| Millsaps had plenty to
celebrate in 2013. Millsaps athletics photo |
By Jim Dixon
D3sports.com
Millsaps represented the South Region in Appleton in 2013 and it will be a challenge for the No. 12 Majors to repeat. Just behind them is No. 13 Salisbury, one of four teams that have been to the NCAA playoffs every year since 2007. Reigning ODAC champion Bridgewater rounds out the south region teams in the Top 25 as the 24th team starting the 2014 season.
All three will find challengers in their conference. Perennial contenders Birmingham-Southern, Christopher Newport and Shenandoah received notice in the preseason Top 25 and will field quality teams. Newcomer to the USA South is Covenant and the Scots are the preseason favorite to earn the conference’s automatic pass to the playoffs. Look for the CAC to grab the South regional title in the form of either Salisbury or Christopher Newport, the frequent USA South contender which joins the CAC this season.
New Faces
Ryan Brittle, Ferrum: Brittle served as assistant baseball coach four years at Rogers State University in Claremore, Okla.,before taking the head coaching job at Ferrum. Brittle attended Ferrum two years before completing his bachelor's degree at Virginia Tech.
David Kelton, LaGrange: Kelton was promoted to head coach after serving as an assistant to former head coach Kevin Howard for the past four seasons. Kelton was drafted in 1998 out of high school in the second round by the Chicago Cubs and reached the major leagues with the Cubs in 2003.
Jonathon Nichols, Greensboro: Nichols spent four years on the Greensboro coaching staff before being named head coach of the Pride. Nichols previously coached at Charlotte Latin School in the competitive NCISAA Charlotte Independent Schools Baseball Conference. Nichols is a graduate of nearby University of North Carolina-Greensboro, where he was a four year letterwinner.
| Salisbury pitcher Dan Fein
was 10-0 with a 1.35 ERA in 2013. Salisbury athletics photo |
Conference Summaries
Capital Athletic Conference
Salisbury has made the CAC its stepping stone to the playoffs and returns 23 players from last year’s CAC championship team. An experienced team will step onto the diamond with first baseman Quinn Griffith and speedy centerfielder Bill Root leading the offense. Brett Collacchi and Dan Fein will form a potent 1-2 combination on the mound for the Sea Gulls.
Christopher Newport moves to the CAC and will challenge Salisbury for the conference title. The USA South regular season champion missed the playoffs for the first time in three years but lose only their record setting closer in Ryan Fleischmann, first baseman Chris McDougal and Houston draft pick Austin Chrismon. George Mason transfer Tommy Vitaletti will take over in the outfield with All-American Justin Weaver to settle in at first base. The Captains' rotation was a combined 16-7 with Bryan Bierlein taking over as staff ace. Christopher Newport will also have experience on the bench. Coach John Harvell is 28 wins from 400 and will be assisted by former D-III head coaches John Cole (Rowan) and Adam Taylor (Franklin and Marshall).
Finishing second in the CAC in 2013, Mary Washington will find this difficult to duplicate. Gone are pitchers with 12 of their 22 wins but with only two seniors among the regulars, it is the offense that will give the Eagles their best chance to succeed in 2014. Frostburg State is poised to leapfrog over the Eagles. Their top pitchers were juniors in 2013 and with their return in 2014, Frostburg State will have experience on the mound. The Bobcats took losses on the offensive side but Kevin Kean, a 2014 D3baseball.com preseason All-American and the reigning CAC palyer of the year, returns.
Wesley, York, and St. Mary’s (Md.) finished back in the pack in a six-team race. York has had the most success in the past five years, making the playoffs in 2009 and 2010 but will have to have a breakthrough year to be a serious contender for the CAC title. Southern Virginia and Penn State-Harrisburg join the CAC in 2014 while Marymount fields a baseball team for the first time to bring the total to ten teams. Penn State-Harrisburg is coming off its first playoff appearance as champions of the NEAC.
| Bridgewater outfielder Nick
Fulk has been named to the D3baseball.com preseason All-America
third team. Bridgewater athletics photo |
Old Dominion Athletic Conference
Bridgewater was the story in the ODAC in 2013 as the Eagles blazed to a 19-1 conference record. With senior outfielder and 2013 ODAC player of the Year Nick Fulk and second baseman Bryan Sanderson among four senior starters in 2014, the Eagles have earned a No. 24 ranking in the D3baseball.com preseason Top 25 poll. The Eagles will not only bring in a strong offensive team to the 2014 season but one of the top pitching staffs among the regional contenders. Key to their success will be lefty Corey Armentrout, the playoff MVP in the Valley League.
Shenandoah entered the conference in 2013 from the USA South with only five losses to ODAC teams but found there's a difference facing teams in conference. With seven losses in 2013, the Hornets finished tied with Hampden-Sydney, six games out of first place. Coach Kevin Anderson gave his 2013 freshman class extensive playing time and it should pay off this season. With every 2014 starter with 10-plus games starting, The Hornets are not just looking at a conference championship but another trip to the D-III World Series. Add in starting pitcher Vince Claudio, back from an injury that kept him out in 2013, Shenandoah has one of its most talented teams ever.
In 2013, Hampden-Sydney finished tied for second in the regular season and ended their season one win from the ODAC tournament championship game. The Tigers have reloaded for 2014 and will be led by their three senior team captains this spring. Hunter Lewis is a four year starter at third base and has shared pitching duties with Aaron Stidham. The third captain is senior center fielder Andrew Tucker. All three will be crucial for Hampden-Sydney’s success.
| Mitch Keeler was the 2013
ODAC Rookie of the Year. Randolph-Macon athletics photo |
Randolph-Macon will have to rely on their pitching if they want to earn their fourth playoff bid in four years. With a starting staff that loses one pitcher, as well as having the entire bullpen from 2013 back and consensus rookie of the year in catcher Mitch Keeler, the Yellow Jackets will have one of the dominant staffs in the region. Gone are significant offensive stars in 2B Jake Fletcher and center fielder Jeb Weymouth. Coach Ray Hedrick will have a lineup that will consist predominately of underclassmen.
Guilford will be led offensively by second baseman Corey Wallace. Add outfielder John Macon Smith and catcher Natan Fulbright and the Quakers have a strong nucleus from which to build in 2014. Several freshmen pitchers will be given the opportunity to crack into the starting rotation. Lynchburg returns 29 letter-winners from 2013 but nobody will be as important to the team as 2014 preseason All-American pitcher Martin Henderlite. Add Brandon Miller and the Hornets have as potent a 1-2 combination as any team. With new starters for the first time in four years on the left side of the infield, head coach Percy Abell will need to develop his midweek starters and hitting as the season progresses to win the ODAC.
Washington and Lee, Roanoke, Virginia Wesleyan, Eastern Mennonite, Emory and Henry have not had much success in moving on to the playoffs in the past seven years. Only Washington and Lee have earned a playoff spot (2009) in this period of time.
Southern Athletic Association
Millsaps earned its first trip to the D-III World Series in 2013 as they captured the Southern Athletic Association regular season and tournament titles. Ending their season in the top ten, the Majors find themselves ranked 12th at the start of this season. The experience winning the South Regional championship will be instrumental as they look to make it two in a row. Key to their success will be utility sensation Keith Shumaker who excelled both in the infield and as the No. 2 starter. The Majors has an even mix of upperclassmen and underclassmen that should keep them contenders for many years to come.
| Miles Nordgren was successful
on the field (2013 SAA Pitcher of the Year) and in the classroom
(2013 CoSIDA Academic All-District) in 2013. Birmingham-Southern athletics photo |
Birmingham-Southern finished second in the SAA to Millsaps in 2013 and despite some late-inning heroics also finished second in the inaugural SAA championship. The Panthers will have plenty of new faces in 2014 as 15 of the 38 man squad are freshmen and the youth movement will pay dividends in future seasons. Head coach Jan Weisberg has always put on a competitive team and 2014 will be no exception. The top of the pitching staff is back, led by 2014 D3baseball.com preseason All-American selection Miles Nordgren. The 2013 SAA Pitcher of the Year, will be joined by junior righhander Blake Stevens and senior righthander Rails Pennington. For the offense, four of the top five hitters will be back as well.
Berry has joined Birmingham-Southern in the youth movement with 24 freshmen on the roster. With just two starters lost to graduation following the 2013 season, the youth will complement an experienced team. The Vikings should move above the .500 mark and contend for a spot in the end of the year championship series. Hendrix’s chances for a conference title starts with centerfielder Collin Radack. Radack, back from a successful summer in the Alaska League, is in reach of several career records for the Warriors. Six more returning position starters join Radack among 20 returning lettermen. If the Warriors can find enough pitching, look the this team to be at the top of the standings at the end of the season.
Rhodes will feature a senior-laden offensive lineup in 2014 but it will be the underclassmen that could make a difference for the Lynx. Freshman shortstop Bill Munson is being given the opportunity to earn a starting spot and Rhodes will use a sophomore dominated pitching rotation. Oglethorpe, Centre, Sewanee round out the rest of the teams in the SAA. None of this trio has contended for a title but has contributed memorable games in the past. The conference leaders should not take these teams lightly as they are always looking for the upset.
| Micah Mabe and the rest of
the Covanant Scots are the pick-to-click in their first year in the
USA South. Covenant athletics photo. |
USA South Athletic Conference
Covenant, under the direction of eighth-year coach Doug Simons, was picked to win the USA South Athletic Conference in the annual coaches poll. The Scots have been working to improve their program and in their first year in the USA South and first time eligible for the playoffs are poised for a shot at the conference championship and the automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. Covenant returns seven position starters from last season, including leading hitters Scott Gillespie, David Lockwood and Will Cleland. The pitching rotation also brings back a strong group with top starters Micah Mabe, Garrett Kriston and Alhanon Miller all returning.
N.C. Wesleyan will also bring an experienced team to the field in 2014 as they will need to replace their starting shortstop and a spot in the pitching rotation. Ciro Norzagaray will fill both. A sophomore from Mexico, he will not be the only international player to find a spot in the starting nine as freshman Luis Palencia will start in the outfield. The Bishops' leader in wins, Will Beasley, will be the No. 1 starter.
Methodist head coach Tom Austin led his team to a 11-13 mark in conference play but earned a playoff spot when they won the USA South Tournament. The end of the season tournament will not be played in 2014 so the Monarchs will have to win the conference regular season title to repeat as the USA south representative in the NCAA playoffs. Steven Kirby, Cody Molosky and Chris Power headline Methodist's group of returning position players. Notable returnees on the Monarch pitching staff include Michael Inman and Michael Judge.
Huntingdon matched Covenant in the preseason poll with three first place votes in the USA South coaches poll and like the Scots will be playing their first year in the USA South. The Hawks are coming off their best season where they finished one game out the South regional championship game. The Hawks were hit hard by graduation and the early departure of All-American catcher Joseph Odom to the MLB amateur draft and will be rebuilding in 2014. Although the competition for starting lineup and rotation spots is ongoing, one spot is secure. Returning in 2014 is closer Neil Lawler with 10 saves and 40 strikeouts in 33 innings pitched.
Averett, who finished 24-16, enter the spring campaign as the sixth place team in early conference predictions. The Cougars have a lot of experience and returners at key positions, along with some solid additions to bolster their chances in 2014. Maryville returns eight position starters to go along with their top two starters. New pitching coach B.J. Hampton has a young and talented pitching staff and w need to sort through the group to join key returning pitchers in Trevor Brackett, Matt Dyer, and David Clifford. Offensive players to watch for the Scots are outfielder Landon Talley, shortstop Nick Dean, and first baseman Zach Blonder.
Ferrum, LaGrange, Greensboro are the only teams in the South Region to change head coaches. The LaGrange Panthers finished in the middle of the pack in 2013 but is expected to join Ferrum and Greensboro at the bottom of the conference standings.
Independents
The expectations for the Emory Eagles are high. With a veteran squad, including a ten-player senior class, Emory is looking to repeat their success in 2007 when they finished second to national champion Kean. The Eagles are looking for senior Connor Dillman to revert back to the success he had in his freshman and sophomore years. The strength for the offense will be the outfield. Each starting outfielder hit over .300 and the best of this group is Wes Peacock with a .358 battig average that led Emory in 2013.