CARY, N.C. - Baseball, America's pastime, is a joy to play for millions of young people around the world. The Barton College baseball team witnessed that joy at a new and inspiring level in the eyes of the Miracle League players on Saturday, September 19.
As our team piled into the bus early Saturday morning to take a trip to Cary, none of us knew exactly what was in store for the day ahead. The Miracle League of the Triangle in Cary is a special baseball league designed to give children with disabilities the chance to be a part of a team and to play a sport loved by so many. Each Saturday, families come from all across the state to give their children the opportunity to play baseball. Volunteers are needed each weekend, so the Barton baseball team lent a helping hand.
Our team signed up to be part of this incredible opportunity to give back to the game that has been such a large part of our lives. The Bulldogs and our head coach Todd Wilkinson learned of the Miracle League from Barton Hall of Fame member and 1978 graduate Robin Rose, who was instrumental in starting the local branch of the league.
Anyone could see that we were unsure of ourselves when we first arrived at the field, but we all jumped right into the action when paired up as buddies with a child.
Patrick Sherrill, a red-shirt junior, said, "I was a little bit nervous at the beginning; but once I spent some time with my buddy, I began to realize how much of an impact I and the rest of the team could have on them."
The interaction began with time for each player and his child to warm up and get to know each other. Once introductions were made and arms were loosened up, it was game time!
Each child was given a chance at bat in both innings of the game; and whether they hit off a tee or hit from a pitcher tossing underhanded, each one hit a double, a triple, or a home run. After hitting the ball, the child and his Barton buddy would race around the bases together until scoring. Pure excitement could be seen in each child's smiling face as he or she touched home plate to the roar of the crowd.
While one team was hitting, the opposing team played catch or spent quality time with their Barton buddy in the field. Anyone could tell that these children were savoring every second of their time with their designated Barton player.
When the final runner crossed home plate in the bottom of the second inning, the final score read 22-22. Each team lined up to shake hands and congratulate each other for another fun Saturday.
Barton College head baseball coach Todd Wilkinson summed up the experience with the following thoughts: "The Miracle League of the Triangle was an incredible experience for our team! All of us were so inspired by the Miracle League players' efforts and true love for the game."
In addition, Wilkinson expressed pride in the Bulldogs, saying, "I was overwhelmed with my team's effort with the players and felt so very fortunate to be their head coach. Anybody with Bulldog ties would have been very proud of this group of young men on this day!"
The final words to come out of the announcer's mouth could not have been more true for the children and the Barton baseball team: "Everybody wins!"
END
Story by Kramer Sneed, a junior majoring in physical education and a pitcher for the Barton College baseball team.
Edited by Ken Dozier, Office of Web Services.
Questions? Please contact Ken Dozier, web services manager, at 252-399-6596 or email: kdozier@barton.edu.
Rising Barton College junior outfielder Matt Willis (Wilmington, NC) of the Waves has been named 2009 Hitter of the Year in the Mississippi River Valley League.
Willis was a member of the 13-player All-River Valley League first team, while Barton and Waves teammate Kevin Carty, a rising senior right-handed pitcher from Southampton, N.J., earned second-team accolades.
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Willis, who helped Barton to a 30-17 record last season, batted .387 (second in the league) with 41 hits (first in the league) in 106 at-bats. He also led the league with 35 RBIs, four home runs, and a slugging percentage of .604. His 64 total bases were eight more than the second highest finisher.
Willis was second in the league in on base percentage (.511), fourth in runs scored (32), fourth in stolen bases (18), and fourth in doubles (7). He was also named Hitter of the Week back in Week 4 (July - 8 - July 15) when he had a batting average of .500, a slugging percentage of .833, an on-base percentage of .591, drove in five runs and scored nine.
DUBUQUE, IA — Barton College junior outfielder Matt Willis is having a sensational summer campaign as a member of the Waves in the Mississippi River Valley League.
Willis was named Hitter of the Week in the River Valley League on Friday after batting .500 with 5 RBI, seven stolen bases and nine runs scored. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Wilmington, N.C., native also had a slugging percentage of .833.
Willis has led the Waves to the top of the RVL standings at 18-8, one-half game up on the Beavers as the playoffs approach. He is arguably the league's top hitter. He ranks first in the RVL in homers (4), hits (32), total bases (53), RBI (32) and slugging percentage (.631). His 32 RBI is nine more than the second-best player in that category. He rates second in batting average (.381) and on-base percentage (.527) and is third in stolen bases (17-of-19).
Willis appeared in 25 games for Barton as a sophomore, batting .333 in helping the Bulldogs to a 30-17 overall record and 13-7 Conference Carolinas ledger.
Barton College senior outfielder Zach Boyette (Marion, VA) has been named to the NCAA D-II All-Southeast Region Gold Glove baseball team for his fielding prowess.
Boyette, a center fielder with excellent speed, had 106 putouts, eight assists and committed just one error for the 30-17 Bulldogs. His fielding percentage was a sparkling .991.
Boyette was one of three outfielders selected by the Southeast Region coaches to the elite nine-player team.
The rest of the lineup includes UNC Pembroke first baseman Seth Kivett, Armstrong Atlantic second baseman Carlos Cardoza-Oquendo, UNC Pembroke third baseman Tom Porricelli, Francis Marion shortstop Barrett Kleinknecht, Augusta State outfielder Shannon Wilkerson, UNC Pembroke outfielder Kevin Dietrich, North Georgia catcher Daniel Petitti and starting pitcher Davidi Walters of Francis Marion.
Boyette was also a first-team All-Conference Carolinas choice after leading the Bulldogs as high as No. 26 in the national baseball poll. He batted .362 and led the team with 55 runs, 63 hits and 21 stolen bases (out of 25 attempts). He also had nine doubles, five homers and 35 RBI.
Barton College third baseman Aaron Watkins has signed to play with the Wilson Tobs summer collegiate baseball team this summer.
He is one of five Barton baseball players who have been selected to play on summer collegiate wooden bat squads. Pitchers Kramer Sneed and Hunter Meekins will suit up for Outer Banks, and pitcher/outfielder Wes Francis will play for Martinsville, VA, in the Coastal Plain League. Pitcher Matt Watson will play for Morganton in the Southern Collegiate League.
Former Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference Player of the Year Tara Davis, who graduated this weekend, has already begun her professional women's soccer career with the Hampton Roads Piranhas of the W-League. She and her teammates will play the Cary Lady Clarets on June 28 at 8:00 p.m. at Cary's Middle Creek Park.
Watkins, a 6-foot-1, 170-pound sophomore third baseman, batted a team-best .380 with 14 doubles and 45 RBIs this season for the Bulldogs.
"We like what Aaron brings to the table on and off the field," Tobs manager Jeff Steele said in a release. "We think he'll be someone we can count on this season."
At Denbigh High in Newport News, Va., Watkins was named to the 2006 All-Peninsula District team and All-Eastern Region first team.
The Tobs begin the 2009 Coastal Plain League season Wednesday night in Fayetteville before taking on Asheboro in their home opener in Fleming Stadium on Thursday night.
WILSON, N.C.-Top-seeded Belmont Abbey College scored 15 runs on 13 hits and eight walks to stay alive in the 2009 Conference Carolinas Baseball Tournament with a 15-5 victory over host and No. 3 seed Barton College on Saturday afternoon at historic Fleming Stadium.
The Crusaders (28-21) will play No. 7 seed Anderson University in another elimination game on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. for the right to face No. 4 seed Erskine College in the championship game on Sunday. The Bulldogs, who are currently ranked No. 26 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper National Poll, exit the tournament with a 30-17 overall ledger and will wait to see if they get an NCAA Regional bid.
The top five batters in Barton's lineup all collected two hits, including Wesley Francis, Zach Boyette, Jonathan Nichols, Ryan McCleney, and Ryan Daughtry, but the Bulldogs left 11 runners on base. Daughtry drove in a team-high two RBI.
Boyette and Aaron Watkins both ripped a double for the Bulldogs' only extra-base knocks. The Crusaders, who are currently ranked No. 5 in the NCAA Southeast Regional Poll, were led offensively by Daniel Kassouf with two home runs and four RBI.
Kassouf has gone deep three times in the conference tourney to increase his season total to 20 homers. Spencer Sobol and Patrick Atwell also went deep for the Abbey. Sobol, Atwell, Justin Vasquez, and Carlos Vasquez all drove in two runs for the Crusaders. John Merritt (2-1) picked up the win in the start allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits over 5 2/3 innings of work.
Merritt had a game-high six strikeouts. Jordan Cudney tossed 3 1/3 innings of effective relief to earn his seventh save of the season. Patrick Sherrill took the loss giving up six runs in 2 1/3. Belmont Abbey broke a 2-2 tie with six runs in the fourth and continued to build on its lead seven more runs over the final three frames.
WILSON, NC — No. 3 seed and nationally 26th-ranked Barton College pounded out 17 hits to capture an 8-5 win over No. 5 seed Pfeiffer University in an elimination game of the 2009 Conference Carolinas Baseball Tournament at Fleming Stadium Friday afternoon.
Zach Boyette, Jonathan Nichols and Aaron Watkins each had three hits to pace the Bulldogs, now 30-16. One of Nichols' hits was a two-run homer, his team-leading 12th of the year. The blast came as part of a three-run third inning that put Barton ahead for good, 4-2.
Pfeiffer (26-18-1) closed to within one run at 4-3 in the fifth inning, but then gave up two more runs in the bottom of the frame. The Falcons again threatened to erase Barton's lead in the seventh, closing to within a run at 6-5, but the Bulldogs tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the inning to provide the final margin of victory.
Preston Lyon had two hits, including a solo home run, to pace the Falcons in a losing cause. Myles Pearl also had a solo home run, and Ryan Brown drove in a pair of runs.
Barton advances to a 4 p.m. elimination contest on Saturday at Fleming Stadium against No. 1 seed Belmont Abbey College. who eliminated No. 2 seed Mount Olive College, the defending NCAA D-II champ, in Friday's nightcap.
WILSON, NC — Blair Carson's walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning capped a huge rally for Anderson University on Friday, giving the seventh-seeded Trojans a 12-11 victory over No. 3 seed and nationally 26th-ranked Barton College in the winner's bracket of the Conference Carolinas Baseball Tournament.
Anderson (23-28) trailed 11-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, but scored three runs in each of the final three frames to advance to a 1 p.m. winner's bracket contest on Saturday. Carson's two-run homer, which came off Barton reliever Jimmy Metzinger (2-1), was his team-leading 12th of the season and Anderson's fourth of the game.
Trent Still had two home runs in the game for the Trojans, including a critical three-run blast in the eighth inning. Ryan Saxon added a solo shot.
Barton (29-16) had jumped out to a big early lead behind the contributions of a pair of freshmen, Ryan Daughtry and Chris Rawlings. Daughtry scored three runs and had two hits, including a two-run homer in the fifth inning that put the Bulldogs up 4-3. One inning later, Rawlings ripped his first home run of the year, a two-run shot that helped put Barton ahead 7-4.
Veterans Aaron Watkins and Will Johnson also had big days in a losing cause for the Bulldogs. Watkins went 4-for-5, including an RBI triple in Barton's four-run seventh inning. Johnson had two hits, including a two-run homer, also in the seventh.
With the loss, Barton must return to action at 4 p.m. Friday at Fleming Stadium.
WILSON, NC — Nationally 26th-ranked Barton College will take on 7th-seeded Anderson University Friday morning at 10 in a winner's bracket semifinal of the Conference Carolinas Baseball Tournament. The game between the 3rd-seeded Bulldogs (29-15) and Trojans (22-28) will be played in Fleming Stadium.
Barton beat 6th-seeded Limestone 5-3 on Friday while Anderson defeated 2nd-seeded Mount Olive, the defending NCAA D-II National Champs and three-time defending conference tournament champs.
The winner of the Barton-Anderson game will move into the winner's bracket semifinal and will play at 1 p.m. Saturday in Fleming Stadium. The loser will have to play at 4 p.m. Friday in Fleming Stadium. This is a double-elimination event.
Today's action features 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. games at Nixon Field and games at 10, 1, 4 and 7 at historic Fleming Stadium.
For the complete bracket, click on the following link:
WILSON, N.C. — Senior Barton College outfielder Zach Boyette garnered first-team All-Conference Carolinas baseball honors at the annual awards ceremony held at Fleming Stadium on Thursday night.
Boyette was joined on the squad by second-team picks Aaron Watkins, a sophomore third baseman; Brandon Brinson, a senior right-handed pitcher; and Jonathan Nichols, a senior outfielder. Boyette, Watkins and Nichols were all batting .360 for the nationally 29th-ranked Bulldogs through their 5-3, first-round league tournament win over Limestone on Thursday afternoon. Boyette has scored a team-high 50 runs, has 34 RBI and is 19-of-23 in stolen base attempts. Watkins has 12 doubles and 40 RBI while Nichols has nine doubles, two triples and team-highs of 11 home runs and 42 RBI. Brinson is one of the league's winningest pitchers at 9-2 and has a 6.22 ERA in 72 innings pitched for the Bulldogs, now 29-15 and the third seed in the league tourney.
The Conference Carolinas All-Conference baseball teams were determined by vote from each head coach of participating league institutions. Nominations are collected and then voted upon by ballot and tallied to determine Players of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, Freshman of the Year, Coach of the Year, All-Conference First Team, and All-Conference Second Team.
This year's award winners are as follows:
Co-Players of the Year:
Rich Racobaldo - Mount Olive College
Bryan Fogle - Erskine College
Pitcher of the Year:
Nick Fogleman -Pfeiffer University
Freshmen of the Year: Cody McElhaney - Erskine College
Coach of the Year: Kermit Smith - Belmont Abbey College
All-Conference First Team: Daniel Kassouf - Belmont Abbey -1B
Chas Anthony - Erskine -2B
Rich Racobaldo - Mount Olive -SS
John Bolding - Erskine -3B
Alex Vertcnik - Mount Olive -C
Kevin Kearney - Mount Olive -DH
Aldo Mendez - Limestone -OF
Bryan Fogle - Erskine -OF
Zach Boyette - Barton -OF
Greg Huff - Erskine -OF
Andrew Oliver - Pfeiffer -Relief Pitcher
Nick Fogleman - Pfeiffer -P
Tyler Powell - Belmont Abbey-P
B.J. Dail - Mount Olive -P
Andrew Morton - Belmont Abbey -P
Blair Carson - Anderson -Utility
All-Conference Second Team: Drew Lydon - Limestone -1B
Ryan Saxon - Anderson -2B
Cody McElhaney - Erskine -SS
Aaron Watkins - Barton -3B
Trent Still - Anderson -C
Spencer Sobol - Belmont Abbey -DH
Keith Hill - Erskine -OF
Jonathan Nichols - Barton -OF
Jesse Lancaster - Mount Olive -OF
Tyler McKenzie - Belmont Abbey -OF
Atlee Pearson - Erskine -Relief Pitcher
Ryan Kussmaul - Mount Olive -P
Brandon Brinson - Barton -P
Jordan Barnett - Limestone -P
William Buzhardt - Erskine -P
Greg Dailey - Limestone -Utility
Subscribe to Feed