Alumni Roundup: Week Five

March 16, 2026


We’re halfway through March and a lot has happened in the early stages of the season from Division I through the JUCO ranks. There’s no question that things are heating up, and we’re in for an exciting middle part to the collegiate season.

Tomas Valincius stays sharp in Fayetteville, Graham Mastros stays hot, Jaden Correa continues to play long ball and Liam Peterson returns to his true form in what was a great week of baseball.

Week Five


Liam Peterson returned to form in Florida’s SEC opener, delivering six innings of one-hit baseball against South Carolina in a 1-0 victory. The right-hander allowed just two walks while striking out 10 Gamecocks, marking his second consecutive start with double-digit strikeouts. 

Peterson has also been dominant early in games, not allowing a hit or run in the first two innings of his last three starts. 

After the outing, head coach Kevin O’Sullivan praised Peterson and the staff, saying, “That is as sharp as he has looked for me in his career here. His stuff was crisp from the first pitch to the end.”


Tomas Valincius dazzled in his SEC opener, helping Mississippi State secure a 7-2 win over Arkansas. Valincius worked seven innings, allowing just two walks while striking out seven hitters to earn his fourth win of the season. The victory stood as the Bulldogs’ lone win of the series as Arkansas took the weekend set. The left-hander was recently named to the National Pitcher of the Year Award watch list by the College Baseball Hall of Fame. 

 

Michael Addari picked up the win for Illinois State on Friday against Western Illinois. The right-hander tossed five innings, allowing just one unearned run while striking out six Leathernecks in a 7-1 Redbirds victory. Addari has been a bright spot for Illinois State this season and currently holds a 1.29 ERA through 21 innings of work.


Matthew Barnes II logged two innings in UC Davis’ 10-6 win over UC Santa Barbara. He allowed one run on two hits.

Business as usual for Wes Mendes on Friday as Florida State traveled to Wake Forest. Mendes delivered a complete-game, seven shutout inning performance, allowing just two hits while walking two and striking out 11. The outing earned him his fifth win of the season, improving his record to a perfect 5-0 with a 0.63 ERA. The Seminoles will host NC State this weekend in ACC play.

 

Jaden Correa added to his strong season with a pair of home runs this week — one against UNC Asheville and another against Western Carolina. He also drove in seven runs, bringing his season total to 22 RBI. Correa is currently hitting .297 in 74 at-bats.

Graham Mastros continues to swing a hot bat, extending his hitting streak to 11 games dating back to Feb. 28. Mastros recorded nine hits this week, including four consecutive multi-hit games. During that stretch he collected three extra-base hits, highlighted by a home run against Western Illinois. He is now hitting .390 on the season.

 

Teammate Josh Outlaw also contributed during Illinois State’s sweep of Western Illinois, collecting three hits and adding a pair of RBI over the weekend.

Steven Milam tallied six hits on the week, raising his batting average to .269. He recorded one extra-base hit, a double against Vanderbilt on Saturday. LSU finished the week 2-2 overall, dropping a weekend series to Vanderbilt.

 

Mack Whitcomb delivered a pinch-hit home run in Vanderbilt’s loss to LSU over the weekend. Whitcomb also recorded a triple in the Commodores’ midweek game against Indiana State. He is now hitting .317 on the season with two home runs and 11 RBI, six of which have come in the last three games.



CJ Deckinga picked up his first collegiate home run on Friday against Rutgers. Deckinga also added a double in the game, giving him a two extra-base hit performance for Michigan State. The Spartans dropped the series to Rutgers.


Elijah McNeal (UC Davis) hit his first career homer, too, in the series finale against UC Santa Barbara yesterday afternoon.

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