NCAA Baseball Turned Upside Down

Eight College Baseball teams were given top eight seeds which the History of the NCAA playoffs is that the top eight always host Super Regionals next weekend.  Not this year how ever, as five of the eight  have lost on their home field twice this past weekend and in a few cases to never heard of teams.

Nine of the 16 host teams failed to win their regional  on their home field.  To say the least college baseball is turned upside down as the power house teams are home next weekend and quite a few no names will be featured.

The only four seed to win was College of Charleston who won in the Florida Regional.  Oregon State lost their Regional to number three UC Irvin.  Another number three Kennesaw State won in Tallahassee.  Well who is Kennesaw State?  They are located 25 miles north of Atlanta and have an enrollment of 25,000 so it is no small fry even though you have never heard of them.

Stanford a number three won the Indiana Regional.  Out west Pepperdine  another number three took care of Cal Poly. The other four winners were number two seeds so these were considered top 32 teams so those four are not shockers winning.  Texas won at Rice, Houston won at LSU, Texas Tech won at Miami and Maryland won at South Carolina.

Both of the teams from North Carolina are out with Campbell winning their first ever NCAA playoff game and North Carolina playing this weekend about the way they have played all year.  2-2 after going 16-14 during the regular season in the ACC.

The ACC has two teams that has survived to make it to the sweet 16. They will collide against each other in Charlottesville Virginia this weekend.  Will be rooting for the Hoos as they play the quitters(of the ACC) Maryland.  Sure don't want the Maryland Terps to make it to the College World Series.  Wouldn't it be something the Maryland of all people brings a National Championship to the ACC.

Godwin Removed As ECU Baseball Coach

ECU Athletic Director Jeff Compher announced today the coaching contract  of Billy  Godwin  would not be renewed ending Godwin's nine year run as ECU's baseball coach.  Godwin became head coach less than a year after he was hired as assistant coach in 2005.

You could say Godwin wasn't fired just not asked to get another contract from the Pirates.  Rumors have been flying all baseball season as the Pirates had a 33-26 record.   Over the past 20 years Pirate fans have become accustomed to at least playing in regional and during Godwin zenith as coach the Pirates were in a Super Regional.

Expections high the last two seasons not even making the playoffs  was the time bomb which cost Godwin his job.  It comes down in college and professional sports win and win big and the last two season the Pirates had a winning record but no playoffs so no winning big.  If you recall about 15 years ago the Pirates relieved Gary Overton as baseball coach under the same circumstances just not winning enough.

Today the baseball season ended for the Carolina baseball team losing for the second time this weekend to Long Beach State.  Today's game was the finish of the one that got rained out yesterday with Carolina down 5-4 with runners on first and second.  lB started the day adding two runs and the bases loaded when Mike Fox brought in Benton Moss who got the Heels out of trouble but in the ninth got nailed with five earned runs and the Heels lose 12-5.  Up until the ninth Moss had pitched 11 innings in the ACC tournament and the NCAA playoffs with out allowing a run.

Sunday night Coleman Pitt Post 58 traveled to Wilson and played Post 13 at Hunt  High School.  P58 put up ten runs on the board for a 10-6 win which is their first of the season.  Khalil Macklin hit a two run homer to lead the way and Cody Smith got the pitching win.

Post  58 is on the road Tuesday traveling to Ahoskie and will return home Thursday hosting Pitt a County.

Gathering From All Over

Hank Jones' 2014  Post 58 Rocky Mount  Legion team is no longer is a Nash County base unit with Edgecombe County included.  There is no longer just one source of availability for hopeful  candidates  who have hopes of playing college and one day playing pro ball.

No longer do high school  coaches want their better players playing legion they would rather coach their players in select travel leagues in order that they can control what type coaching their players are getting during the summer.

Then there are the parents  who think if their child gets a free ride to college to play baseball they are willing to spent up to 10,000  per summer to get their kids seen.  If they get a free ride in college then just maybe  pro ball is around the corner.  These parents are so caught up they are willing to go to a high school coach while a game is going on and tell the coach to take their son out of the game because he is scheduled to pitch on his travel team tomorrow.  They would risk their own son an arm injury just to be seen not realizing if they are good enough scouts find them where ever they are.

Hank Jones has put together a team that comes from Roanoke Rapids from the North.  Wendell from the west and even this year a player from Wilson.  This Legion team sounds like a travel league team.  Five high schools from Rocky Mount are represented on this years squad.  Here  is the 2014 Legion squad.

Making the trip south from Roanoke Rapids are three players, Ryan Wiliams catcher heading to Campbell to play baseball.  Logan Simonowich 1st base and  Carson Arthur.

The Lone player from Wendell who is returning  is Paschal Ammons a six feet eight inch pitcher.  Coming north to play from Wilson Fike is infielder Griffin Parker.

Rocky Mount Academy has three players with Linwood Jones outfielder Adam Bayless infielder and M J Jones on the P 58 roster.

Three more players come from Faith Christian Christian Perry, Luke Mills and Cody Manning.

Nash Central has two players on the squad Infielder/outfielder Khalil Macklin comes back for his third year of a Legion and infielder Garrison Vick.

Northern Nash has two players and one is a returner to Legion David Williams who spent the spring red shirting as a catcher at Duke.  Nick Vester infielder rounds out the Knight's tandem.

Rocky Mount High completes the team with four members of  it's spring squad playing for Hank Jones.  Cody Smith pitcher, Blake Helms pitcher/infielder/outfielder,  Forrest Bell infielder and Will Edwards pitcher.

Post 58  next home game is Thursday night at Legion Field.

Spur Of The Moment

Campbell University baseball team beat ODU in 12 innings 4-1  Saturday to win their first NCAA D1 baseball playoff game. I sat and watched the game on game tracker going back and forth between Benton Moss pitching for Carolina.

A rain delay in Gainesville Florida brought an end to Benton Moss' day having pitched three scoreless innings for the Tarheels.  That allowed me to fully concentrate on the Camels who were in extra innings.  ESPN's coverage of their second TV game of the day was in rain delay so they had spotty coverage of all games in progress including the Campbell-ODU game.

Once the extra innings started the family had gathered watching when ever the TV coverage  would turn the Camels way.  Three runs in the twelfth by the Camels brought our living room to a roar.  Three up and three down and the Camels celebrated including our living room.

I hardly know any of the Camel players by name but have seen many at Campbell Volleyball games and when the Volleyball manager lives in my house then there is pressure applied to head to Columbia to watch the Camels on Sunday.  Guess where we are heading.  Morgan called Campbell Volleyball player Katelyn Layden who lives in Chapel a Hill and she spent the night with us and as you read this we are either on the way or there.  They will play the home team again  South Carolina  who lost the winners bracket game 4-3 to Maryland.  Hope we can get tickets.

The Tar Heels  knocked the home team out of the tournament in Gainesville Florida beating the Gators 5-2.  Benton failed to get the win having not returned after the nearly two hour rain delay.  The Tar Heels will get a second crack at Long Beach State who lost the winners bracket game to College of Charleston 6-3.  Carolina plays at 1 just like the Camels.  A loss  by either and the baseball season is over.

Southern Indiana won the D2 World Series in Cary.  They beat Colorado Mesa 3-2 in 12 innings which ties as the second longest D2 championship game ever.

Post 58 is back in action tonight as they travel to Wilson the take on Post 13 at Hunt High School.  Doubt we'll be back from Columbia by the time to stop by on the way home.  Should Campbell win and play at seven Sunday night they will have to win without us.

On Verge Of Elimination

The State of North Carolina has sent only two teams to the NCAA Regionals in baseball.  North Carolina seated 3rd in the Gainesville Florida region lost to the Number two seed Long Beach State 6-1.  The Heels had eight good innings of baseball but the fourth inning was their down fall giving up all six of  of the runs they gave up.  Tar Heels play at 1pm  today and I think Mike Fox will hand the ball to Benton Moss with hopes of Benton saving the tournament for North Carolina.

Campbell playing in their first NCAA playoff game in 24 years.  Now with school out Campbell offered students who wanted to go to Columbia SC for 40 dollars they could take  a bus tickets to Friday and Saturday's games and one night in a motel.  They got three bus loads to Columbia where they saw their Camels get hit with three South Carolina runs in the first but the Camels hung tough until the bottom of the 8th when they gave up two more before losing  5-2.

I don 't think there were many who dreamed the Camels could beat South Carolina but others  on Friday did the unthinkable like powerhouse Jackson State who beat Louisiana Lafayette 1-0 or that team Kennesaw State who everyone knows who they are beat Alabama 1-0.

The Tar Heels lost by five but guess what they were better that two other ACC teams as Clemson lost to Oregon  18-1.  Glad to see Clemson was ready to play.  Super  Regional hopeful Florida State was shutout at home by Georgia Southern 7-0. Just about every team has one pitcher when he is on can beat anybody.  The question is do they have three?

Virginia is the only ACC team that played like a top team winning 10-1.  Miami slides by 1-0 and Maryland needed two back to back hit batters to win 4-3.  Georgia Tech plays Saturday so the ACC is 500 the first day.

College baseball is just like basketball was this year. 24-30 are legit possible winners of the tournament.  Years ago only about 10 could possibly win the title.  Basketball is ready for a Butler to win the title and baseball is not far behind.

Opening Night Tie

Coleman  Pitt Post 58 opened it's 2014 summer baseball season playing Wayne County to a nine innings plus to a 4-4 tie.  Down 4-2 in the bottom of the ninth P 58 plated two runs to start the extra innings.

Khalil Macklin started the ninth with a base on balls.  Adam Bayless pitch hitting who hasn't played any ball since graduating Rocky Mount Academy in 2013 laced a single to put runners on first and second.  Griffin Parker laid  down a sacrifice bunt putting runners on second and third with one out.  Logan Simonowich from Roanoke Rapids hit a high chopper to third allowed Macklin to score with two outs now with Bayless on third. Blake Helms who had been in the game as relief pitcher for five innings batted for himself and sent a seeing eye single up the middle to tie the game.

Paschal Ammons from East Wake started for Post 58 went the first four innings giving up the four runs on six hits while walking seven batters..  Rocky Mount's Blake Helms came in with two on and no outs and gave a single but put out the Post 11 rally down 4-2.  Helms pitched five plus innings and gave up no runs on six hits while walking only three and with his curve working struck out five.

Rocky Mount took the lead in the second after Macklin singled, Christian Perry walked and Fike's  Griffin Parker doubled to produce a run. Wayne scored twice in the second off a Ryan Faucett two run double.  Noah Parker sac fly scored Wayne Couny's third run in the third and another in the fourth.  Linwood Jones scored P 58 second  run after his fly ball was dropped and Jones scampered to third.  A David Wiliams single put run two on for Post 58.

Post 58 collected only five hits while giving Wayne County 12 on the night.  The top of the tenth Post 11 lead of with a single and a force play created an out when the crowd was stunned when Adam Bayless now playing first base fell to the ground with a seizure.  Rescue was called and after about 30 minute delay Bayless entered the rescue vehicle and at that point Hank  Jones  and the Wayne County coach agree that continuing the game under these circumstances  was fruitless.  Adam Bayless was awake and I don't know of no one there wanted to continue after the 30 minutes of quiet calm that had overtaken the field.

Fell Off Cloud Nine

The Biggest sporting event in Thomas Berry and Britt Johnson's sporting  career has ended.  Lander University where Thomas plays and Britt coaches ended their season Wednesday when they lost at the division II World Series for the second time this week 7-3 to Tampa. It knocks them out of the tournament and they can hang their head high as they will officially finish fifth in the nation. Thomas went 2-4 in the game with a BB and a run scored.

Ten years ago Lander didn't have much of a baseball program until they hired Kermit Smith and in about four years Smith has turned the program into a program if you say Lander everyone in the college baseball world knows where it is.

Since Britt Johnson graduated Rocky Mount high and ECU he has slowly been moving up the coaching ladder first at Nash Central.  He had laid a coaching foundation while coaching Nash County Babe Ruth teams while in high school and college.

Some where when coaches meet other coaches or when other coaches watch other  coaches coach they file it in their memory bank.  I don't know where Britt ran across Kermit Smith but Smith offered Johnson a non paying coaching job at Lander.  It is called paying your dues to get to where you want to be.  This year Britt had a full time top assistant coaching job at Lander and Lander makes all the way to the final eight.  Fifth is the exact position and Britt Johnson had no small part but a Hugh role in Lander rise to cloud nine.

Division II and D3 can be a stepping stone to D1 baseball.  Mike Fox paid his dues at North Carolina Wesleyan and how many times has he taken Carolina to Omaha to the D1 College World Series.  Kermit Smith seems to have IT when it comes to coaching.  He also seems to have IT when he looks for coaches to help him.

This is the first time Lander has landed in the Big Dance of Division II college baseball.  I can guarantee you other colleges have their eyes wide open especially those who might be making coaching changes this year or in the next few years.  Kermit Smith is a hot commodity now in the college coaching world.  If the head man gets a bigger job he will bring along his assistance.  It may not happen this year or next but if a Lander stays a top ten program interest will be high for Smith.

There is always a chance that some smaller school looking for a hot shot assistant could call up Smith and say "Can we talk to you assistant Britt Johnson"?  I don't care who you are if you can coach and can win consistently people will come calling.  Even at 67 years old Coach  K keeps getting pro teams wanting him to their pro team.

Lander today may be disappointed at getting eliminated from the World Series in Cary but their future is bright.  Especially for that assistant coach from Rocky Mount Britt Johnson.   His future may have more  Cloud Nines.