NOTE** final stats are not current as of Mon. April, 25, 3:45 p.m.

The Millsaps Majors captured a 7th Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship Sunday under head baseball coach Jim Page in the SCAC Spring Sports Festival; held in Conway, Ark on the campus of Hendrix College.

The Majors won all four games defeating Trinity University Sunday 4-3 for the title. The Majors beat DePauw 16-7 on Thursday, April 21 then followed on Friday with a 13-1 win against Sewanee. On Saturday the Majors took a 5-2 decision from Trinity, which forced a loser's bracket match with Southwestern.

Southwestern was eliminated later on Saturday by Trinity setting up the Sunday championship game between Millsaps and Trinity. The Majors, behind a strong performance from starter John Fox (6.2 innings, two runs, nine K's), faced six Tiger hurlers and 4-0 before Fox (Evergreen Col. - Evergreen HS) gave way to Tal Hendrix (Jackson, Miss - Jackson Prep). Hendrix shut the door allowing one run and striking out three.

In game one, the Majors put together a nine-run fifth inning behind sluggers Garner Wetzel (Gulfport, Miss - St. John HS), Ryan Skertich (New Orleans, La. - Newman HS), and Jason Hadley (Bay Minette, Ala. - Baldwin County HS). Starter Todd Kindler improved to 8-1 on the season.

In the win over Sewanee freshman David Hutzel (Alpharetta, Ga - Northview HS) threw a gem across seven innings as the game ended early after a six-run seventh inning. Skertich and Wetzel both homered and Hutzel allowed one run on four hits for his first postseason win for the Purple and White.

Because the Majors cruised through Thursday and Friday games the conference's all-time career wins leader, Doug Garner, was set to start against Trinity on Saturday. Garner, who has thrown for two complete game wins against the Tigers in 2005, baffled hitters once more throwing nine innings and allowing four hits and one run. Garner improved to 7-2 and his record wins mark stands at 32 games.

Garner (Mobile, Ala - UMS-Wright) also set the school record for career and single season strikeouts, and he is currently one inning behind the career mark for innings pitched. An All-South Region Team member in 2003 and a two-time All-Conference Player. Garner was named S-C-A-C Pitcher of the Year in 2003.

Skertich, already the SCAC single season record holder for triples in a season, with nine, holds the single season school-record RBIs mark with 59, a record set in 2001. A 3-time S-C-A-C Player of the Week winner, Skertich has 15 homeruns, 136 RBIs and a school record-tying 13 triples in his career. Named to the All-South Region Team last season, Skertich has been named to the All-Conference Team twice.

Wetzel, a junior shortstop that will be lost the MLB June Draft, finished as the leader in several offensive categories including homeruns with 12. He finished with 51 RBIs and went a perfect 14-14 in stolen bases. The rocket-armed infielder has a legitimate shot at SCAC Player-of-the-Year.

The Majors 2-3-4 hitters (Hadley, Skertich and Wetzel) finished in the top three in batting average, slugging percentage, on base percentage (Nick Crawford "(Greenville, Miss - Washington School) finished third to Skertich's 4th place finish), runs scored, hits, RBIs, doubles, triples, home runs, total bases, stolen bases, steal attempts (Crawford 2nd), total plate appearances, at-bats, and starts.

Page, a Millsaps graduate and former baseball player is in his 17th season as head coach and stands two wins shy of 400 career wins. Page was inducted into the Millsaps Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.

More to come**