Mississippi Valley State used some strong pitching performances over the weekend to sweep a three-game series from Southwestern Athletic Conference rival Jackson State.
The Delta Devils are 9-9 overall, 6-0 in the SWAC's Eastern Division. JSU is in second place at 4-4.
"We're pitching the ball really well. We're going to do that with the staff that we've got," said Valley coach Doug Shanks. "We've just got to keep getting better defensively because our hitting is starting to come around."
That's because junior Willie Mays and senior Sean Bard, two of the team's top hitters, are starting to put things together. Bard missed all of last year due to an injury and is just starting to get into a groove at the plate.
Defensively, the Delta Devils appear to have recovered from an injury to senior short stop Paul Olson, who suffered a broken hand and may not return this season. Junior Jeff Squier has moved from center field to fill the void at short stop.
The Delta Devils host Southeastern Louisiana at 3 p.m. today in Itta Bena. They will play at Delta State at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.
"Southeastern is ranked 22nd in the NCAA power ratings. Boy, that would be big if we could win this one," Shanks said. "We're ranked 160th out of 319 Division I schools. That's as high as we've ever been ranked."
On Sunday, MVSU defeated JSU 4-2 to complete the sweep.
Mays had a two-run homer in the first inning. Jacob Lopez had an RBI triple in the seventh and later scored on a single by Chris Herron.
MVSU's Britt Goodman worked the final three innings in relief to get the win. He allowed one hit and a walk while striking out two.
The Devils will continue SWAC play this weekend at Alcorn State in Lorman. The three-game series will start at 6 p.m. Friday and conclude Saturday with a doubleheader that starts at 1 p.m.
