BIRMINGHAM, Ala. | No. 5 seed Grambling State University baseball team dominated No. 7 seed Southern 16-2 in seven innings on Friday afternoon to stay alive in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Baseball Tournament at Rickwood Field.
Trey Bridges served as the offensive catalyst for GSU (25-27), going 2-for-4 with six RBI, four of which came courtesy of a grand slam. As a team, the Tigers racked up 10 hits while the Jaguars scattered four.
Grambling State starter
Randy Reyes (3-4) went the distance, limiting SU to two runs (one earned) on four hits in 7.0 innings on the mound. He struck out four batters.
After Southern took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, GSU struck back in the bottom of the second. With runners on first and third, a wild pitch allowed the Tigers' first run to score. After loading the bases,
Nyan Hayes made SU by ripping a two-RBI single into centerfield, making it 3-1 Grambling State.
Martavius Thomas extended the lead to 4-1 after swiping home on a double steal.
The Tigers opened an 8-1 advantage in the bottom if the fourth when Bridges walloped a grand slam high over the right field wall.
Leading 8-2 in the bottom of the fifth, Grambling State put the game away with a six run fifth inning. GSU stretched the lead to 12-2 on an RBI double by Bridges, who advanced to third on the throw. Back-to-back bases loaded walks issued to
Aries Gardner and
Shannon Martin made it a 14-2 game.
Chris Marcellus closed the scoring with a two-RBI double off the left field wall.
SU's Kenneth Jackson (1-2) was charged with the loss after giving up seven runs on five hits in 3.1 innings of work.
Up Next
No. 5 seed Grambling State faces No. 2 seed Florida A&M on Friday at 6 p.m. at Rickwood and will be streamed on the SWAC Digital Network (YouTube). If GSU wins, it forces an elimination game versus FAMU on Saturday at 3 p.m. If Florida A&M wins, it secures a spot in Sunday's championship game.
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