Baseball 5/4/2022 6:28:00 PM

Tigers Continue Legacy Of Great Savannah State Baseball

ALBANY, Ga. – Historically, Savannah State baseball is one of the school's most successful programs.

This year, the legacy of great baseball at Savannah State continued as the Tigers cruised to a regular season Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) title last weekend.

The Tigers concluded the regular season with a three-game SIAC series sweep of Benedict to finish 33-10 overall and 28-2 in conference. The .933 conference winning percentage handed them the title and the No. 1 seed into the 2022 SIAC Championship. This year's team swept eight of their 10 three-game SIAC series'.

Savannah State will open the SIAC Championship on Thursday at 11 a.m. in Albany, Ga. against No. 8 Tuskegee. Unlike other SIAC sports, baseball is not divided into divisions. The top eight teams play in a double-elimination tournament for the title.

If Savannah State beats Tuskegee—they swept them in a three-game series earlier this season—they will play on Friday at 2 p.m. If the Tigers lose, they will play on Friday at 10 a.m.

Spring Hill secured the No. 2 seed into the tournament, followed by Albany State, Miles, Kentucky State, Morehouse and Clark Atlanta.

This will be the first SIAC Championship trip for the baseball program since the school returned to the conference in 2019 due to the cancelation of spring championships in 2020 and 2021.

The road to the championship was paved with good baseball on both sides of the ball for Savannah State.

They currently have 11 players batting over .300 and leading off is the No. 1 hitter in all of NCAA Division II. Joe Smith secured the best batting average in the conference and the division (.470 last week. He also leads both the conference and division in triples per game (0.23) this season.

Behind him are a slew of great hitters, including Champion Robbins (.399), Gabriel Patxot (.379), Dwayne Franklin (.349), Calvin Rucker (.344), Andrai Wright (.327), Cameron Diaz (.322) and Jaden Oden (.367).

Savannah State leads the conference in fielding percentage (.968), shutouts (5), triples (29), ERA (4.28), WHIP (1.51), and win/loss percentage.
From the mound, the Tigers have been led this season by a trio of the best pitchers in the conference and division.

Two newcomers earned starting roles coming into the season and have dominated. Jared Showalter leads the conference in ERA (2.49) and is 9-1 on the season. Jose Santiago is 9-0 with a 3.25 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. Santiago leads the team and the conference in strikeouts with 77 this year and is No. 2 in the SIAC in wins.

The No. 1 SIAC starting pitcher in wins is Enrico Peele who is 11-2 this season with a 3.96 ERA and 1.49 WHIP. Peele is No. 2 in NCAA Division II in wins, trailing by two.

The 2022 squad resembles the last best Tiger team in 2013. That team were co-campions in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Southern Division and then won the MEAC Championship—led by Kyle McGowin who now pitches for the Washington Nationals.

When the Tigers last competed in the SIAC, from 1969 to 1999, they won five consecutive championships from 1995-1999.

Savannah State baseball holds the NCAA Division II record for most consecutive wins (46, 1999-2000) in a season, total triples (58, 1998), and triples per game in a season (1.18, 1998).

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Players Mentioned

#2 Gabriel Patxot: 5' 8"; Redshirt Sophomore

#7 Dwayne Franklin: 5' 10"; Redshirt Senior

#8 Champion Robbins: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore

#10 Cameron Diaz: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#14 Jared Showalter: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

#19 Jose Santiago: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#21 Jaden Oden: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#24 Calvin Rucker: 6' 5"; Graduate Student

#33 Enrico Peele: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

#35 Andrai Wright: 6' 4"; Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Gabriel Patxot
: 5' 8"; Redshirt Sophomore

#7 Dwayne Franklin
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Senior

#8 Champion Robbins
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore

#10 Cameron Diaz
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#14 Jared Showalter
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

#19 Jose Santiago
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#21 Jaden Oden
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

#24 Calvin Rucker
: 6' 5"; Graduate Student

#33 Enrico Peele
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

#35 Andrai Wright
: 6' 4"; Redshirt Junior