Jsu sports

JSU, EKU combine for eight double plays

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Wed, 22 May 2013 23:39:00 -0600

Depending on which side of the equation one sits, a double play is either a pitcher’s best friend or a hitter’s nightmare. Jacksonville State and Eastern Kentucky got ample doses of both Wednesday in their Ohio Valley Conference tournament opener. They combined to turn eight double plays in the game, setting what is believed to be a neutral-site tournament record and tying Southeast Missouri’s team record with four each.

Gamecocks fall to Colonels in OVC tourney opener

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Wed, 22 May 2013 23:38:00 -0600

It used to be Jacksonville State was a virtual lock whenever its first game came up in the Ohio Valley Conference baseball tournament. It’s not that way lately. The Gamecocks dropped their tournament opener for the second year in a row Wednesday, falling to fifth-seeded Eastern Kentucky 11-2 at The Ballpark at Jackson.

Bishop leading Gamecocks into OVC tourney

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Tue, 21 May 2013 23:43:00 -0600

By all accounts, this has been a good year for Jacksonville State center fielder Michael Bishop. A fun year. A productive year. It’s been a different kind of year, as well, particularly as it relates to the role the junior has assumed and embraced.

Men at work: Top OVC teams also have top closers

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz) — Mon, 20 May 2013 22:40:00 -0600

A word to the wise for teams playing in this week’s Ohio Valley Conference baseball tournament: Score early, because given the quality of closers in the league this year, if you’re not leading late, you’re chances of coming back are about as good as making ice in Death Valley. Each of the top four seeds in the tournament that starts Wednesday in Jackson, Tenn., has a closer who won’t give you much. They have been a part of 76 of their teams’ combined 150 wins (60 saves, 16 wins) and have a combined earned run average of 1.59.

Joe Medley: On a good day to be a Gamecock, it was good to hang with the Gamecocks

noreply@annistonstar.com (Joe Medley jmedley@annistonstar.com) — Sat, 18 May 2013 23:53:00 -0600

For one day in this work-a-day scribe’s life, I got to feel like a part of a college sports team. In particular, it was Jacksonville State’s baseball team, and let me clarify what I mean about feeling like a part of the team. I happened to have a pair of black Adidas sweats and a red Adidas top, so I wore them to blend in. Per assignment, I sat in the back of their bus from the moment it left JSU’s campus to the moment it arrived outside of Auburn’s Plainsman Park on Tuesday. I spent all of JSU’s 6-1 victory at Auburn with the guys in the Gamecocks’ dugout and interacted with players and coaches, then I rode back home in the same seat on the team bus. I ate the same sandwiches they ate, watched the same videos they watched en route to and from Auburn, used the same bathrooms … one gets the picture.

Gamecocks get No. 4 seed, will play Colonels in OVC tourney

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Sat, 18 May 2013 23:48:00 -0600

The final day of the regular season didn’t yield the best of results for Jacksonville State’s baseball team, but in what sets up as one of the most hotly contested Ohio Valley Conference tournaments in memory, the Gamecocks still have as good a shot as anybody. After Saturday’s results, the Gamecocks (32-24) pulled down the No. 4 seed in the tournament and will play fifth-seeded Eastern Kentucky (20-32) in their first game, 3 p.m. Wednesday at The Ballpark at Jackson (Tenn.)

JSU softball: Season ends with regional loss

noreply@annistonstar.com (Mark Edwards medwards@annistonstar.com) — Sat, 18 May 2013 18:20:00 -0600

After a thrilling four-day run to an Ohio Valley Conference championship and a nail-biting loss to defending national champion Alabama, maybe Jacksonville State didn't have anything left. The Gamecocks' run in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional ended quickly and decisively Saturday afternoon, falling 8-0 to South Carolina-Upstate in an elimination game.

Gamecocks split with Morehead, await tourney fate

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Sat, 18 May 2013 00:22:00 -0600

Because of the way the schedule fell, a lot of people with the Jacksonville State baseball team might have had hopes for a leisurely Saturday afternoon. It ain’t gonna happen now. After splitting their season-ending doubleheader with Morehead State Friday, the Gamecocks will be spending much of today waiting out the other league scores to learn their OVC Tournament fate.

NCAA softball: JSU falls at Alabama in regional opener

noreply@annistonstar.com (Mark Edwards medwards@annistonstar.com) — Fri, 17 May 2013 22:21:00 -0600

In the opening round of the NCAA's Tuscaloosa Regional, Jacksonville State fell to Alabama 4-0 for the 11th time in 11 all-time meetings. Alabama (43-13) will face Western Kentucky (42-16) in the winners' bracket final today at 1 p.m. JSU (30-26) will face South Carolina-Upstate (41-11) in an elimination game at 3:30 p.m. The winner will meet the Alabama/WKU loser at 6 p.m.

Gamecocks open series with win over Morehead State

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Thu, 16 May 2013 23:59:00 -0600

The push by Jacksonville State to secure a first-round bye in the upcoming conference tournament got off to a good start Thursday as the Gamecocks opened their final regular-season series with an 8-2 win over Morehead State.

Mark Edwards' In My Opinion: New Tide coach has lot in common with JSU's McGinnis

noreply@annistonstar.com (Mark Edwards medwards@annistonstar.com) — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:11:00 -0600

Thursday was spent in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama introduced a new women's basketball coach, Kristy Curry. About two hours later, there was another news conference, but this one was for Jacksonville State softball coach Jana McGinnis, as her team prepares to play in the Tuscaloosa Regional. If you didn't know otherwise, you'd swear they're the same person.

JSU softball: Gamecocks were ready for postseason chance

noreply@annistonstar.com (Mark Edwards medwards@annistonstar.com) — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:40:00 -0600

During the worst stretch of the year, Jacksonville State's softball team discovered how good it could be. It happened during the last three weeks of the regular season. That's when the Gamecocks lost seven of nine games but began putting themselves in the position they occupy now - a first-round game in the Tuscaloosa Regional tonight against Alabama, the defending national champion.

JSU's Urban ready for Game 3 call

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz) — Wed, 15 May 2013 20:53:00 -0600

The Jacksonville State baseball team plays its final series of the season this week with a chance to share the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season championship. It’s going to take a sweep — and a little help — but if it comes down to Saturday to clinch, JSU coach Jim Case has a pitcher who is familiar and comfortable in such high-stakes situations — sophomore Tony Urban.

Early runs help JSU baseball win at Auburn

noreply@annistonstar.com (Star staff) — Tue, 14 May 2013 21:33:00 -0600

Michael Bishop slugged a two-run homer to help pace Jacksonville State over Auburn 6-1 on Tuesday night at Plainsman Park.

Mark Edwards: Old 'jinx' doesn't sink JSU or its ace pitcher

noreply@annistonstar.com (Mark Edwards medwards@annistonstar.com) — Mon, 13 May 2013 16:55:00 -0600

I have no problem believing in the old Sports Illustrated jinx — it always seems as soon as a team hits the cover, it loses. There’s part of me that wonders if I write a story for the sports front page, am I dooming that particular team or athlete? I realize in my head what I write has nothing to do with how a team or player performs, but against all reason, my heart sometimes says otherwise.

JSU softball: Gamecocks will open NCAA tourney against defending champion Alabama

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Sun, 12 May 2013 22:10:00 -0600

The Gamecocks are playing in the Tuscaloosa Regional in the NCAA softball tournament and will open with defending champion Alabama. The two teams will play at 6 p.m. Friday.

JSU baseball: Gamecocks fall but wind up taking 2 of 3 at Eastern Kentucky

noreply@annistonstar.com (Star staff) — Sun, 12 May 2013 15:40:00 -0600

Michael Bishop had three hits and three RBIs but Jacksonville State fell 14-6 at Eastern Kentucky on Sunday afternoon. The Gamecocks (29-23, 20-7 Ohio Valley Conference) took two of three in the series.

JSU softball: Harbin pitches Gamecocks into OVC title round

noreply@annistonstar.com (Star staff) — Sat, 11 May 2013 18:26:00 -0600

Jacksonville State ace Tiffany Harbin pitched another gem for the Gamecocks in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. With Harbin picking up her third win and third complete game of the tournament, sixth-seeded JSU beat fourth-seeded Murray State 2-1, which put the Gamecocks into Sunday's championship round.

JSU baseball: Stout sets school record as Gamecocks score sweep

noreply@annistonstar.com (Star staff) — Sat, 11 May 2013 17:23:00 -0600

Jacksonville State's Travis Stout set a school record with his 16th save and Michael Bishop had a career-high four hits as the Gamecocks swept a key Ohio Valley Conference doubleheader at Eastern Kentucky on Saturday. JSU won the opener 9-4 and held on for a 10-9 win in the second game.

Former Minnesota quarterback headed to Jacksonville State

noreply@annistonstar.com (Al Muskewitz amuskewitz@annistonstar.com) — Sat, 11 May 2013 01:07:00 -0600

When Max Shortell decided it finally was time to get off the wild and confusing ride that was his first two years at Minnesota, nothing was more important than finding the perfect place to land. There were several suitors for a quarterback with 13 games of BCS experience, but it ultimately came down to where he and his gunslinger style fit best. That became Jacksonville State and once he completes the necessary paperwork, he’ll be on his way to becoming a Gamecock “for good.”