, 1 Hit, 1 Run, 1 2B, 2 RBI
LoganSeymour (2 Starts) - .111, 1 Hit
DH,
Michael Birdsong (4 Starts) - .429, 6 Hits, 3 Runs, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, .786 SLG%
Next Up:
Saturday, May 3 DH vs. North Carolina A&T
Sunday, May 4 vs. North Carolina A&T
Tuesday, May 6 vs. Jacksonville
Wednesday, May 7 @ Jacksonville (Regular Season Finale)
FAMU Baseball Weekly Stats
By Michael Morrell/Special to FAMU Athletics
COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
