Jackson’s Dalton McIntyre, a graduate of Sacred Heart of Jesus High School and senior centerfielder for the University of Southern Mississippi, was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 19th round of the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft, Tuesday.
McIntyre went 4-for-5, added 2 RBI’s and scored 2 runs for the Golden Eagles in a 14-11 win over Georgia Southern in the Sun Belt Conference championship game.
WIth the win – USM’s second consecutive Sun Belt Conference tournament title – Southern Mississippi earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Baseball Tournament.
In his one season with the Golden Eagles, McIntyre led the squad in hitting with a .388 average to go along with 12 doubles, a triple, two home runs and 34 RBI. A finalist for the 2024 Boo Ferriss Trophy for top collegiate baseball player in the state of Mississippi, McIntyre earned second-team All-Sun Belt and second team ABCA All-South team honors.
His batting average, which totaled 92 hits including 31 infield singles, was the highest since Luke Reynolds hit .389 during the 2018 season. The Golden Eagles also posted a 29-6 record when he scored at least once in a game. At one point during the campaign, he collected seven-straight singles from March 26 versus Tulane to March 29 versus Troy, which included a 5-for-5 performance against Troy (3/28).
McIntyre also held the team lead in multiple-hit games with 29 (17 2-hit, 8 3-hit, 3 4-hit and 1 5-hit) and finished the year with a nine-game hitting streak hitting .447 (17×38) with a double and four RBI down the stretch.
His longest hitting streak of the year, though, was a pair of season-best 10-game hitting streak from Feb. 27-Mar. 15 and Mar. 26-April 12. In the latter streak, he batted .600 (27×45) with 12 runs, three doubles and six RBI
(PHOTO: Dalton McIntyre)
