Baseball takes on Samford at Rickwood Field

The Troy baseball team, which won almost every series it played last season, took on in-state opponent Samford in the oldest ballpark in the country to continue fall ball on Sunday.

 The Trojans made the trek to Rickwood Field to take on the Bulldogs in a doubleheader. 

Troy Athletics photo

Tate Farquhar fires a pitch against Samford on Sunday at Rickwood Field.

“It’s just awesome what a great facility this is,” said head coach Skylar Meade to Troy Athletics. “I know we got to speak about it in March when we played UAB here, but it’s just a cool experience for our guys.” 

The Trojans lost a close 8-7 game one but bounced back with a 5-4 win in game two against the Bulldogs. 

“There are a lot of things we can learn from,” Meade said. “The nature of what has made our offense so good over the past three years is taking team at-bats and taking freebies. 

“I think at some point we kind of got away from that a little bit. It’s not something I’m worried about long term but it’s certainly something to comment upon.” 

Blake Cavill dominated in game one, going 3-for-5, notching a single, double and blasting a homerun for two RBIs. Cavill garnered an All-Sun Belt First Team selection in 2025 after reaching base safely in every game and looks to build on that success in the spring. 

Aaron Piasecki’s bat was on fire as well, going 3-for-4 with two singles, a home run and two RBIs. After transferring to Troy from Central Michigan over the offseason, the shortstop will anchor a Trojan defense that struggled in the middle infield last season. 

Houston Markham rounded out the homeruns for the Trojans with one of his own and drew a walk.  Multiple Trojans took the mound, as Cooper Ellingworth and Zach Crotchfelt struck out the side in order – the pitching staff fired off 22 strikeouts to just six walks on the day. 

Game two saw the Trojans notch a win with Nolan Book recording an RBI single. Zaid Diaz hit a double and Brady Richardson hit a triple to round out the hitting for the Trojans.  

Pitching was nothing but efficient. Brock Tapper gave up one hit but had two strikeouts, Drew Nelson worked a hitless frame with two strikeouts and Judah Buckner had two strikeouts. Jackson Lucas recorded the save in the tightly contested game.

The Trojans look to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament in 2026 against one of the best mid-major schedules in the country. The journey begins on Feb. 13 against Mercer, when the Trojans kick off the year.