ASU Baseball Inks Duo

ASU Baseball Inks Duo

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Augusta State first-year head baseball coach Chris Cooper recently announced the signings of two student-athletes.

Russ Crosby, a left-handed pitcher from Loganville, Ga., is the first signee under Cooper. A member of the CSRA Crusaders, Crosby will enroll at ASU in August.

"Russ will be able to have an impact right away," said Cooper, who was appointed head coach on June 26, 2009. "He's got a good fastball with some late movement and he's got an above-average changeup. We think we've got a heck of a pitcher who was flying under the radar a little bit because of his background."

Kenny Smith, a 5-11, 195-pound outfielder from Marietta, Ga., has joined the Jaguar program for the Spring, 2010 semester. Smith posted a .342 batting average with 12 homers and 35 RBI for Volunteer State Community College in Gallatin, Tenn., last season. He added eight doubles and scored 44 runs.

"Kenny will step right in and make a contribution," Cooper said. "He put up some really good numbers for Volunteer State last year and he can play anywhere in the outfield. He should be a mainstay in the middle of our lineup. We're really looking for big things from him."

The Jaguars will make their debut under Cooper on Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, when they host Carson-Newman in a four-game weekend series at Lake Olmstead Stadium.