2022-23 SMCC Baseball News
SMCC Baseball Announces Four-Year Transfers
July 31, 2023
Fresh off a 2023 campaign that saw it post a 43-15 record and return to postseason competition, the South Mountain Community College baseball team announced its four-year transfers headed off to continue their intercollegiate baseball careers in the upcoming fall.
Jaxon Jelkin Selected by LA Dodgers in 2023 MLB Draft
July 11, 2023
Sophomore right handed pitcher Jaxon Jelkin of the South Mountain Community College baseball team was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 14th round (pick No. 430) of the 2023 Major League Baseball Draft. A 6-5 hurler from Omaha, Jelkin finished 7-2 with a 3.81 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 75.2 innings of work in the Cougars' recently completed 2023 season.
SMCC Baseball in the 2023 NCAA Division I Tournament
May 30, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team has six former Cougars who will participate in the upcoming 2023 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament. The former Cougars will begin play at one of 16 regionals with the hope of advancing to Super Regionals the following weekend and finally the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., from June 16-26.
SMCC Baseball Open Tryouts Set for June 3
May 18, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team will host open tryouts for the upcoming 2023-24 season on Saturday, June 3 beginning at 10 a.m. at the SMCC Baseball Field. The tryouts are open to any and all interested 2023 and 2024 high school graduates.
SMCC Baseball Falls to Pima CC In Division I Regionals
May 08, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (43-15) lost 5-4 on May 4 and May 5 to Pima CC in the Opening Round of the Region I Division I Tournament. The Aztecs rallied for three runs in the top of the eighth to post the win in game one and held off a Cougar rally in the second game to advance to the Regional Championship.
SMCC Baseball Hosts NJCAA Region I Division I Tournament
May 02, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team will host Pima CC in the opening round of the NJCAA Region I Division I Tournament May 4-6 at the Cougar Baseball Field. The teams will play a single game at 2 p.m. on Thursday, May 4 and Friday, May 5, and an if-necessary game will be at noon on Saturday, May 6.
SMCC Baseball Collects Multiple All-ACCAC and All-Region I Honors
May 02, 2023
Freshmen Sam Christiansen and Dominic Chacon of the South Mountain Community College baseball earned First Team All-ACCAC and First Team All-Region I Division I honors for their play during the 2023 regular season. In addition to Chacon and Christiansen, sophomores Core Jackson, Jacob Beltran and Matthew Martinez earned Second Team All-ACCAC honors.
SMCC Baseball Splits with Cochise, Earns No. 2 Seed in Region Tournament
May 01, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (43-13, 27-11 ACCAC) split its final ACCAC doubleheader of the season, falling 3-2 (7 innings) in game one before winning 10-9 (10 innings) in game two in a twinbill against Cochise College on April 27. By winning that final game in extra innings, the Cougars earned the No. 2 seed in the upcoming NJCAA Region I Division I tournament, where they will host Pima CC in a three-game series on May 4-6.
SMCC Baseball Splits Doubleheader at Pima CC
April 26, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (41-13, 25-11 ACCAC) split an ACCAC road doubleheader at Pima CC on April 25, falling 6-4 (7 innings) in game one before rallying for a 10-4 victory in the second contest. The Cougars led 4-2 early, but the Aztecs rallied for four runs over the fourth and fifth to win. In the second game, sophomore Carter Richey blasted a double and a home run, and the SMCC offense led wire-to-wire to split the twinbill.
Cougar Baseball Sweeps Doubleheader at Yavapai College
April 25, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (40-12, 24-10 ACCAC) defeated Yavapai College 7-5 (7 innings) and 15-6 in an ACCAC doubleheader in Prescott, Ariz., on April 22. Sophomore Core Jackson had two doubles, two RBIs and two runs, and sophomore Matthew Martinez tossed 2.1 innings of relief work as SMCC scored a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to push past the Roughriders in game one. In the second game, the Cougars smacked five extra-base hits, including three doubles and a home run from freshman Dominic Chacon, as SMCC used a 10-run seventh inning to roar to a 15-6 victory and season sweep.
SMCC Baseball Splits Midweek Series with Central Arizona
April 20, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (38-12, 22-10 ACCAC) split a midweek ACCAC road series at Central Arizona, falling 1-0 in 10 innings on April 18 before posting an 8-4 comeback victory on April 19. The two teams battled in a scoreless contest until extra frames, when the Vaqueros pushed across a run to post the victory. SMCC responded the next day with a comeback victory to split the season series, overcoming a 4-3 deficit after the fourth with two runs in the fifth, one in the seventh and two in the ninth.
SMCC Baseball Sweeps Doubleheader from Eastern Arizona on Sophomore Day
April 17, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (37-11, 21-9 ACCAC) defeated Eastern Arizona 3-0 (7 innings) and 2-0 in an ACCAC home doubleheader on April 15 at the Cougar Baseball Field. Sophomore pitchers Jaxon Jelkin, Jacob Beltran, Raul Garayzar and Matthew Martinez combined to shut out the Gila Monsters for 16 innings as the Cougars celebrated their sophomores at their final home games of the 2023 season.
Cougar Baseball Downs Phoenix College Twice
April 13, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (35-11) defeated Phoenix College 5-0 on April 11 and 7-6 (10 innings) on April 12 in a pair of non-conference games. SMCC broke a scoreless tie in the fifth inning and added insurance runs late as three pitched combined to shutout the Bears in the April 11 victory. In the April 12 game, the Cougars rallied from a 6-3 deficit in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game and won in extra innings on a walk-off, bases-loaded walk.
SMCC's Brittney Matta, Todd Eastin Reflect on Milestone Victories
April 10, 2023
South Mountain Community College softball head coach Brittney Matta and baseball head coach Todd Eastin recently recorded milestone victories in their coaching careers. Having worked tirelessly to position the Cougars for success in the classroom and on the field, Matta (100 victories) and Eastin (700 victories) reflected on their coaching journeys.
SMCC Baseball Splits Road Doubleheader at Arizona Western
April 10, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (33-11, 19-9 ACCAC) split an ACCAC road doubleheader at Arizona Western on April 8, falling 6-2 (7 innings) in game one before posting a 13-1 victory (7 innings) in the second game. Arizona Western led 3-1 after two innings and added three insurance runs in the fifth to post the game-one victory. In the second game, SMCC responded with multiple runs in the second, third, fifth and sixth innings to post the run-rule victory.
Cougar Baseball Sweeps Scottsdale CC in ACCAC Series
April 06, 2023
The South Mountain Community College baseball team (32-10, 18-8 ACCAC) defeated Scottsdale CC 4-2 on April 4 and 16-5 (7 innings) on April 5 in a pair of ACCAC games. Sophomore Carter Richey blasted his league-leading 10th home run of the season, and Raul Garayzar had seven strikeouts in seven innings of work in the April 4 home victory. In the April 5 road win, freshmen Dominic Chacon and Sam Christiansen hit home runs, and the Cougars scored in every inning in the run-rule victory.