Baseball: Former Robinson player walks on at Southern Mississippi

Posted Sep 20, 2011 by Eddie Daniels

Updated Sep 20, 2011 at 03:39 PM

Morgan Capen, a former Robinson utility baseball player, successfully walked on at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Capen was added to the team’s 35-man regular season roster and will play fall baseball for the Golden Eagles, his father, Wayne Capen, said.

“It was unbelievable,” Wayne Capen said. “It was just one of those things that was meant to happen. We kept in contact with the coaches up there, he gets up there and makes a good impression with the coaches. It was euphoric. Every parent out there, when (their kid) starts throwing the ball at 5 or 6-years-old, they go, ‘I sure hope they get to play as long as they want to.’”

As a senior for the Knights, Morgan Capen led the squad with a .578 batting average. In 21 games, he had 37 hits, 23 RBIs, nine doubles and two home runs, all of which were team-highs.

Capen, who grew up primarily catching, proved he was a jack of all trades type player. Last season he found himself at second and third base as well as in the outfield for Robinson.

Shortly after arriving to the USM campus, Morgan and his family met with assistant baseball coach Chad Caillet, which generated a meeting with head coach Scott Berry. The staff already had footage of Capen and gave him a shot.

For now, he’ll be catching in the bullpen, sharpening his skills. If the trend holds true, Capen could be redshirted, which was the case for two of the three other catchers on the USM roster.

Southern Mississippi is a natural fit for Capen, considering his mother and aunt graduated from the Hattiesburg, Miss. school. Additionally, his cousin, who is a year older, attends the institution.

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