Georgia State falls to an even 13-13 record on the season, losing 7-4 to Alabama State Tuesday night. The Panthers are now 2-5 in midweek games so far this season, and the loss marks the first time Georgia State has lost to the Hornets since 2023.
Redshirt freshman Jackson Williams got the scoring started in the top of the first inning for Alabama State, swatting his sixth home run of the year to put the Hornets up 3-0 early.
Outfielder John Beverley got two back for the Panthers in the home half of the first inning with a two-RBI single to centerfield, bringing Georgia State within one. Beverley’s team-leading .386 batting average is just outside of the top-100 in all of Division I baseball for batting average—a testament to the impact he has on the ASU’s lineup.
However, the Hornets kept stinging in the next inning with a Miguel Oropeza RBI double to score Breydon Divine for his ninth run of the season, pushing the score up 4-2 in favor of Alabama State.
The Hornets would go on to score three more unanswered runs throughout the rest of the game, capped off by Oropeza’s second RBI double of the game to make it a 7-2 game in the sixth inning. The graduate infielder recorded his third game with multiple RBIs and his first with multiple extra-base hits.
The Panthers tried to crawl back in the final three innings, getting a run back from a Beverly sacrifice flyout in the seventh inning and a Lucas Grantham RBI single in the ninth inning, putting Georgia State in striking distance of the Hornets.
But reliever Camden Matthews slammed the door on the Panthers to record his third save of the season and give the Hornets their first road win since their regular-season finale last year against Prairie View.
Matthews finished with 1.1 IP for the Hornets on Tuesday, only giving up one run off one hit to put a bow on the win.
Jacob Crews got the start for the Panthers and would be shouldered with the loss despite only 1.1 IP for Georgia State. The senior right-hander let up four runs on just three hits, striking out just two.
Georgia State will look to rebound this weekend and improve their position in the conference when Texas State comes to town for the final time as a Sun Belt opponent.
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