HATTIESBURG – Northwest sophomore and two-time all-conference right-hander Jarod Wright will continue his collegiate baseball career at the University of Southern Mississippi, signing a national letter of intent with the Golden Eagles.

Wright is the second Division I signee from last year's MACJC runner-up team and fifth Ranger to move on to a four-year program this offseason.

Wright finished 9-3 with a 3.51 ERA, three complete games and 64 strikeouts over 81.2 innings as a sophomore to earn second team all-conference honors. His 162 career innings pitched and 705 batters faced ranks first all-time at Northwest, while his 14 career wins and 129 strikeouts rank third all-time. He added six complete games over his two-year Ranger career.

Off the field, the Arlington, Tenn., native achieved a 3.86 GPA in biology (business minor) and was named to the 2017 Capital One Academic All-District 1 Baseball First Team, 2016-17 MACJC All-Academic Team and NJCAA All-Academic Team. He was also nominated for the NJCAA's prestigious Lea Plarski Award, presented annually to a student-athlete who exemplifies sportsmanship, leadership, community service, academic excellence and athletic ability.

Wright is the third Ranger to sign with Southern Mississippi in the last two seasons, joining former teammates Colt Smith and LeeMarcus Boyd. USM finished the 2017 season with a record of 50-16, won the C-USA regular season and hosted the NCAA Hattiesburg Regional, before falling in the regional championship series to Mississippi State.

Learn more about the baseball program on Twitter @NWCCBaseball or online at www.nwccrangers.com.