MONTGOMERY, Ala. - The Bethel Wildcats closed out their regular season with a 7-6 Senior Day win over Blue Mountain at the Kahlden Complex in McKenzie Saturday. The Wildcats took two of the three games over the weekend versus the Toppers and closed out the regular campaign with a 28-18 overall mark and a 15-11 record in the SSAC. BMC traveled home at 26-23 and 15-11.
The teams meet again Wednesday in the opening round of the 2019 SSAC Championship presented by Newk's Eatery. Action takes place at Paterson Field with the No. 4 seeded Cats and the No. 5 Toppers opening up the event at 10 a.m.
Bethel's Jacob Foster finished third in the SSAC with a .404 batting average. Nicholas Proto was sixth in the league with 64 hits. He also had nine home runs which was tied for ninth in the league. Jack Surber joined Proto with nine homers. Proto drove in 45 runs which was eighth in the conference. Lucas Riddick hit seven homers which was eighth in the SSAC.
Brandon Degnegaard was fourth in the league with a 3.50 ERA. He led the Wildcats with six wins. Giovannie Nieves had eight saves which was tied for second most in the league. Antonio Costas had four saves which was sixth.
Hayden Tapper and Latalo Newsome each had seven homers for the Toppers. Newsome also had 45 RBI's.
Blue Mountain's Eli Jackson was sixth in the SSAC with a 3.81 ERA. He had six wins. BMC's Mason Woolridge recorded five saves which fourth best in the league.
Seeds
1. Faulkner (24-3)
2. Middle Georgia State (20-7)
3. Mobile (16-11)
4. Bethel (15-11)
5. Blue Mountain (15-11)
6. William Carey (15-11)
7. Martin Methodist (14-12)
8. Brewton-Parker (9-18)
Day One Schedule: Wednesday, May 1 at Paterson Field
10 a.m. | No. 4 Bethel (Tenn.) v. No. 5 Blue Mountain (Miss.)
1 p.m. | No. 3 Mobile (Ala.) v. No. 6 William Carey (Miss.)
4 p.m. | No. 2 Middle Georgia State v. No. 7 Martin Methodist (Tenn.)
7 p.m. | No. 1 Faulkner (Ala.) v. No. 8 Brewton-Parker (Ga.)
News & Notes
- The double-elimination tournament runs through Saturday, May 4, with all games being played at Paterson Field in Montgomery, Ala.
- In the latest NAIA Baseball Coaches' Top 25 Poll, Faulkner is No. 4 and Middle Georgia State is No. 10
- The Knights won last year's title, with Faulkner taking home the previous two
Visit the SSAC Championship page at:
http://www.ssacsports.com/2019-ssac-baseball-championship
