The Florida A&M baseball team completed its first action of the season as the team split four games during the Jackson State University Baseball Tournament.
The Rattlers competed against the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, Prairie View A&M and tournament host Jackson State during the competition.
Pitcher David Duncan was faulted with a loss when the Rattlers dropped their first game of the tournament 13-4 to JSU. Duncan allowed 11 hits, six earned runs and struck out three in three and one-third innings of work. The Rattlers would rebound in their second game, using a four-run seventh inning along with great pitching from Tim Jones and Steven Dollar to capture a 5-2 victory against UAPB. Two RBI’s by Oscar Santalo and Cory Franklin would help ignite the Rattlers seventh inning offensive outburst.
In their third game of the tournament, the Rattlers lost a 2-0 contest to Prairie View in what turned out to be a pitcher’s duel between FAMU’s, Heath Blackburn, and PVAMU’s, Michael Listi. The Rattlers managed only one hit during the contest as Listi produced seven strikeouts in seven innings.
A decisive 7-3 win was the result of the Rattler’s last game of the tournament, as the team completed the sweep of UAPB. Pitcher Thomas Barwick won his first collegiate start. Barwick struck out four and gave up only one earned run in five innings of work against the Golden Lions.
The Rattler’s offense bounced back from a forgettable performance in the previous game against PVAMU as Scott Sheplak and Tobi Adeyemi sparked the team’s offensive performance.
FAMU will return to action as they host Mercer University in their home opener on Wednesday, Feb. 23 in a doubleheader at Moore-Kittles Field at 4 p.m.