BB: SCAC: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

[Ron Boerger]

TLU coach Rick Heines announced his resignation today.  The 2023 SCAC coach-of-the-year recorded an 87-43 record leading the program the last three seasons.  No reason other than wanting "to seek new challenges elsewhere" was given; Heines spent a total of eleven years on the staff.

[Ron Boerger]

Looks like there is no functional video stream for Trinity - Pacific.  In this day and age, that seems like a bare minimum regional hosting requirement.

Go to https://goetbutigers.com/watch/?Live=1904&type=Live

I had to use an incognito browser to get it working.   Trinity 4-0 top 4. 

Make it 6-0, still nobody out, runners 2nd and 3rd.

8-0 going to bottom of the inning.

[Ron Boerger]

Pacific comes all the way back, 9-9 and had bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the ninth but with the count 2-2 a third strike is called on a time violation.

In the top of the tenth TU loads the bases with two outs, and with the count 3-2 Christian Holloway, 0-5 on the day, cranks a grand slam to left field and the Tigers escape, 13-10.

[Jack Parkman]

Pacific comes all the way back, 9-9 and had bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the ninth but with the count 2-2 a third strike is called on a time violation.

In the top of the tenth TU loads the bases with two outs, and with the count 3-2 Christian Holloway, 0-5 on the day, cranks a grand slam to left field and the Tigers escape, 13-10.

Even worse for Pacific, they had bases loaded with nobody out in the 9th. They are going to be kicking themselves unless they go on a run.

[Ron Boerger]

Pacific went 2-and-'cue, losing 8-1 to CLU in the opening elimination game.
Trinity held an early lead but ETBU feasted on TU pitching after that in a 9-4 win, advancing to the championship round where they only need to win 1 of 2.
In the day's final elimination game, Trinity holds a 4-0 lead on CLU after four innings. 

[Ron Boerger]

Trinity went on to defeat CLU 11-2, thanks in no small part nearly six innings of scoreless three hit ball from sophomore Jack Briese, making the first start of his career after having pitched only 15 2/3 innings in 8 previous appearances this season.  Joseph Chavana (3-4, 3.05 ERA) is likely the starter in the 11AM game despite having thrown 1 2/3 in short relief on Friday as Trinity will have to take a pitch by committee approach coming out of the loser's bracket.

[Ron Boerger]

It'll come down to a best 2 of 3 between Trinity and ETBU as the San Antonio Tigers win 8-6 after sprinting to a 6-0 lead through 5.  ETBU would score 3 times in the bottom of the 6th and 7th before Trinity put the winning runs on the board in their half of the 8th.  The home team would put two on in the ninth but were unable to push anyone across.

[Ron Boerger]

Trinity came up just short as ETBU scored twice in the bottom of the eighth in a 2-1 victory.

[Ron Boerger]

Trinity may not have made it to the CWS, but one of their former players still has a chance at a natty this year.  MJ Metz, who graduated last year, took advantage of his COVID eligibility while continuing his education at Duke and not only made the team but became a starter at first base.  He injured his ACL in the ACC championships, but as DH in the Conway SC regionals hit four home runs and was named Most Outstanding Player of the All-Tournament team.  Not too shabby for last year's third-team D3baseball.com/ABCA all-regional player.   After a torrid start to the season, Metz cooled off but is hitting .290 for the year with 17 HR and 48 RBI. 

Unranked Duke plays favored #11 Virginia in the super regionals after defeating favored #9 Coastal Carolina 12-3 in yesterday's winner-take-all regional final.   If they can pull off the upset Metz could find himself in a CWS for the second straight year; I wonder when the last time a player went from the D3 to the D1 CWS in the span of a year. 

[Ron Boerger]

Trinity has lost two pitchers for the upcoming season   

SP Harrison Durow (3.35 ERA, 3-3 in 17 app/5 starts, 48.1 IP, 0.274 OBA, 64K) who would have been a rising senior, signed with the Milwaukee Brewers in August.
Reliever Jack Martinez (2.12 ERA, 6-0 in 20 app/1 start, 51.0 IP, 0.163 OBA, 81K), a rising junior, transferred to D1 UL-Lafayette.

[Ralph Turner]

Trinity has lost two pitchers for the upcoming season   

SP Harrison Durow (3.35 ERA, 3-3 in 17 app/5 starts, 48.1 IP, 0.274 OBA, 64K) who would have been a rising senior, signed with the Milwaukee Brewers in August.
Reliever Jack Martinez (2.12 ERA, 6-0 in 20 app/1 start, 51.0 IP, 0.163 OBA, 81K), a rising junior, transferred to D1 UL-Lafayette.

Back in the day, it reminded me of following the old Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs and seeing Don Kessinger or Joe Niekro get called up to the Major Leagues (the Cubs).

[Ron Boerger]

Trinity has posted their 2024 schedule; as is typical, teams from the colder parts of the country are making early season pilgrimages down South while their fields are frozen.  The schedule opens with four games each against Babson (24-18 in 2023) and UW-Whitewater (30-13) as part of a 12-game homestand before a visit March 12th to Marshall for the first of a away-and-home series with ETBU.

[Ron Boerger]

If Trinity can win one more game this season (32) than last, the final win would represent the 800th in HC Tim Scannell's career.

[Riley Zayas]

Definitely a storyline I'll be watching! Trinity has the makings of being a national contender this season.

As a side note, former Trinity right-hander Jack Martinez is Louisiana's ace in the starting rotation this year. Transferred in from Trinity after two really solid years in San Antonio. He's going to be Louisiana's Friday night starter and threw 5 IP with 1 hit allowed and 1 walk against Wright State on Friday.

[Ron Boerger]

According to a story in today's Trinitonian student newspaper, in addition to Martinez and Durow, the Tigers also lost SP Cade McGahan (6-3 in 14 app/12 starts, 2.47 ERA), and Scannell is quoted as saying "I think we're devastated by the three key losses that we had, and I think probably the most unheralded of them is Cade McGahan", and Scannell further "expressed concern for his bullpen, which lost its two most reliable arms from last season."  Maybe win #800 will have to wait until next season; Scannell is also trying to find more offense. 

The article doesn't mention what happened with McGahan, listed as a junior last season, and I wasn't able to find any breadcrumbs indicating he transferred to another program.