Xavier Gold Rush takes 2nd place at first-ever Black College World Series

17th May 2021   ·   0 Comments

By Kai Davis
Contributing Writer

Following the return of its baseball program after a four-decade lull, Xavier University of Louisiana’s baseball team began the inaugural Black College World Series as the No. 1 seed on April 28. While the Xavier Gold Rush made it to the championship game on May 1, they ultimately lost the final game to the No. 3 seed team, Bluefield State College, which it faced off at the Riverwalk Stadium, in Montgomery, Ala.

The Black College World Series is a first of its kind aimed to bring together historically Black colleges and universities from two divisions: the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II and the National Association of Independent Athletics, under one national championship. The series consisted of 15 games, with eight teams qualifying. Six teams entered the tournament stage. The HBCU teams played a double-elimination style tournament, where winners of each division faced off in a one-game championship.

“The Black College World Series is a great opportunity for our program,” said Jason Horn, Xavier’s athletic director. “The dedication and hard work shown by our student-athletes, coaches, and support staff has been solid all season despite the on-going pandemic. We are excited to be invited to participate in the event, especially as the number one seed,” Horn said.

The Black College World Series was organized by BCSG 360 and Black College Nines. BCSG 360 is a national, Chicago-based network that advocates for HBCUs. Its mission is to educate the public on the value of attending and graduating from historical Black colleges and universities. BCSG 360 teamed up with Black College Nines, another organization dedicated to preserving the legacy of HBCU baseball through promoting and preserving the record of the sport in Black institutions.

The tournament began with Xavier as the top seed, followed by Savannah State University, then Bluefield State College, Rust College, Florida Memorial University and Edward Waters College in the rankings.

“To be a part of something like this is huge. It’s about being a part of something bigger than us. Something great,” said Caleb Neal-Hines, a freshman left-handed pitcher. “We’ve been making history all season and this is just another part of that. It has a great impact on the team because we get the opportunity to compete against some solid HBCU programs that are already established and make a name for ourselves,” Hines said.

It has been a long season for the new team.

Xavier successfully rallied past Florida Memorial in Game 9 of the tournament to reach the Black College World Series finals, securing a victory of 7-5 on April 30. The team described this as their second biggest comeback victory of their baseball season, since winning 18-14 against Stillman College on Feb. 26 in the NAIA division games. While Xavier’s baseball team finished second to Bluefield State, the Gold Rush forced a winner-take-all game earlier in the afternoon of May 1 of the double-elimination baseball tournament with a 16-2 victory in Game 10. The game was called after seven innings because of the 10-run rule. The tournament was ultimately decided by the total number of game winnings during the entire Black College World Series, with Bluefield edging Xavier out.

Baseball was one of the first sports to desegregate. It remains not only important to Xavier, but also to the 48 other baseball teams at HBCUs nationwide. Since returning, Xavier’s baseball team has secured 26 wins and only nine loses in their first season. The teams Division I rankings include No. 2 in stolen bases per game, No. 3 in steal attempts per game, No. 3 in opp. batting average, No. 6 in total stolen bases, No. 15 in earned run average and No. 12 in assists per game.

In 1960, Xavier discontinued all sports but roughly seven years later re-established men’s basketball. Since then, baseball has often been considered a second-tier sport to basketball at HBCUs.

“A lot of HBCUs are either cutting baseball or baseball is terribly underfunded at their university or usually baseball is the stepchild,” said Adrian Holloway, Xavier University of Louisiana Head Baseball Coach in a statement.

Today, Xavier has a total of seven sports in which student-athletes can participate, including women and men’s basketball, softball, men and women’s tennis, women’s volleyball, and men and women’s track. Xavier has a total of 86 student athletes – 31 men and 55 women.

The baseball team’s next round is another double-elimination event: the Association of Independent Institutions Championship at Lawrenceville, Ga. Currently ranked as the No. 3 seed out of five teams, Xavier played second seeded Fisher College at 3 p.m. on May 15. The Association of Independent Institutions will earn an automatic bid to the NAIA nationals opening round from May 17-20.

“Being a member of this team means a lot to me, because our connection extends beyond the baseball field,” said Anthony Dumas, a freshman right-hand pitcher. “We have faced obstacles and doubters all season long and we have been able to prevail due to our bond and our overall competitiveness,” Dumas said.

The ability to play among fellow HBCU peers in the Black World Series remained a highlight for Black college athletes. The four-day baseball tournament in Montgomery, Ala., exemplified just how passionate the teams’ players still are about the sport, and being able to pursue baseball at the collegiate level at an HBCU.

“This World Series is a new challenge for us to overcome and it presents a larger platform for our team to capitalize on to let people know, Xavier baseball is here for good,” Dumas said.

This article originally published in the May 17, 2021 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.