HATTIESBURG — Southern Miss right-handed pitcher Todd McInnis will return to the Golden Eagles to play his senior season rather than turning pro.

“After careful thought and prayers and talking with my coaches and parents I have decided to come back and play my senior year at Southern Miss,” McInnis said. “The past two years we have went to the College World Series and won the Conference-USA championship but there is a lot more I want to accomplish at Southern Miss. We have a great team headed into next season and I am coming back to help lead this team back to the College World Series.”

McInnis was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the 32nd round of the Major League Baseball June Free Agent Draft.

The 2009 Conference USA Pitcher of the Year has a career record of 25-13 with a 3.85 ERA over the previous four seasons. He has struck out 276 hitters while holding opponents to a .255 batting average against.