No. 1 Talladega, No. 4 Dillard advance on first day of 2025 HBCUAC Baseball Championship
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - April 30, 2025 - The first day of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) Hope Credit Union 2025 Baseball Championship saw No. 4 seed Dillard University pull out a thrilling 4-3 victory over No. 5 Voorhees University and No. 1 seed Talladega College overwhelm No. 8 seed Wilberforce University 9-0 Wednesday at CHI St. Vincent Field at Dickey Stephens Park.
No. 4 DILLARD 4, No. 5 VOORHEES 3
Boxscore
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With the score tied at one in the seventh, Derrald Moore Jr. was hit by a pitch and Angel Polanco walked
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Moore stole third, Jalen Ayers hit a double to deep center field to score Moore and Polanco, giving the Bleu Devils a 3-1 lead.
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Ayers extended the lead, scoring when Renard Smith reached on an error.
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Keelen Sloan brought the Tigers within one with a double down the right field line, scoring Yojairon Juan and Emory Guilford
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Jorge Guerra picked up his sixth win, holding the Tigers to three runs on seven hits in 7 ⅔ innings.
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Landin Turcuit earned his second save
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Ayers went 2-for-4 with his two-RBI double
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Sloan went 3-for-5 with two RBI
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Juan went 2-for-3 with two runs
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Keith Copeland started for Voorhees and went five innings, allowing a run on four hits
No. 1 TALLADEGA 9, No. 8 WILBERFORCE 0
Boxscore
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Talladega starting pitcher Nomar Caraballo held Wilberforce to five singles in six innings and struck out two batters.
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Dewinel Vazquez earned the save, pitching three innings and allowing one hit and struck out four
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The Tornadoes got on the board in the first inning with an RBI single by Jahir Cruz.
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Jonathan Williams increased the lead in the second with an infield single to second
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Talladega broke the game open in the fifth with five runs with three scored on bases loaded walks.
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Victor Rivera and Miguel Oropeza each recorded two hits
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Beau Spears, Darius Woodson, Thomas Hampton, Joe Mendy, Phillip Williams III and Jaylen Davis recorded hits for the Bulldogs
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Orlando Olvera started and went 4 ⅔ innings
HBCUAC reveals 2025 All-HBCUAC Baseball Honorees
2025 All-HBCUAC First Team
During the HBCUAC Baseball Championship banquet, the conference announced the 2025 All-HBCUAC teams, the Players and Coaches of the Year and the regular season champion and runner-up Tuesday at Argenta Plaza in Downtown North Little Rock.
2025 All-HBCUAC Baseball Teams and Award Winners
Most Valuable Player: Miguel Oropeza, Talladega
Coach of the Year: Marcos Dominguez, Talladega
Assistant Coach of the Year: Jorge Rodriguez, Talladega
Pitcher of the Year: Keyon Guillory, Wiley
Hitter of the Year: Miguel Oropeza, Talladega
Newcomer of the Year: Emilio Duque, Talladega
Freshman of the Year: Christopher Diaz-Alcantra, Wilberforce
First Team
C Armando Jackson, Talladega
1B Miguel Oropeza, Talladega
2B Kyrent Cole, Rust
SS Jederik Velazquez, Talladega
3B Ryan Ready, Wiley
OF Jahir Cruz, Talladega
OF Malik Berrien, Rust
OF Eddie Garza, Wiley
DH Angel Polanco, Dillard
SP Keyon Guillory, Wiley
SP Emilio Duque, Talladega
RP Nick Rodriguez, Wiley
Second Team
C Anthony Castaneda, Wiley
1B Ivan Del Villar, Wiley
2B Victor Rivera, Talladega
SS Jaiden Godette, Voorhees
3B Jalik Demar, Rust
OF Braylon Guerin, Dillard
OF Shamaar Stapleton, Rust
OF Isaac Guzman, Talladega
DH Smauri Abram, Wiley
SP Jalen Porter, Wiley
SP Griff Minor, Stillman
RP Landin Tircuit, Dillard
2025 HBCUAC Regular Season Champion Talladega College
2025 HBCUAC Regular Season Runner-Up Wiley University
THURSDAY'S GAMES
Game 3: No. 6 Southern University of New Orleans 8, No. 3 Stillman College 3, Bottom of 8
Game 4: No. 7 Rust (22-26, 13-17) vs. No. 2 Wiley (32-15, 24-6), 15 minutes after Game 3
Game 5: No. 8 Wilberforce (15-31, 11-19) vs. No. 5 Voorhees (24-20, 19-11), 30 minutes after Game 4
Game 6: SUNO/Stillman Loser vs. Rust/Wiley Loser 30 minutes after Game 5
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About HBCU Athletic Conference
The HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) is the only HBCU conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The HBCUAC membership includes Dillard University (LA), Fisk University (TN), Oakwood University (AL), Philander Smith University (AR), Rust College (MS), Southern University at New Orleans (LA), Stillman College (AL), Talladega College (AL), Tougaloo College (MS), University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas), Voorhees University (SC), Wilberforce University (OH), and Wiley University (TX). HBCUAC sponsors championships in men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's track and field, women's volleyball, softball, and baseball. In 2022, the HBCUAC secured the largest media rights deal in conference and NAIA history, signing a multimillion-dollar deal with Urban Edge Network. On July 1, 2024, the conference rebranded from the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) to the HBCU Athletic Conference, marking a new era for the conference that embodies the makeup of its membership. For more information, visit hbcuac.org.