By Jason Pompey
Tied 3-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Josh Markins (freshman/ Colonial Heights, VA) hit a walk-off homerun on the first pitch, giving the Trojans a 4-3 victory over the Battlers of Alderson-Broaddus College on Sunday, February 19 in Ettrick, VA. RHP Maso Cotton (sophomore/ Vauxhall, NJ) struckout 6 batters, throwing a complete game for Virginia State.
The Trojans scored three runs on five hits in the third inning, springing out to an early 3-0 lead over the visiting Battlers. William Tapp (freshman/ Dinwiddie, VA) singled to center field and advanced to third base on another single by Howard Spencer (senior/ Richmond, VA).
VSU’s Nicholas Christopher (freshman/ Dinwiddie, VA) brought in Tapp with a blast to center field. Cameron Cox (senior/ Baltimore, MD) followed Christopher’s single with an RBI single of his own, scoring Spencer. Tyler Coleman (freshman/ Chesterfield, VA) continued the Trojan third inning rally with another RBI, scoring Christopher.
The Battlers would score single runs in fourth, sixth, and seventh innings to tie the ball game at 3-3. Leading off for the Trojans in the bottom of the ninth inning was third baseman Josh Markins. Markins sent the first pitch over the center field wall for a walk-off home run. The win raises the Trojans record to 4-2. Pitcher Maso Cotton picked up the win for the Trojans, striking out 6 and walked 3 batters. He gave up 10 hits but picked up the most important stat, the win.
Virginia State will hit the road to Greer, SC and participate in the Bluefield State Tournament on February 24th at 4:00 pm against Salem International.
Trojans Upset 19th Ranked Bulldogs on National TV
Virginia State held Bowie State to 27% shooting from the field in an upset victory for the Trojans 67-57, on Saturday, Feb. 18 in Bowie, MD. Kenny Mitchell (junior/ Stone Mountain, GA) and Ibn Rassoull (senior/ East Orange, NJ) led the Trojans, each scoring 19 points as the Trojans shot 48% from the field.
The Bulldogs jumped out the gates early on offense with a 13-4 lead. At the 14:34 mark in the first half, the Trojans finally found the basket on a consistent basis. Several Trojans added points, switching the momentum to favor Virginia State. The Trojans went on to shoot 55% from the field in the first half, making 11 of 20 shots from the field. VSU’s Shawn Porter (freshman/ Chesapeake, VA) sparked an 8-2 run with 2:48 left to play in the half drawing the Trojans to within 4 points. The Trojans played well defensively holding the Bulldogs to a mere 29% shooting from the field in the first half.
The Trojans Ibn Rassoull scored 13 points in the second half to pace the Trojans scoring. At the 15:17 mark in the second half, forward Kenny Mitchell made a tough lay up in the paint tying the game for the first time (35-35).
After a technical foul called on BSU’s Hyman, the Trojans went ahead by four points as VSU’s Mike Bynum (junior/ Norfolk, VA) and Daniel Awosanya (junior/ London, England) both made clutch free-throws down the stretch, putting the Trojans ahead in the game. The Bulldogs tried to extend the game by fouling, but the Trojans were able to make their free throws at the end of the game. The Trojans defeated the 19th ranked Bulldogs of Bowie State 67-57, giving them their first road win of the season.
Leading the way for the Trojans was forward Kenny Mitchell with 19 points and 7 rebounds and Ibn Rassoull added 19 points. Also producing was Mike Bynum with 2 of 3 from three-point range with 14 points, 4 dimes, and 4 rebounds.
The Trojans are on a four game winning streak, their longest of the season. They returned to action at home in Daniel Gymnasium for senior night on Monday, Feb.20.
VSU Softball Falls to Barton in Double-Header
RHP Jessica Mattia (sophomore/ Accokeek, MD) threw 8 total strike-outs in a double-header loss to Barton on Saturday, Feb 18 in Wilson, NC. Infielder Jameshia Smith (freshman/ Halifax, VA) recorded 3 RBI’s on two doubles in a 6-5 loss in game two.
The Lady Trojans failed to score any runs but had two hits in a 3-0 loss in game one to the Bulldogs. Mattia struck out five and walked one batter. Infielder LaCara Hawkes (junior/ Blackstone, VA) singled down the left field line in the first inning and outfielder Mikia Noble doubled to left center field in the seventh inning, recording VSU’s only hits in game one. The Bulldogs recorded 9 hits and scored two runs in the first inning and another run in the third inning, defeating the Lady Trojans.
Mattia took the mound for the Lady Trojans again in game two. She struck out three and walked two batters. The Lady Trojans exploded in the second inning scoring five runs. Jameshia Smith doubled and advanced to third base on a bad throw by the Barton defense. She brought in three Lady Trojans (Ashley Bushrod, Caitlyn Underhill, and Sade’ Holmes) then scored on a single by Mattia.
The Bulldogs responded with five runs of their own also in the second inning, expanding their lead to 8-5. VSU would add one run in the fourth inning behind another double by Jameshia Smith. Smith doubled to left-center field and scored on a single by Jessica Mattia.
The Lady Trojans look to regroup on Sunday, February 19th against the visiting Virginia University of Lynchburg at 1:00 pm in Ettrick, VA.
Edwards Breaks School Record at VT Challenge
Samantha Edwards set a new school record in the women’s 200m dash event at the Virginia Tech Challenge in Blacksburg, VA on Friday, February 17th. Edwards won the event and set the new school record with a time of 24.25.
