ABILENE — The Abilene Christian Baseball team wrapped up its 2024 fall season with the annual Purple vs. Black Fall World Series, showcasing an exciting two-game matchup on November 1 and 2. The intrasquad competition serves as the Wildcats' traditional fall finale, with players and coaches joining forces to draft teams in a competitive preview of what's to come this spring. This year, the Purple team clinched the series in a thrilling two-game sweep.
Reflecting on the team's progress through an intense fall season, head coach Rick McCarty emphasized the significance of their hard work and focus, especially given the influx of new talent.
"The last six weeks were very competitive and exciting," said McCarty. "We saw a lot of growth as individuals and as a team, which was critical with 20 new players. This group is very mature and did a great job with their day-to-day focus, which allowed us to gain traction early."
With a strong sense of camaraderie among the players, the atmosphere around the program has been increasingly positive and focused.
"They seem to work very well together, which makes it much more enjoyable to show up to the park each day. I thought we ended a productive fall with a better understanding of who players are as individuals. This will allow us to dive into our player development model over the next 90 days and see how much better they will be before opening day."
TEAM ROSTERS
Game 1: Purple 3, Black 1
Purple secured a hard-fought 3-1 victory in Game 1, led by standout freshman Brett Lanman, the reigning WAC Player of the Year and Freshman All-American. Lanman's dominant start kept the Black team's offense in check. Senior Chandler Benson was the first pitcher called out of the bullpen to relieve Lanman, after Benson's strong showing from the bullpen he handed the ball to freshman Brady Coe, who closed the game with authority. Coe's ninth-inning effort sealed the win and preserved a no-hitter for the Purple squad.
Game 2: Purple 6, Black 5
In Game 2, the Purple team looked to clinch the series with junior Cade McGarrh on the mound, while the Black team countered with senior right-hander Iain Campa in hopes of pushing the series finale to Monday. Purple jumped to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the 1st and extended their lead to 6-1 after 4 innings. A resilient Black squad, however, staged a late rally, loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth and closing the gap to 6-5. With the bases loaded, 2 outs, and the winning run on second base, senior reliever David Jeon ended the threat with a clutch strikeout securing the series sweep for the Purple team.
McGarrh was credited with the win, and Diego Cardenas provided power for Purple with a key backside home run.
Grant Watkins was named the 2024 Fall World Series MVP, going 3-for-4 with 4 RBIs.
"It was great to see our guys compete at a high level against each other to complete our team segment in the fall world series," McCarty said. "Anytime you have a split-squad game, you hope it's competitive throughout the game and in this case, series. Each game came down to the last pitch, which means our guys were in leverage situations throughout, for back-to-back games, with something on the line. Other than our two games in the Dominican Republic, this is the best opportunity to see how guys respond in those hinge moments of games. There were key pitches and key at-bats that led to the purple team finding ways to win.
With the victory, Team Purple will enjoy a steak dinner and Christmas carols sung by Team Black at our annual Christmas party.
"As always in our program, it pays to be a winner," said McCarty. "So they will be rewarded as we round out our fall."
Fans can look forward to a detailed breakdown of ACU Baseball's full spring schedule later this week. For a sneak peek at what's ahead in the spring, follow ACU Baseball on Twitter and Instagram, where the 2025 February, March and April game schedules are live.
