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The Francis Marion University baseball team will play host to the inaugural Auddie Brown Classic this weekend (Feb. 10-12) with five games scheduled to be played at the Patriots' Cormell Field.

FMU will play Young Harris College on Friday at 3 p.m.  Young Harris will battle King College on Saturday at noon and FMU will again play Young Harris at 3 p.m.  King and Young Harris will face each other again on Sunday at noon followed by Francis Marion against King at 3 p.m.  Daily admission is $8 for adults and $5 for students.

Throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on Saturday will be Darlington native and current San Diego Padres second baseman Orlando Hudson.  Hudson will also sign autographs during the opening innings of Saturday's 3 p.m. contest.

This will be the first-ever meeting between the Patriots and the YHC Mountain Lions, who have been invited to become the Peach Belt Conference's 14th member school effective this summer.  FMU has won two of three previous meetings with King.

Francis Marion (2-1) is ranked in the top 10 of three national polls, including sixth in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll.

The Patriots' probable starting pitchers for this weekend are junior right-hander Spencer Jordan (1-0, 0.00 ERA) on Friday, junior righty Don Sandifer (0-1, 2.25) on Saturday, and junior righty Gary Ashcraft (1-0, 6.75) on Sunday.

At the plate, three Patriots are batting .500 or better: senior outfielder and designated hitter John Jones (.571), senior second baseman Brock McCallister (.500) and junior infielder Stephen Tarkenton (.500).  McCallister and senior center fielder Buddy Sosnoskie lead FMU with four runs batted in apiece.

Sosnoskie has hit in 29 of his last 32 contests dating back to last season, and has safety reached base in 57 of his 60 contests as a Patriot.

FMU is 198-63-1 in its last 262 home games at "The Cliff" (Clifford S. Cormell Field).

Auddie Brown Chevrolet is located at 1050 Lochend Drive in Darlington and Auddie Brown Superstore is located at 311 North Cashua Drive in Florence.