FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
Jacksonville State has signed five players to play baseball for the Gamecocks for the 2010 season, head coach Jim Case announced today.
Pitchers Robby Lilly, Michael Mason, Todd Hornsby and Hunter Rivers, joins outfielder Orrin McFadden in the signing class.
“As we went into the recruiting process for 2010, we had some positions that we felt like would need immediate attention,” said Case. “We feel very confident that we addressed our needs and we expect these young men to all play as freshmen in our program.”
Lilly played at Hoover High School for Rick Davis, where he pitched the Bucs to the 2008 Class 6A State Championship. He posted a 10-3 record with a 2.40 ERA as a junior, including a 12-4 win over Opelika in the state finals. The Hoover, Ala., native went 5-0 with a 2.42 ERA as a sophomore.
“It’s exciting to have Robby join our team,” said Case. “He played a big role in Hoover winning the state baseball championship last season. He is also tremendous student in the classroom.
McFadden is a talented two-sport standout at Westside High School, where he plays outfield and is the quarterback of the top-ranked Seminoles in Class 4A.
“Orrin is a great, all-around athlete, who also plays quarterback on the football team,” said Case. “We’re excited to have someone with his leadership ability and athletic talent sign with us.”
Mason is a right-handed pitcher from Cottage Hill Christian Academy, where he played for Chris Brazell. As a junior, he posted a perfect 8-0 record with 58 strikeouts in 50.0 innings on the mound. He was named to the Mobile Press-Register All-Region team after tossing four complete games with two shut-outs in 2008.
“Michael is a big, strong pitcher that we are extremely excited about,” Case said. “He’s a hard thrower, who should be able to step in and make an impact right away on the mound for us.”
Hornsby is a right-handed pitcher at Northwest Shoals Community College, who prepped at Clay-Chalkville High School. He posted a 4-1 record with a 2.72 ERA at NWSCC in 2008 with 37 strikeouts in 36.1 innings on the mound.
“Todd should bring immediate help to our bullpen for the 2010 season,” Case said. “He is a sidearm pitcher who has had tremendous success at the junior college level and we expect him to progress like Brian Booth and Alex Jones has in our program.”
Rivers is a right-handed pitcher from West Morgan High School.
“We are extremely excited to have someone of Hunter’s ability to join our team,” said Case. “He is an outstanding athlete that we expect to come in and contribute on the mound.”
Since joining the Ohio Valley Conference in 2004, the Gamecocks are the winningest team in the conference with a 70.4 winning percentage, posting an impressive 95-40 OVC record.
The Gamecocks also dominated the 2008 OVC All-Conference Teams, getting a record 10 players on the All-Conference teams, including the OVC Player of the Year in Clay Whittemore and the OVC Freshman of the Year in Todd Cunningham. Case has also earned OVC Coach of the Year honors twice over the last four years..
