TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Caleb Granger was locked in from the first pitch, and his offense made sure he had plenty to work with. William Brown and Matthew Perez each went deep in the third inning as Florida A&M pulled away from Alabama State 5-1 on Friday night.
Granger was magnificent, working 6.1 innings while allowing just one unearned run on four hits. He struck out six Hornets and did not allow an earned run, working efficiently through a lineup that could never solve him consistently. Jackson McKenzie took over in the seventh and was even sharper — retiring all eight batters he faced, striking out three and throwing just 24 pitches to close out the combined shutout of earned runs.
FAMU wasted no time setting the tone. William Brown led off the bottom of the first with a double to left, and when Justen Crews reached on a throwing error by the Alabama State shortstop, Brown came around to score — one of three unearned runs the Rattlers manufactured in the frame. Jay Campbell doubled to center, and Matthew Perez singled him to third before Ethan Miller grounded into a double play that plated Campbell. Just like that, the Rattlers had a 3-0 lead before Alabama State recorded a second-inning out…