2023-24 SMCC Baseball News
New York Mets Select Former Cougar Jaxon Jelkin in 2024 MLB Draft
July 17, 2024
The New York Mets selected former South Mountain Community College pitcher Jaxon Jelkin in the ninth round with pick No. 263 in the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft. A 6-5 right-handed pitcher who spent the 2024 season at the University of Houston, Jelkin will now join the Mets organization as he begins his professional baseball career.
SMCC Baseball Sophomore Wylie Waters Named NJCAA Honorable Mention All-American
June 12, 2024
Sophomore infielder Wylie Waters of the South Mountain Community College baseball team earned 2024 NJCAA Division I Honorable Mention All-American honors after an outstanding season for the Cougars in 2024. Waters batted .404 in 55 games for SMCC and added 47 runs, 74 hits, 14 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 43 RBIs, and two stolen bases. He earned Region I Division I Tournament MVP after helping lead the Cougars to the Region I Division I Championship.
Former Cougar Cade Povich Makes Major League Baseball Debut
June 10, 2024
Former South Mountain Community College left-handed pitcher Cade Povich made his Major League Baseball debut on Thursday, June 6 when he started the game for the Baltimore Orioles against the Toronto Blue Jays from Rogers Center in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Povich went 5.1 innings against the Blue Jays, allowing five hits, six earned runs, and two strikeouts while taking the loss in a 6-5 Toronto Victory.
SMCC Baseball Holds Open Tryouts on June 8
June 03, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team will hold open tryouts for the 2024-25 season to any and all interested 2024 and 2025 high school graduates on Saturday, June 8 beginning at 8 a.m. at the SMCC Baseball Field. Any persons interested in participating in the tryouts must RSVP to SMCC assistant coach Kevin Soine at kevin.soine@southmountaincc.edu. Participants must bring their own equipment and a copy of a valid sports physical within the last 13 months. There is a $20 tryout fee.
SMCC Baseball Features Eight in 2024 NCAA Division I Tournament
May 29, 2024
Eight former members of the South Mountain Community College baseball team will compete in the 2024 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament. These student-athletes represent a host of institutions throughout the country as they battle for a spot in the Men's College World Series in Omaha, Neb. All games from all regionals are available on the ESPN family of networks.
SMCC Baseball Falls in West District Championship Final to Southern Nevada
May 20, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (38-27) lost 13-8 to the College of Southern Nevada on Saturday, May 18, in the NJCAA Division I Baseball West District Championship Final at the SMCC Baseball Field. The Cougars made it to Saturday's final in dramatic fashion when sophomore Carlos Vega blasted a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth to defeat Southeast CC (NE) 5-4 on Friday, May 17. Earlier that day, SMCC fell 10-5 to Southern Nevada, and the Cougars opened the event with an 8-4 victory over Southeast CC on Thursday, May 16.
SMCC Baseball Wins Region I Division I Championship
May 11, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (36-25) won the NJCAA Region I Division I Championship by defeating Pima CC twice in a best-of-three game series May 9-11 in Tucson, Ariz. SMCC posted a 3-1 victory in game one of the series on May 9 as sophomores Nikolas Miller, Kaden Gray, and Alex Urias-Calvillo combined to limit the Aztecs to four hits and one run. In game two on May 10, Pima CC recorded an 8-2 victory as sophomore Dominic Chacon blasted a two-run home run in defeat. In the finale on May 11, SMCC overcame an early 1-0 deficit with runs in the third-sixth and put the game away with a five-run ninth en route to an 11-1 victory.
SMCC Baseball Downs Central Arizona in Region I Division I Semifinal
May 06, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (34-24) won two of three games at Central Arizona in the Region I Division I semifinal to advance to the Region I Division I Championship series. The Cougars captured game one 14-6 and rallied for a 7-4 comeback victory in game three to claim the series victory. SMCC will travel to Pima CC for the Championship series on May 9-11. Regardless of the outcome, both teams will advance to the West District Championships the following weekend, with the winner of the Regional Championship serving as host.
SMCC Baseball Knocks Off Pima CC to Clinch Postseason Berth
April 29, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (32-23, 22-16 ACCAC) split an ACCAC doubleheader with Pima CC on April 27. In game one, the Cougars fell 10-7 before rallying for a 7-5 victory in game two. Trailing 4-1 in the bottom of the sixth in game two, the Cougars rallied for six runs in the frame and held on for the 7-5 victory to clinch a berth in the upcoming ACCAC Division I Region I playoffs.
Trio of Cougars Named First Team All-ACCAC, All-Region I Division I
April 29, 2024
Sophomores Dominic Chacon, Nikolas Miller, and Wylie Waters of the South Mountain Community College baseball team earned First Team All-ACCAC, and All-Region I Division I honors for their work during the 2024 season. Chacon led the Cougars with 11 home runs, 38 RBIs, 58 walks, and 27 stolen bases to earn First Team honors for the second straight year. Waters batted a team-high .401 with 10 doubles, four triples, five home runs, and 31 RBIs and hit .434 in 36 conference games. Finally, Miller finished 10-1 in 17 appearances and 14 starts and posted 88 K's, a 3.29 ERA, and a 1.34 WHIP in 76.2 innings of work.
SMCC Baseball Battles with Central Arizona, Yavapai College
April 24, 2024
Over the past week, the South Mountain Community College baseball team (31-22, 21-15 ACCAC) battled with Central Arizona and Yavapai College in four ACCAC contests. The Cougars fell 2-1 and 8-7 to the Vaqueros on April 19 and 20 before splitting a doubleheader with the Roughriders on April 23 by winning game one 7-3 before falling 21-6 (7 innings) in game two.
SMCC Baseball Sweeps Eastern Arizona to Extend Winning Streak
April 17, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (30-19, 20-12 ACCAC) swept an ACCAC doubleheader at Eastern Arizona on April 16, winning 6-1 in seven innings in game one and 17-5 victory in game two. Sophomore Nikolas Miller tossed six innings with six strikeouts in the game one victory, and sophomore Stephen Hernandez fanned four and allowed one hit over seven innings in the game two victory. Offensively, sophomore Dominic Chacon hit three home runs on the day, including a pair in the game two victory, to raise his season total to 11 and six in his last six games.
SMCC Baseball Sweeps Non-Conference Series with Phoenix College
April 15, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (28-19) swept a non-conference series with Phoenix College, winning 19-7 (7 innings) on April 12 and 11-6 on April 13. The Cougars posted 19 runs and 15 hits over six innings, highlighted by home runes from sophomore Wylie Waters and Dominic Chacon. The next day, Chacon homered again and freshman Brady Lord finished 4 for 5 with a double, a triple, and three RBIs.
SMCC Baseball Sweeps ACCAC Doubleheader against Arizona Western
April 10, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (26-19, 18-12 ACCAC) defeated Arizona Western twice in an ACCAC doubleheader at the SMCC Baseball Field on Tuesday, April 9. Sophomore Dominic Chacon finished 2 for 3 with a double and a home run and the Cougars added three other extra-base hits as they posted an 11-7, seven-inning victory. In game two, four Cougars had multiple hits and three others had multiple RBIs as SMCC won 11-5.
Cougar Baseball Sweeps Cochise College in ACCAC Doubleheader
April 08, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (24-19, 16-12 ACCAC) defeated Cochise Collge 7-0 (7 innings) and 8-3 in an ACCAC doubleheader at the SMCC Baseball Field on Saturday, April 6. Sophomore Nikolas Miller tossed six innings of two-hit scoreless baseball, and--- sophomore Niko Rosell had a three-run double to help lead SMCC to the victory in game one. In game two, the Cougars led wire-to-wire and used a five-run eighth inning to snuff out any chances of a Cochise rally.
SMCC Baseball Splits with Scottsdale CC
April 05, 2024
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (22-19, 14-12 ACCAC) split an ACCAC two-game series with Scottsdale CC, winning 5-2 at home on April 2 before falling 8-6 on the road on April 3. Redshirt sophomore Matthew Lighthall tossed seven strong innings and freshman Joe Terranova went 3 for 4 with two runs, an RBI, and a stolen base in the 5-2 victory. The next day, sophomore Wylie Waters had four hits and fellow sophomores Karsen Waslefsky and Niko Rosell added three apiece, but the Artichokes posted a walk-off, two-run home run in the ninth to defeat the Cougars.