BUENA VISTA, Va. – The Southern Virginia University baseball team had its most wins since 2019 during the 2023 campaign, tallying 13 total wins in its second season in the USA South Athletic Conference.

The Knights opened the year with a bang, recording five home runs on the opening day en route to back-to-back wins over the Mustangs of Mid-Atlantic Christian University, 8-4 and 8-6. The five homers were half the total from 2022 and helped the Knights set a new school record for home runs in a season with 35.

After opening up the campaign 2-0, Southern Virginia dropped five straight, including the home opener against Penn State Mont Alto on a cold and wet Saturday afternoon. The team would avenge one of the losses, taking down Ferrum at home just two weeks after falling on the road to the Panthers. The hosts leaned on an excellent second inning where they added four runs to defeat Ferrum for the first home win of the year.

The Knights wouldn't stop there, winning four straight, including three more at home to improve to 7-5. A week after the win over the Panthers, the team battled the Comets of Capital University, sweeping the two-game series in back-to-back high-scoring affairs. The bats stayed hot in the next two contests, at home against Plattsburgh State and on the road against former conference foe Averett, tallying eight runs on both occasions.

USA South play began with a series against Brevard at home, with the visitors taking all three games. Following a back-and-forth battle between the squads in the opening game on Friday afternoon, the Tornados cruised to back-to-back wins on a chilly Saturday afternoon.

Southern Virginia had a quick mid-week break from conference competition, traveling to Newport News, Virginia, to take on No. 18 Christopher Newport University (CNU). Despite giving up a run in the opening inning, the Southern Virginia defense did well to hold the high-powered CNU offense to just four total runs and six hits in the nine innings. However, the Captain's Jack Braley did well to limit the Knight's bats, holding the visitors scoreless and just five hits.

The offensive struggles continued into conference play, tallying just two runs in the next three games—a three-game series against NC Wesleyan—leading to the team's seventh straight loss after its five-game win streak.

Following five more defeats, the Knights returned to the win column in a conference contest against the Squirrels of Mary Baldwin. Freshman Ty Martinez led the way offensively, registering seven hits, three doubles, two homers, nine RBI and seven runs in the doubleheader.

For the week in total, Martinez went 8-for-12 (.667) with a .692 on-base percentage, and a 1.500 slugging percentage to go along with eight runs scored, ten RBI, four doubles, two home runs, and one walk, being recognized as the Division III National Rookie of the Week by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA).

The Knights secured the series sweep against the Squirrels in a close contest, 6-2, three days after scoring 37 runs in the first two games.

Following the sweep, Southern Virginia earned one of its biggest victories of the season in another conference contest, defeating Methodist 14-7 in the first of three games against the Monarchs. Senior Nick Daynes impressed, recording five hits, including three doubles, five RBI and three runs.

After dropping the final two games of the Methodist series, Southern Virginia played its final non-conference contest of the campaign, defeating Newport News Apprentice School 16-5 in seven innings. Mitch Smith shined in the victory, going a perfect 4-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI. Senior Will Parker added two homers and three RBI. Ryan Farris and Luke Roberts each notched home runs for six total in the game—the most in program history since joining the NCAA.

In the year's final series, the Knights took on the Pacers of William Peace, battling with the No. 3 team in the USA South regular season standings. After weather delayed the first game scheduled for Friday, the series opened up with a doubleheader on Saturday featuring 12 home runs and extra innings. The first game saw the Knights come back from down three, scoring two runs in the bottom of the eighth to secure the 7-6 victory. In a game that saw all but one run come off home runs, Mitch Smith smacked two out of the park for four RBI to go along with three runs—with the third coming on a wild pitch for the only non-homer run of the contest. The afternoon's second game saw four more home runs, including the game-winner in the top of the twelfth for the Pacers. The visitors took care of business in the third and final game of the series, which was rescheduled to Monday to secure the third seed in the conference tournament. The Knights were held to just six hits and three runs in the year's final contest.

Following the completion of the regular season, the USA South Athletic Conference announced its 2023 All-Conference baseball teams, with Ty Martinez being named to the Second Team and earning the Rookie of the Year award. The freshman from South Weber, Utah, led the team with eight home runs which were the second most in the conference and ties Riley Daniels for the most by a first-year player in program history. Martinez also led the team with a .878 slugging percentage and 29 RBI while racking up 28 hits, including seven doubles and a team-high three triples. Defensively, the outfielder had 54 putouts and two assists on the year.

Martinez will look to build upon his excellent freshman season in the upcoming 2024 campaign that begins in February 2024. Martinez will be joined by seven returning starters: Nick Daynes, Stockton Hall, Benjamin Horsley, Sinjun Johnson, Marcelino Leonardo Jr., Seth Lloyd and Mitch Smith.

For all the most up-to-date information regarding Southern Virginia University baseball, please visit knightathletics.com and follow @knight_bsb on Instagram.