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Collegiate baseball players making impact

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE 2021 campaigns are underway at nearly every level of play in collegiate baseball and several Bahamian players had early impacts with their respective programmes.

At the NAIA level, Wade Weinburger Jr had a career day for the Bryan College Lions in yesterday’s double header win over Montreat College in an Appalachian Athletic Conference matchup.

In game one, the senior outfielder powered his team’s offensive with a perfect 3-3 day at the plate, which included a grand slam, a two run home run, eight RBI and three runs.

In the top of the second, Weinburger hit a two-run shot to left centre to give his team an early 3-0 lead.

In the third, Weinburger blasted the first pitch he saw and hit a grand slam to left centre to give the Lions a 7-1 advantage.

He added a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning and singled to centre in the sixth.

In the second half of the double header, the Lions took a 12-2 win.

Weinburger went hitless, but drew a walk and scored one run. The Lions are nationally ranked at No.21 with a record of 12-3.

Through 15 games, Weinburger is hitting .283 with 15 hits, four home runs, 19 RBI and scored 14 runs.

Also in the AAC, Devyn Munroe got his first stolen base of the season in his Truett McConnell Bears’ 7-4 loss to Montreat on Wednesday night.

The Bears are 7-5 on the season and Munroe has started each game at third base, hitting .306 with eight RBI..

His top game of the season thus far was a 9-6 win over Lourdes. He tripled and went 2-4 with 2 RBI.

Dominique Collie returned to the field to help the Webber International Warriors take a 2-1 win in a series over No.15 Keiser.

Collie opened the series with an RBI triple in the first inning of his team’s 4-3 win. He went 2-4 in the second game series, another 4-3 win for the Warriors.

“We were very happy with the way we showed up this weekend,” spoke Webber’s Head Coach Collin Martin. “The Sun Conference series are all important, and our team brought plenty of energy and we did some great things in all facets.”

Webber moved to 9-7 overall and 4-2 in TSC play.

In NCAA Division I, Duante Stuart and his Northwestern State University Demons have struggled to open the season but the sophomore infielder has been a bright spot thus far.

Stuart drove in the Demons’ only pair of runs in Wednesday night’s 5-2 loss to the Louisiana Monroe Warhawks.

The Demons managed just a single hit through seven innings, but in the eighth, had a pair of hit batters and a Warhawks defensive error to load the bases. Stuart came through and doubled to left centre for his team’s only runs of the game.

The Demons were picked to finish fifth in the Southland Conference preseason poll. They went 12-4 in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. As a true freshman, Stuart started all 16 games at second base. He was one of three Demons to swipe three bases and finished third on the team in batting average with .281. He went on a nine game hit streak from February 16 - March 1 and doubled in three straight games from February 26-29.

In NCAA Division II, Pemron Burrows and the Texas Permian Basin Falcons have experienced postponements on back to back weekends.

This upcoming weekend’s upcoming series against St. Edward’s as well as last weekend’s series at Texas A&M – Kingsville were postponed due to inclement weather.

In their lone series of the year, Burrows hit .300 with five runs scored and three stolen bases but the Falcons lost the three game set 1-2 to Texas A and M International.

In a 6-5 opening day win, Burrows, the senior outfielder hitting in the leadoff spot, went 2-2 with two runs scored, two walks, two stolen bases, and was hit by a pitch.

In last year’s pandemic shortened season which was reduced to 21 games, Burrows led the Falcons in three categories - five stolen bases, 18 runs scored, and 11 walks. He was third on the team with a .368 on base percentage.

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