SAVANNAH, Ga.- Savannah State will start their run at a conference baseball championship on May 2 when they play Miles in the opening round of the 2024 Cricket SIAC Baseball Championship Tournament at Albany State.
 
Savannah State is the No. 4 seed while Miles is the No. 5 seed.
 
During the regular season, the Tigers won the three-game series with Miles at Tiger Field.
 
The teams split a double-header on March 29 with Miles winning the first game 9-7 and SSU winning the nightcap 13-6. In the rubber game on March 30, Savannah State captured the series with a 13-1 victory.
 
Savannah State enters the tournament on a four-game winning streak and are among the Division II leaders in several categories.
 
As of April 30, 2024 on the NCAA website, the Tigers are ranked second in the nation in on base percentage (.464), sacrifice flies (38) and steals per game (3.95). SSU is third in stolen bases (162) and triples per game (.54) and fifth in batting average (.343) and triples (22).
 
Individually, Kendal Spencer is second in Division II in sacrifice flies (9), Hakem Smith is third in triples (7) and D'Sean Prinkleton is 14th in stolen bases (29).
 
Savannah State's top three pitchers are Jose Santiago, Andrew Mann and Brevin Smith.
 
Santiago has a 3.65 earned run average, 7-3 record and has pitched 61.2 innings with 45 strikeouts. Mann leads the team with 46 strikeouts and had a 5-1 record to go with his 3.92 ERA. Brevin Smith has a 4.21 ERA and has struck out 32 batters in 47 innings. He has a 5-4 record.
 
Key relievers include Luke Sanders, Gregory Gonzalez Jr and Brayden Thomas.
 
Jadon Oden leads the team with a .414 bating average. Other top hitters are Chandler Hicks (.385), Kendal Spencer (.383), D'Sean Prinkleton (.381), Addrian McNeal Jr (.345) and Hunter Bradshaw (.336).
 
Spencer has hit five home runs and Prinkleton has three while Hakeem Smith has seven triples and Spencer has five. Oden and Spencer both have 13 doubles, Prinkleton has 12 and Bradshaw has 11. 
 
Spencer also leads the squad in hits with 59 followed by Prinkleton and McNeal who both have 51, Bradshaw (50), Oden (46) and Hicks (42).
 
A Tampa, Florida native, Spencer has 52 runs batted in while Bradshaw has 48 and Prinkleton has 46.
 
Other players who are major contributors are Jacob Rushin, Jason Miller, William Mahoney IV, Desmore Joseph II and Farah Castillo.
 
Savannah State owns a 28-13 overall record and a 21-12 mark in the conference.