FAMU baseball team arrives in Boston for historic series

Yesterday, a Boston Red Sox welcoming committee greeted the FAMU baseball team as it arrived in the Logan International Airport en route to a three game Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) series against North Carolina Central University. The welcoming committee presented t-shirts and hats to the student-athletes, Head Coach Jamey Shouppe, FAMU President Elmira Mangum, and Interim Athletic Director Earl D'Wayne Robinson.

The Rattlers (14-22, 10-8 MEAC) and North Carolina Central (19-22, 12-8 MEAC) are in a four-way battle for first place in the Southern Division, which is big since only the top three teams in each division advance to the MEAC tournament.

Before it was moved to Boston, the matchup against NCCU was to be final home series of the season for the Rattlers in Tallahassee. FAMU is coming off a tough 3-2 loss at Auburn on Tuesday where the Rattlers out-hit the Tigers 11-4. NCCU has lost four straight, including a pair of mid-week games against UNC Asheville and High Point this week.

Friday’s doubleheader will begin at 11:00 AM ET and will be played at Jim Rice Field in Roxbury, Mass., before the series finale moves to Fenway Park on Saturday. Saturday’s game will be broadcasted on the New England Sports Network (NESN) at 2:00 PM ET.

The New England Sports Network (NESN) can be found on Direct TV channel 628 as well as on Dish Network channels 434 and 5434 (NESN HD).

This series is apart the first ever Historically Black College and Universities Legacy Weekend Celebration sponsored by the Boston Red Sox and the Boston Area Church League, Inc. In addition to the games being played, other events over the weekend include a reception on Thursday, a debate hosted by Harvard University on Friday, April 24, and a college career fair hosted by the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Saturday, April 25.

In the first meeting of the season, the Rattlers were swept in the three-game series played at the Durham Athletic Park in Durham, N.C. FAMU was held to just two runs on 13 hits over the three games.

FAMU is 6-3 in their last nine conference games and is led by Alec Wong’s .364 batting average in those games. In the last nine MEAC games, Wong has three home runs, one double, eight runs scored, seven RBI, a .667 SLG%, 22 total bases and was walked nine times. Jared Walker (.316), Ryan Kennedy (.296), Jeremy Barlow (.296), Brian Davis (.296) and Michael Birdsong (.286) have also each hit well in the last nine MEAC games.

The Rattlers lead the MEAC with a .962 fielding percentage, second in walks (159) and is fourth with a 4.92 team ERA. The Rattler pitching staff is tied for third in the MEAC with six saves this season.