By Joshua J. Darling, Sports Information Director
LAGRANGE, Ga. – Top seeded No. 23 LaGrange (27-13, 13-5 CCS) begins their quest for a sixth straight tournament championship as they host No. 6 Seed Maryville (23-15, 6-12 CCS) in the first round of the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS) Tournament on Thursday, May 4. First pitch is set for 11 a.m. at Cleaveland Field in Williamson Stadium.
The Panthers come into the postseason having come through in the clutch in the final weekend, claiming the CCS regular season championship title in the last game. After dropping the opener 6-4 at Huntingdon (4/28), weather forced the final two games into a doubleheader the following day. The loss forced LC into needing to win both to lock up the title – and they did just that by 14-8 and 10-2 scores.
The Scots had won five of six down the stretch before dropping the last two of a series at Piedmont (4/29), falling 19-3 and 12-2. That performance put them into the play-in game for the CCS Tournament where they faced No. 7 Seed Berea. Trailing for most of the game, MC eventually forced extra innings and pulled out the 13-10 victory with a three-run walk-off homerun by Ashton Whiteaker in the bottom of the 10th inning.
SERIES HISTORY
One of the more frequent series in program history, the teams have met 81 times with LaGrange holding a commanding 56-25 advantage dating to 2001. The Panthers won 19 of the first 23 meetings, including 10 straight from 2002-05. That is a stretch topped only by the recent 12-game winning streak dating to 2019 and including wins of 7-5, 8-1 and 9-8 from April 22-24, 2022. The last of that streak was a 7-4 win at Maryville on April 21 before the Scots claimed 11-8 and 7-2 wins on from April 22-23.
MEDIA
Fans can follow all the action with live stats and live video and a full recap will be available on www.LaGrangePanthers.com, the official online home of Panthers Athletics, following the final out. Keep up with the tournament through the Tournament Schedule page and Tournament Central.
DON'T MISS THE ACTION
Fans can take in the games with a $30 pass for the entire tournament or $15 for single days. Youth (Ages 6-17) are admitted for $5 per day and all non-CCS students 18-years and older are $15 for the tournament and $10 a day. Seniors and military are $20 for the tournament and $10 per day with children five and under and CCS students with ID are free.
Scouting The No. 23 LaGrange College Panthers
Record: 27-13, 13-5 CCS
Last Time Out: W, 10-2 vs. Huntingdon on April 29
Streak: Two Wins
Quick Links
Baseball Home Page
Schedule
Roster
Statistics
Individual Batting Leaders
Batting Average: Curt Bonner – .426
Slugging Percentage: Joe Ruth – .611
Hits: Joe Ruth – 66
Doubles: Joe Ruth – 18
Triples: Joe Ruth – 3
Homeruns: David Smigelski – 4
RBIs: Joe Ruth – 49
Runs: Rhett Mixon – 47
Steals: Jackson McElvy – 16
Individual Pitching Leaders
ERA: Eduardo Peralta – 3.20
Wins: Eduardo Peralta – 7
Opposing Batting Average: Eduardo Peralta – .222
Strikeouts: Ethan Fry – 72
Innings: Ethan Fry – 64.0
Team Batting Statistics
Batting Average: .323
Slugging Percentage: .441
Hits: 449
Doubles: 90
Triples: 10
Homeruns: 18
RBIs: 285
Runs: 318
Steals: 35 (35-of-45)
Team Pitching Statistics
ERA: 4.37
Opposing Batting Average: .255
Strikeouts: 371
Innings: 342.0
Scouting The No. 6S Maryville College Scots
Record: 23-15, 6-12 CCS
Last Time Out: W, 13-10 vs. No. 7 Seed Berea on May 3
Streak: One Win
Quick Links
Baseball Home Page
Schedule
Roster
Statistics
Individual Batting Leaders
Batting Average: Christian Carlton – .371
Slugging Percentage: Zac Graham – .633
Hits: Christian Carlton – 49
Doubles: Gabriel Lopez – 14
Triples: Jacob Johnston, Gabriel Lopez – 2
Homeruns: Zac Graham – 9
RBIs: Zac Graham – 40
Runs: Gabriel Lopez – 37
Steals: Gabriel Lopez – 13
Individual Pitching Leaders
ERA: Chris Arbuthnot – 2.77
Wins: Chris Arbuthnot – 6
Opposing Batting Average: Mitchell Grannan – .236
Strikeouts: Mitchell Grannan – 61
Innings: Bryce Leonhardt – 58.2
Team Batting Statistics
Batting Average: .312
Slugging Percentage: .447
Hits: 400
Doubles: 79
Triples: 8
Homeruns: 26
RBIs: 248
Runs: 275
Steals: 63 (63-of-74)
Team Pitching Statistics
ERA: 4.78
Opposing Batting Average: .289
Strikeouts: 264
Innings: 316.1
