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So. Carolina Faces Virginia/Oklahoma Winner At CWS

Another national seed is gone.  South Carolina beat #4 national seed 10-9 Sunday in Myrtle Beach, SC to cap a 2-0

Christian Walker's 8th inning home run helped South Carolina cap its two game sweep.

series sweep and clinch a spot in the College World Series. The Gamecocks are headed to Omaha for the first time since 2004.   Click the links below for more details.

By clicking the “Myrtle Beach Super Regional” title link above, this page will expand to fully support the table below.

CLICK HERE for our Super Regional Central page where you will find links to other Super Regionals.

Best 2-of-3 Super Regional Series
(CC’s Super-Regional Home Page)

• Saturday – 12 ET (ESPNU)
South Carolina 4,  at Coastal Carolina 3
Final Stats |  SC Recap |  CC Recap (w/ quotes)
Photos (SC)  |  Quotes (SC)

• Sunday – 1 ET (ESPN)
FINAL: South Carolina 10,  Coastal Carolina 9 |  Final Stats
CAR Recap | CC Recap

* South Carolina wins series (2-1)

CB360 Podcast interview with South Carolina’s Blake Cooper (from earlier this season).
CB360 Podcast interview with Coastal Carolina’s Rico Noel (recorded after Regionals).

THE SKINNY …

COASTAL CAROLINA (#4 National Seed)
(55-8 … 25-0/1st Big South … Big South Tournament champs)
Super-Reg. Notes |  Roster |  2010 Stats |  Media  Guide |  Quick Facts (preseason)
Big South Conf. info. – Homepage |  Weekly Release |  Conference Stats

Over the past four seasons, no team has won more games than Gary Gilmore and Coastal Carolina.  Including last weekend’s 4-1 Regional showing, the Chanticleers have won 202 games from 2007-present. Arizona State is right behind with 198 victories. Gilmore has taken players that were on other teams’ “B” lists and turned Coastal into a national player. The one thing missing from his resume is a trip to the College World Series.

The Chants are a rare combination of speed and power, with 107 home runs and 160 stolen bases. They are thought to be the only DI team to top 100 HRs and 150 SBs in the same season. Rico Noel (podcast link above) leads the nation with 56 swipes, while Scott Woodward has 54. Noel also has 11 home runs (including a walk-off shot to beat the College of Charleston in the Regional, with CC facing elimination) – making him one of six Chants with double-digit dingers. Catcher Jose Iglesias leads the way with 16 HR and 78 RBI.

The pitching is good, too, with jr. LHP Cody Wheeler (3.59 ERA; 12-0 record) and so. RHP Anthony Meo (2.63; 13-2) leading the rotation, backed by Ryan Connolly (2.08l 3-0), Austin Fleet (2.53; 8 saves; 6-1) and Matt Rein (2.70; 2 SV; 7-0) out of the bullpen.

Myrtle Beach Regional (CC results)
(1) Coastal Carolina 6,  (4) Stony Brook 0 | Final Stats
CC Recap | SB Recap

(2) College of Charleston 16,  (1) Coastal Carolina 6 |  Live Stats
CofC Recap |  CC Recap |  Quotes

(1) Coastal Carolina 25,  (4) Stony Brook 7 (elim. game)  | Final Stats
CC Recap | SB Recap

(1) Coastal Carolina 8,  (2) College of Charleston 7 |  Final Stats
CC Recap | CofC Recap

(1) Coastal Carolina 11,  (2) College of Charleston 10 (10 inn.) |  Final Stats
CC Recap (w/ video highlights) | CofC Recap

Awards/Honors:
• Jim Birmingham (LHP; Sr./Jr.) – 33rd-round MLB draft pick (S.F. Giants)
• Daniel Bowman (OF; So.) – Big South Tournament MVP
• Ryan Connolly (RHP; Fr.)– Freshman All-American (Collegiate Baseball) … 2nd team all-Big South
• Austin Fleet (RHP; 5th-Yr. Sr.) – 16th-round MLB draft pick (S.F. Giants)
• Chance Gilmore (OF; 5th-Yr.-Sr.) – 25th-round MLB draft pick (L.A. Dodgers) … Big South All-Tournament Team
• Gary Gilmore – Big South Coach of the Year
• Keith Hessler (LHP; Jr./So.) – 28th-round MLB draft pick (Arizona Diamondbacks)
• Jose Iglesias (C; Sr.) – Johnny Bench Award Finalist … 1st team all-Big South
• Tommy LaStella (2B; Jr./So.) – 1st team all-Big South
• Anthony  Meo (RHP; So.) – 2nd team All-American (Collegiate Baseball) … Big South Pitcher of the Year … Big South All-Tournament Team
• Taylor Motter (SS; So.) – 1st team all-Big South … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Rico Noel (CF; Jr.) – 5th-round MLB draft pick (San Diego Padres) … 1st team all-Big South … NCAA Regional MVP
• Cody Wheeler (LHP; Jr.) – 2nd team All-American (Collegiate Baseball) … 5th-round MLB draft pick (Arizona Diamondbacks) … 1st team all-Big South … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Rich Witten (DH; Jr./So.) – NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team … Big South All-Tournament Team
• Scott Woodward (3B; Jr.) – 15th-round MLB draft pick (Oakland A’s) … 1st team all-Big South … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team

•  •  •

SOUTH CAROLINA
(46-15 … 21-9 SEC/#3-seed … 0-2 at SEC Tournament)
SC info. – Super-Reg. Notes •  PDF |  Roster |  2010 Stats |  Media Guide
SEC info. – Home Page (w/standings)  |  Weekly Release |  Conference Stats |  Media Guide

The Gamecocks became Omaha regulars from 2002-2004, but Ray Tanner’s squad hasn’t been back to Rosenblatt since that three-year stretch.

South Carolina doesn’t have nearly the eye-popping offensive numbers that Coastal Carolina boatss, but Jackie Bradley, Jr. (.367, 11 HR, 49 RBI) is one of eight SC players who have hit at least seven home runs. Whit Merrifield has 12 HR, while Adrian Morales leads the Gamecocks with 52 RBI.

Pitching is the strength of a team that was in the conversation for a national seed before going 0-2 at the SEC Tournament. Senior RHP Blake Cooper (podcast link above) is 11-1 with a 2.75 ERA. He is one of five Gamecock hurlers who have pitched at least 23 innings and have an ERA below 3.00.  Cooper is only 5-10, but he has a bulldog mentality in the mold of former Cy Young Winner David Cone.

Columbia Regional (SC results)

(1) South Carolina 9,  (4) Bucknell 5 |  Final Stats
SC Recap |  BUCK Recap

(1) South Carolina 9,  (3) The Citadel 4 |  Final Stats
SC Recap |  CIT Recap |  Photos |  Postgame Blog

(1) South Carolina 10,  (2) Virginia Tech 2 |  Final Stats
SC Recap |  VT Recap

Awards/Honors:
• Parker Bangs (RHP/UTIL; Jr.) – 31st-round MLB draft pick (K.C. Royals)
• Jackie Bradley, Jr. (CF; So.) – 2nd team all-SEC … SEC All-Drefensive Team … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Blake Cooper (RHP; Sr.) – 3rd team All-American (Collegiate Baseball) … 12th-round MLB draft pick (Arizona Diamondbacks) … 1st team all-SEC … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Sam Dyson (RHP; Jr.) – 4th-round MLB draft pick (Toronto Blue Jays)
• Kyle Enders (C; Sr.) – NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Bobby Haney (SS; Sr.) –22nd-round MLB draft pick (S.F. Giants)
• Evan Marzilli (LF; Fr.) – SEC All-Freshman Team … NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Whit Merrifield (RF/IF; Jr.) – 9th-round MLB draft pick (K.C. Royals)
• Adrian Morales (3B; Jr.) – NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Steven Neff (LHP; So.) – 23rd-round MLB draft pick (K.C. Royals)
• Matt Price (RHP; Fr.) – Freshman All-American (Collegiate Baseball) … 2nd team all-SEC … SEC All-Freshman Team
• Jordan Propst (RHP; Sr.) – 49th-round MLB draft pick (K.C. Royals)
• Brady Thomas (DH; Sr.) – NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team
• Christian Walker (1B; Fr. ) – SEC All-Freshman Team
• Scott Wingo (2B; Jr.) – SEC All-Drefensive Team

Myrtle Beach Super Regional

TEAM	RECORD	CONF.	BA	Runs/ Gm.	HR	Slg%	OBP	SB-Att.	Fld%	ERA	CG	SV	K	BB	Opp. BA
Coastal Carolina	55-8	Big South	.326	9.3	107	.555	.418	160-196	.970	3.51	2	14	518	216	.246
South Carolina	45-15	SEC	.302	7.5	89	.495	.395	45-66	.974	3.53	4	14	553	197	.229

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Big Week For Coastal Carolina Star

Coastal Carolina outfielder Rico Noel has helped the Chanticleers to a big season, and this week has been the biggest.  Noel hit a walk-off home run Sunday night to force a Monday winner take all Regional championship game in which his team beat the College of Charleston.  He was named the Myrtle Beach Regional MVP for his efforts.  As if that wasn’t enough, Noel was taken Tuesday by the San Diego Padres in the fifth round of the MLB draft.  He talks about all of that as well as this week’s Super Regional series vs. South Carolina in this podcast interview with Collegebaseball360.com editor Sean Stires.

Noel

5’9 – 170 – Jr. – Lawton, OK              Head Coach: Gary Gilmore

Collegebaseball360.com contributor Chase Titleman from Road2rosenblatt.com checks-in with a look at where coaches could be headed (and where some already are headed) during the off season.

Bob Todd retired after 23 seasons at Ohio State.

A natural power harbinger for the developing Big-10 Network, but given Todd’s apparent success – or to some – “the lack of success” at the school, is there a serious contender with head coaching experience from outside the great lakes region who would consider the position?

The Todd debate is a convoluted affair as most of his supporters are thrilled with the 837 all-time victories, but the corporate power players are less than enthralled, especially considering the closest he came to Omaha were Super Regional losses in 2003 and 1999.

Todd, who has been a head coach at the Division I level for 37 of the 39 years he has been coaching, is one of the few in coaching who has achieved the much revered 1000-win milestone, and he is a member of the College Coaches Association Hall of Fame, as voted in 2009.

A winner of eight Big-10 regular season titles and eight Conference Tournament championships, as well as 13 trips to the post season tournament, is this – perhaps – as good as Ohio State can expect for a northern program with such a talented coach guiding the ship?

The obvious question to ask is if Todd couldn’t get it done with all of his credentials and accomplishments…who can?

Louisville head coach Dan McDonnell certainly can, but the former assistant at Ole Miss who led Louisville to the College World Series in 2007 has his sight set on a bigger horizon as he is rumored to favor a return to the SEC, where both the climate and fertile recruiting grounds harbor greater hopes of reaching college baseball’s promise land on an annual basis.

Gary Gilmore and Coastal Carolina have won 35 straight Big South Conference games.

With openings rumored at both Tennessee and Georgia by seasons end, McDonnell will have to fend off stiff challenges within the region, especially from Coastal Carolina head coach Gary Gilmore, who won his 600th game in a 7-2 win over Radford last week.

Gilmore, who is 600-300 in 21 seasons heading the Chanticleer ship, is currently in the middle of his most successful campaign as Coastal Carolina (47-7, 25-0 Big South) is a major player in the race for the national championship this season.

Not that he is necessarily looking, but if ever there was a season that led Gilmore to the SEC, this would be it as his overall coaching record of 853-402 certainly fits the SEC criteria of success, and he has a trip to a super-regional to tack on his rising resume.

Another rising star within the SEC footprint is Western Kentucky’s Chris Finwood, who had his most successful season last year in guiding the Hilltoppers to their first 40-win season in 21 years.

No stranger himself to the post-seasons of the past, but this season his Topper program has struggled to maintain the high benchmark the program has recently established, falling all the way to 5th in the Sun Belt Conference standings with a little over a week to go in the regular season.

Finwood may no longer be a “Flavor of the Month,” hire the SEC is so duly noted for, and he may in fact need another year or two of seasoning before getting his SEC invitation.

But with McDonnell waiting patiently in the wings for an SEC opening to occur, his decision to return to the SEC could set off a potentially wild off-season of coaching changes across the landscape of college baseball.

Imagine the following scenario:

McDonnell takes the Georgia job, which opens up Louisville.  Gilmore then takes the Tennessee position, which opens up Coastal Carolina.  Would Finwood be interested in the lateral move to Coastal, or would his sights be set upon the beautiful ballpark in Louisville?  Would Louisville even be interested in Finwood considering the program’s latest fall?

Would the assistants under McDonnell or Gimore stay to take over Louisville and Coastal, or would they follow their leader to the SEC schools of Tennessee and Georgia and the land of higher paychecks and greater prestige?

And who knows, given the surreal and unrealistic demands of the SEC, it wouldn’t be uncommon to see Mississippi State or even Kentucky open as well, which would send the carousel into an absolute shark frenzy, and potentially leading college administrators to some stressful and sleepless nights.

Which brings us back to UNLV and the urgency that Jim Livengood is faced with for the various scenario’s must be keeping him up at night wondering how to attack and take advantage of the timing surrounding his baseball opening.

Given the current opportunities at low profile schools, such as Ohio State and the Air Force Academy, coupled with what would now be potentially high profile openings at Louisville and Coastal Carolina, two teams that could end up in Omaha this season, should Livengood wait until the end of the post-season, which could extend the Rebels coaching search into July and risk trying to sell UNLV as a destination job when so many are jockeying for high profile positions, or should he strike while the opportunity is hot in taking the best assistant coaches the country has to offer?

Florida took this option three seasons ago in hiring Clemson assistant coach Kevin O’Sullivan after Florida failed to make the post-season and look where the Gators are now…a solid Top-5 program and a legitimate contender with a solid pitching staff to win the national championship.

Given this scenario, Livengood should narrow his focus to two longtime successful assistant coaches who have major west coast ties and get his program moving in the right direction now while the irons are hot.

In most circumstances, the failure to reach postseason play would be a fatal doom to many assistant coaches looking for head coaching positions as the “Flavor of the Month” factor is a vital key for young coaches looking to capitalize on a masterful season.

However, with both Oklahoma State and Washington in the midst of youthful rebuilding projects, ironically, the timing may be just right for assistant coaches Dave Nakama (Washington) and Billy Jones (Oklahoma State) to capitalize on the marketplace for they are not involved with the daily preparations on the post-season “Road to Omaha.”

Both are no strangers to post-season play as Nakama has been to Omaha with the Stanford Cardinal on more than one occasion, even participating in a national championship game in recent past, while Jones has been as close to Omaha as you can get without actually getting there, losing in game three of the super’s at both NC State and Oklahoma State, programs that were largely built on his recruiting efforts.

Livengood must face the music for UNLV is not a destination job to most, but rather a stepping stone job one can use to reach greater fortunes. He won’t attract names like McDonnell, Gilmore or Finwood for they would simply see a move to UNLV as a lateral move, or worse yet, a step down in stature.

For Jones and Nakama, however, who are no strangers to multiple second place finishes in multiple coaching searches across the country in the last decade, UNLV would in fact be the destination job that Livengood so intends to sell considering both have experienced the trials and tribulations of developing various schools into successful programs and recognize the importance of not only the timing, but the opportunity itself.

Plus their age, with both now over 40, is likely to make both realize the fragility of the opportunity.  Both can neither afford to take any job, for the job they take at their age may certainly be their last chance at the coaching carousel.

The ironic timing of the situation is that UNLV is not just any run of the mill coaching job.  It is a sleeping giant waiting for the right mix of coaching intelligence and fortitude to mold it into success.

With the Mountain West Conference on the verge of a possible automatic BCS invitation in the near future, the conference and its member schools may just be awash in revenue sooner than later.

With outstanding facilities and a state government friendly to the dynamic needs of the corporate world, UNLV could be a major player in the Western region if the right coach is hired, and the right coach is someone who recognizes that you can get to Omaha from Las Vegas if you are willing to develop the foundation and commit the time to see it to fruition.

If Livengood is serious about building a program in “Sin City,” he should focus on hiring a coach who is not intent on building a program for 5 years, padding his resume only to move on to greater exploits, which is exactly why Nakama and Jones make so much sense from the long term viewpoint.

If the small school baseball powers – all within the 500 radial mile footprint of UNLV – schools such as Cal-State-Fullerton, Cal-Irvine, Long Beach State or UC-San Diego can achieve success on the baseball diamond without a cash-cow football program generating substantial revenue for the entire athletic department, the Rebels certainly should have a major advantage over this list of baseball Titans in the west if they can get their act together.

In today’s climate of player motivation and team communication, you need a coach who can garnish the will of the athletes to grind out a championship.

You need a coach who can sell not only his institution, city or state, but himself.  You need a coach who can manage the educational demands of the classroom and the professional baseball aspirations of the family.  You need a coach who can sell the corporate sponsors within his region with excellent speaking and entertaining skill sets, as well as a grounded sense that the program is not about his personal coaching recognition, reputation and fame, but the recognition, reputation and fame of the university and the players who represent it.

For Livengood, he needs a coach who has been through the grind and recognizes that UNLV is not a stepping stone job and who isn’t going to bolt 5 years down the line, which is a rare combination when considering the current recycled head coaching candidates.

It is time for Livengood to give either Billy Jones or David Nakama, two often forgotten names among the coaching fraternity, a chance to develop a program that will one day play on the fertile soil in Omaha on a regular basis.

The Jones File

Jones began his coaching career in 1997 at Green River Community College in Washington State following in the footsteps of his coaching mentor Dan Spencer, who after over a decade of work at Oregon State and two national championship rings later, is now the head coach at Texas Tech.

Oklahoma State assistant Billy Jones

Green River College, under the direction of Jones, won the NWAACC’s Western Region championship in 1998 and a year later Spencer, then the lead assistant coach at Oregon State University under head coach Pat Casey, offered Jones the volunteer assistant position where he earned his degree in Liberal Studies.

Noted as an outstanding hitting coach (he hit .433 as a player at Lower Columbia College), his Green River wood bat program once hit 60 home runs in just 36 games.

The strong hitting trend has followed Billy’s coaching pursuits across the country as the Oklahoma State program led the Big-12 in home runs and batting average in 2005, his first season in Stillwater, and by year three at the school the Cowboys led the conference in batting average, home runs and slugging percentage altogether.

The 2008 team alone had 8 members in the starting line-up who hit .317 or higher!

A noted players coach, Jones developed national recruiting classes at both NC State and Oklahoma State after being mentored by Arizona State coach Pat Murphy, where he was the Director of Baseball Operations for two seasons.

While in Raleigh, North Carolina – Jones helped guide the Wolf Pack to two NCAA Regional appearances in three seasons and was one of five finalists for the Baseball America National Assistant Coach of the Year Award in 2003.

Although he coaches outfielders and hitting at present with the Cowboys, his troops at NC State improved their team fielding percentage every year, from .958 in 2002, to .966 in 2003 to .976 (4th best in the nation) in 2004, the year NC State lost in the super-regional finals.

Former Oklahoma State volunteer assistant coach Trevor Brown, who now works as the Northwest Area Scout for the Minnesota Twins Organization, has nothing but glowing words for his coaching mentor Jones.

Brown, a former NAIA All-American who won a national championship at Lewis and Clarke State College under the direction of Ed Cheff, claims that “Jones is the best coach he has worked for or played under in terms of getting the most talent out of his players.  “He has an innate ability to connect to all players of differing backgrounds as he approaches each player individually, playing to their strengths and masking their weaknesses to improve player performance.”

Brown played for both Cheff (Lewis & Clarke State) and Donny Harrel (the current head coach at Seattle University) at Lane Community College, and although not taking anything away from those other coaches, believes Jones has a special talent in developing players compared to most of the coaches around the country today.

“His players have extreme loyalty and he is somewhat of a master in identifying and recruiting diamond-in-the-rough type players and developing them into All-Americans and professional baseball prospects.  It would be a shame not to see him lead his own program in the near future as he is certainly qualified and well equipped to run a championship level program.”

The Nakama File

After spending 10 plus seasons at Stanford University, Dave Nakama has moved up north in the PAC-10 Conference joining coach Lindsey Meggs initial staff at Washington in 2010.

Washington assistant Dave Nakama

At Stanford, Nakama worked with the infielders and hitters while coaching first base, and was a central figure in recruiting, helping the Cardinal land four top-10 recruiting classes in the last 8 years according to BaseballAmerica.com

During his decade on “The Farm,” Nakama helped the team to four PAC-10 Championships, five NCAA regional titles and four trips to the College World Series.

Among the many he mentored as coach, Boston Red Sox shortstop Jed Lowrie, first-rounder John Mayberry Jr., and Seattle Mariners farmhand Chris Minaker stand out among a crowded and talented athletic baseball crop that populated the Stanford dugout.

Under Nakama’s watchful eye, the Cardinal posted their five best seasons for fielding percentage in school history, including a .977 mark in 2005 where they committed 51 errors in 59 games.  All in all, Nakama led the Cardinal to five top-10 finishes in his last eight years at the school, including another .977 mark in his last season.

According to Husky coach Lindsey Meggs, who worked with Nakama at Chico State and San Francisco State, “having Dave on the staff is like having another head coach in the dugout…he has all the intangibles needed to be a head coach as he can manage the game both offensively and defensively, and more importantly, he knows the PAC-10 Conference inside and out.”

Having personally watched Nakama work with the En Fuego Academy program in Seattle, he has an innate ability to communicate with young athletes and what impresses me the most is his genuine interest in helping players move on in college baseball, even if his school (currently the Huskies) isn’t on the players list of schools as he believes the college decision is one of the five defining choices a young man will make in his lifetime.

Like Jones, who has Junior College and collegiate summer-ball coaching experience, Nakama spent five seasons as the head coach at Mission Junior College (Santa Clara, CA), leading his squad to the California State Tournament in each of his final two seasons, earning conference Coach of the Year honors in 1996.

Although Nakama would be a great hire at UNLV, which is a job he wouldn’t turn down, the natural position for the Hawaiian native and perhaps the job he covets most is the Hawaii job.

A graduate from Kaiser High School in Honolulu and a former head and assistant coach for the collegiate summer-ball Hawaii Island Movers, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Nakama isn’t named the program’s next head coach.

That is if someone like UNLV doesn’t beat Hawaii to the punch.

The question athletic director Livengood should seriously consider is what other coaching candidates have ties to so many successful coaches and championships programs in comparison to Jones or Nakama?

Jones has worked with Pat Casey and Pat Murphy, no strangers themselves to the College World Series.

Since leaving NC State, the Wolf-Pack have not sustained the barometer set by Jones who led them to a super-regional.  Jones has also worked with Frank Anderson, who came to Oklahoma State after winning a national championship on the Texas staff in 2005.

For coach Nakama, is there another assistant coach in the country who has worked for two coaching icons like Mark Marquess at Stanford or Lindsey Meggs at Chico State?

With four trips to the College World Series and team records in fielding percentage, not to mention his recruiting prowess, what exactly is Livengood looking at to eliminate Nakama?

The same can be said of Jones.

Can Anyone End Coastal Carolina’s Dominance?

2009 Regular Season Champion: Coastal Carolina

2009 Tournament Champion: Coastal Carolina defeated Winthrop 7-1 to win their 7^th Big South title in the past 9 yearsl

Coastal Carolina continued its dominance of this conference by once again sweeping the regular season and tournament championships, while making its 9^th straight NCAA tournament appearance.  The Chanticleers also saw 5 members of their squad garner All-American recognition, with three players named Freshman All-American.

Heading into the season all eyes are on Coastal Carolina again, as they begin this season ranked anywhere from 12^th to 17^th in the various preseason polls.  So the question is, can anyone contend with Coastal Carolina in 2010?

2010 Big South Preview

Charleston Southern

2009 Season: (16-37, 10-16)

Nickname: Buccaneers

Head Coach: Stuart Lake

Location: Charleston, SC

Vitals: .288 BA, 51 HR, .355 OBP, .961 Fld. %…7.00 ERA, 3 CG, 5 SVs, 316 K, 237 BB, .324 Opp. BA

Offensive Bounty: Charleston Southern returns 3 of their top 4 hitters from last year including top hitter Jr. 1B Nick Chinners (.339, 13 doubles, .408 OBP), So. UTL Patrick Dolan (.309, 8 HR, 35 RBI) and Sr. OF Scotty Radabaugh (.300, 51 H, 27 R).  They also welcome back their top power threat in Jr. OF Tyler Thornburg (.292, 12 HR, 49 RBI)

Double Duty: In addition to his power, Thornburg could be the top returning pitcher for CSU as well.  Last year, Thornburg went 4-4 with a 3.73 ERA and a SV in 16 appearances out of the pen.

Friendly Start: The Buccaneers play 12 of their first 13 games at home with the lone road trip coming against city rival the College of Charleston in Patriots Point, SC.

Coastal Carolina

2009 Season: (47-16, 21-5)

Nickname: Chanticleers

Head Coach: Gary Gilmore

Location: Conway, SC

Vitals: .329, 86 HR, .419 OBP, .968 Fld. %…4.04 ERA, 1 CG, 19 SVs, 456 K, 201 BB, .250 Opp. BA

These Guys are Good: Coastal Carolina earned its 9^th straight trip to the NCAA tournament and swept the

Cody Wheeler

conference regular season and tournament championships while placing 5 players on the All-conference 1^st team.  They also appear to have the upper hand in accomplishing that feat again with 7 of 9 position starters and 8 pitchers back.

Big Returns: The Chanticleers will have to replace Big South Player of the Year David Anderson (.377, 21 HR, 82 RBI), but do have a wealth of talent back with the return of Sr. Adam Rice (.368, 20 doubles, 59 RBI) and preseason Big South Player of the Year Jr. Rico Noel (.315, 8 HR, 48 SB).  The pitching staff also brings back key guys, including 2009 Big South Pitcher of the Year Jr. LHP Cody Wheeler (10-1, 3.83 ERA, 1 CG, 98 K) and So. RHP Anthony Meo (9-2, 2.93 ERA, .233 Opp. BA)

Challenges Aplenty: The Chants have several tough games on their schedule this year.  Games against Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Wake Forest, UC-Irvine, NC State, Michigan, Clemson, North Carolina, and Virginia all dot the slate.

Gardner-Webb

2009 Season: (25-25, 13-14)

Nickname: Runnin’ Bulldogs

Head Coach: Rusty Stroupe

Location: Boiling Springs, NC

Vitals: .327 BA, 65 HR, .398 OBP, .964 Fld. %…6.57 ERA, 2 CG, 9 SVs, 247 K, 173 BB

Record Setting: The 2009 GW squad was the most prolific offensive team in nearly 40 years.. they set single season school records for team batting average (.327), HRs (65), slugging percentage (.512), and on-base percentage (.398).

Leaders Gone: The Bulldogs will have plenty of holes to fill this season as all four players earning All-Big South accolades have graduated.  3B Justin Loyd (.400, 20 doubles, 9 HR, 56 RBI) and OF Brock Miller (.373, 61 R, 37 SB) both earned 1^st team honors.  OF Daniel Cooke (.353, 7 HR, 47 RBI) was a 2^nd team selection, while OF Jonathan Ahearn (.327, 29 R, 8 doubles) garnered 3^rd team honors.  Ahearn was also named Big South Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

High Point

2009 Season: (21-32, 11-12)

Nickname: Panthers

Head Coach: Craig Cozart

Location: High Point, NC

Vitals: .317 BA, 22 HR, .401 OBP, .969 Fld. %…7.39 ERA, 8 SVs, 308 K, 226 BB, .345 Opp. BA

Prolific Pair of Panthers: High Point will miss the duo of Billy Alvino and Alfie Wheeler.  Both finished the season batting a team-leading .400.  Alvino collected 84 hits and Wheeler tallied 82 for the second and third most in a single season.  The pair also finished third and fourth, respectively, in career hits with 238 and 235.  The Panthers will also miss all-time career hit leader Jeff Cowan (.290, 60 H, 11 doubles) who finished his career with 268.

Pitching Holes: The Panthers graduate their best pitcher as well in Jeremy Berg (4-2, 1.88 ERA, 5 SVs) who was just 5 innings short of qualifying for the national ERA race.  His 1.88 ERA would have been 5^th best in the country.  This year, look for Jr. RHP Corey Swickle (2-2, 4.81, 2 SVs) and  Jr. RHP Spencer Andrews (1-0, 2.79 ERA, 7 APP) to log more time on the mound.

Home Presence: High Point could get off to a fast start.  18 of their first 21 games are at home, with their 3 road games still within North Carolina (UNC—Charlotte, North Carolina A&T, East Carolina).

Liberty

2009 Season: (33-21, 17-9)

Nickname: Flames

Head Coach: Jim Toman

Location: Lynchburg, VA

Vitals: .310 BA, 60 HR, .388 OBP, .974 Fld. %…5.27 ERA, 2 CG, 11 SVs, 390 K, 171 BB, .295 Opp. BA

Looking for More in ’10: The 33-wins last year marked the fifth straight season Liberty won 30 or more games, the

Doug Bream

first time in program history.  Also, their 17 conference wins were the most ever recorded since joining the conference in 1992.

Youth Movement: The Flames currently have 14 freshman or sophomores on their roster.  Returning to lead the team is Freshman All-American Tyler Bream (.337, 8 HR, 57 RBI) and Jr. OF Doug Bream (.355, 6 HR, 33 RBI).  Tyler is the son of former Major League Sid Bream, who was an All-American at Liberty (1979-’81).  Doug Bream is Sid’s cousin.

Pitching Prowess: Liberty deals with the loss of All-Big South first teamer Shawn Teufel (9-2, 4.33 ERA, 72 K), but still return several top pitchers including Sr. RHP Mark Swanson (4-0, 2.79 ERA, 35 K), Sr. RHP Carter Browning (2-2, 3.94 ERA, 4 SVs), and Jr. LHP Steven Evans (7-2, 3.96 ERA, 2 CG, 1 SV).

Presbyterian

2009 Season: (13-38, 7-19)

Nickname: Blue Hose

Head Coach: Elton Pollock

Location: Clinton, SC

Vitals: .294 BA, 57 HR, .355 OBP, .965 Fld. %…8.54 ERA, 2 CG, 5 SVs, 263 K, 211 BB, .338 Opp. BA

New Kid on the Block: 2009 was Presbyterian’s first season in the Big South as they continued their transition to Division I.  While only winning 13 games, they did accomplish a couple of feats that will go down in the history books.  The Blue Hose defeated 19^th ranked Coastal Carolina on April 25^th to record their first ever win over a top-20 ranked team.  They also beat The Citadel for the first time in 81 years.

Holes to Fill: Presbyterian looks to improve in 2010, but will have to do so without it top two hitters from last year in Jared Combs (.332, 16 doubles, 8 HR, 51 RBI) and Cory Lyda (.330, 10 HR, 38 RBI).  Top pitcher Mitchell Odom (5-3, 4.94 ERA, 1 CG) also is gone.

Radford

2009 Season: (26-24, 16-9)

Nickname: Highlanders

Head Coach: Joe Raccuia

Location: Radford, VA

Vitals: .319 BA, 30 HR, .400 OBP, .966 Fld. %…6.24 ERA, 10 SVs, 279 K, 180 BB, .305 Opp. BA

Banner Year: 2009 saw Radford grab their first winning season since 2000, only their fifth in school history, while their 16 conference wins were also the second-most in school history.  Radford also won 10 games away from home, just the sixth time that has ever happened.

Key Players: The Highlanders lose top hitter Alex Gregory (.407, 10 HR, 42 RBI), who became the first Big South Player ever to hit .400 or better for three straight seasons.  Radford does, however, return Big South Freshman of the Year Jeff Kemp (.337, 5 HR, 13 SB) plus pitchers Aerik Taylor (5-4, 4.90 ERA, 41 K) and Jake Quigg (5-1, 4.36 ERA, 19 APP).

UNC Asheville

2009 Season: (9-42, 5-21)

Nickname: Bulldogs

Head Coach: Tom Smith

Location: Asheville, NC

Vitals: .261 BA, 27 HR, .325 OBP, .948 Fld. %…8.27 ERA, 3 CG, 3 SVs, 281 K, 223 BB, .351 Opp. BA

In Good Hands: Head Coach Tom Smith was inducted into the North Carolina Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame earlier this year.  Smith coached for 28 years at T.C. Roberson High School winning three state championships before retiring in 2006.  He joined UNC-Asheville in 2008 as a volunteer assistant, before being named head coach last July.

Need More Offense: First task for Smith is to upgrade their offense.  The Bulldogs hit just .261 as a team and lose top hitter Kevin Weidenbacher (.309, 64 H, 28 R).  They do return the only other player to hit over .300 last season in So. OF Cody Buch (.302, 7 doubles, HR), and their top slugger Jr. INF Mike Vaughn (.237, 7 HR, 28 RBI).

Unfriendly Start: UNC-Asheville may be in the South, but will hit the road for most of the first month.  The Bulldogs only have 2 home games in their first 18 contests.

VMI

2009 Season: (18-35, 10-15)

Nickname: Keydets

Head Coach: Marlin Ikenberry

Location: Lexington, VA

Vitals: .295 BA, 55 HR, .366 OBP, .953 Fld. %…6.48 ERA, 2 CG, 6 SVs, 371 K, 189 BB, .316 Opp. BA

Jordan Ballard

Offense Will Be Key: VMI returns 7 of 9 position starters from last year including leading hitter Sr. 1B Jordan Ballard (.366, 11 HR, 48 RBI), Jr. INF Sam Roberts (.335, 6 HR, 34 RBI), and Sr. 3B Tanner Biagini (.317, 9 HR, 35 RBI).  They will have to step up even further with the loss of 1^st team All-Big South performer A.J. Yoder (.349, 13 doubles, 11 SB).  Yoder’s 80 hits set a single-season team record.

Pitching Returns: While VMI their top starter Travis Smink (8-4, 4.33 ERA, 1 CG) and top closer Matt Edwards (3-6, 5.72 ERA, 3 SVs), they welcome back 11 pitchers total including 3 that missed 2009 due to injury in Jr. Chris Duty (5-0, 1.95 ERA, 2 SVs, ‘08), So. Ryan Barefoot (1-1, 4.00 ERA, ’08) and So. Jason Farley (3-2, 2 SVs, ‘08).

Winthrop

2009 Season: (35-25, 18-9)

Nickname: Eagles

Head Coach: Joe Hudak

Location: Rock Hill, SC

Vitals: .323 BA, 55 HR, .394 OBP, .968 Fld. %…5.18 ERA, 1 CG, 14 SVs, 378 K, 197 BB, .291 Opp. BA

Tyler Mizenko

Eagle Soaring: Two Winthrop players have earned preseason honors was the Eagles look to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2006.  So. RHP Tyler Mizenko (2-4, 3.77 ERA, 14 SVs) is a 2^nd team All-American by the NCBWA.  The 14 saves by Mizenko set a school record.  Jr. C Eddie Rohan (.348, 14 HR, 53 RBI) was named a 3^rd team preseason All-American by Louisville Slugger.  Rohan was a 1^st team All-Big South performer last year as the primary DH.

Strong Arms: Pitching should be the strength of this year’s team as the Eagles bring back all 4 starting pitchers from a year ago.  The staff will be led by Jr. RHP Matteo D’Angelo (8-3, 3.09 ERA, 60 K) and Jr. RHP Wade Newman (7-4, 5.42 ERA, 55 K).

Starting Off Well: Winthrop should have a chance to get off to a good start.  They will play 20 of their first 25 games at home.  The first road trip does feature tough contests against Wake Forest and Texas A&M.

2010 Predictions

2010 Champion: Coastal Carolina

2010 Player of the Year: Rico Noel—Coastal Carolina

2010 Pitcher of the Year: Cody Wheeler—Coastal Carolina

(By Collegebaseball360.com contributor Shawn Lewallen)

Coaches Tab Coastal Carolina As Favorite

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For the third consecutive year, Coastal Carolina University‘s baseball team has been voted the Big South Conference’s preseason favorite by the League’s Head Baseball Coaches, it was announced today by the Conference office.  In addition, the coaches voted Chanticleers’ junior outfielder Rico Noel (Lawton, Okla.) the Conference’s Preseason Player of the Year and Coastal Carolina junior Cody Wheeler (Spotsylvania, Va.) the League’s Preseason Pitcher of the Year.

Coastal received eight first-place votes and 97 out of a possible 100 points to win the Big South in 2010.  The Chanticleers are coming off their third consecutive Big South Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance, and are led by 15-year head coach Gary Gilmore – the Big South’s second-winningest baseball coach with a record of 553-294 ( =.653 percent).  Coastal Carolina returns seven starters and 18 letterwinners from last year’s 47-16 team and enters the 2010 season ranked No. 16 in the Ping!Baseball preseason Top 30 rankings as well as No. 17 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Fabulous 40 preseason poll.

Coastal Carolina finished ahead of Liberty in the preseason poll, as the Flames collected one first-place vote and 88 points.  Winthrop – last year’s Tournament runner-up, was picked third with one first-place vote and 81 points, while Radford finished fourth in the voting with 68 points.  High Point received 59 points for fifth-place, while VMI placed sixth in the poll with 48 points.  Charleston Southern garnered seventh-place (40 points), followed by Gardner-Webb at No. 8 (36 points).  Presbyterian College, which is eligible for the League’s regular-season championship but not the Conference tournament, finished ninth in the poll with 18 points.  UNC Asheville rounded out the voting with 15 points for the 10^th and final spot.

Noel enjoyed a breakout season as a sophomore in 2009, as he earned First-Team All-Big South honors after hitting .315 with 17 doubles, one triple, eight home runs and 45 RBI in 63 games.  He led the Big South with 48 stolen bases in 51 attempts, tying Tulane’s Josh Prince for first nationally in that category.  Noel had a .500 slugging percentage, a .427 on-base percentage and stole two-or-more bases 12 times a year ago.  He also had 19 multi-hit games and 11 multi-RBI performances.  Among his highlights last season included a 4-for-5 game with four RBIs in the win over West Virginia on Feb. 27, four stolen bases in the Charleston Southern win on May 15, a perfect 4-for-4 with four runs scored against Wake Forest on April 29, and a 2-for-3 day with three runs scored in the win over Kansas in the NCAA Chapel Hill Regional.  Noel also earned Big South All-Tournament Team honors last year and was named an All-Ping! Baseball Preseason All-American earlier this month.

Noel received four first-place votes and 11 points in the voting.  Winthrop catcher/designated hitter Eddie Rohan was second in the voting with one first-place vote and five points, followed by Charleston Southern’s Tyler Thornburg (two first-place votes, four points) and Liberty’s Curran Redal and Radford’s Jeff Kemp (three points each).

Wheeler was the Big South Pitcher of the Year in 2009 after posting a 10-1 record with a 3.83 earned run average in 15 starts for the Chanticleers.  A Second-Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball, Wheeler had 98 strikeouts in 91.2 innings pitched, and led the Big South in wins, innings pitched and strikeouts while ranking sixth in ERA.  He threw a complete-game no-hitter in a 4-0 win at Hawai’i on March 26 – earning National Player of the Week honors by Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA.  Wheeler also gave up one hit in seven innings vs. VMI on May 10 and had 10 strikeouts in seven innings in defeating Radford on April 10.

Already named a preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball, the NCBWA and Ping!Baseball, Wheeler was a near unanimous choice for Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year, as he received nine first-place votes and 19 out of a possible 20 points in the voting.  Liberty’s Shawn Teufel was second with five points, with Winthrop’s Tyler Mizenko finishing third with three points.

The 2010 Big South baseball season begins Friday, February 19 with all 10 teams in action.  The first Conference meeting is set for the weekend of March 19-21, while the 2010 Royal Purple Big South Baseball Championship tournament is slated for May 25-29 and will be hosted by Winthrop University at The Winthrop Ballpark in Rock Hill, S.C.

2010 Big South Conference Preseason Baseball Poll (total points)

Rk  Team (first-place votes)     1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9     10    Points
1.   Coastal Carolina (8)……..80   9    8    —   —   —  —    —   —    —         97
2.   Liberty (1)………………….10 54  24    —   —   —  —    —   —    —         88
3.   Winthrop (1)………………10  18  32   21   —   —  —    —   —    —         81
4.   Radford……………………..–   9  16   28    6    5   4    —   —    —         68
5.   High Point…………………..–  —   —   14   36   5   4    —   —    —         59
6.   VMI…………………………..–  —   —     7    6  20  12    3   —    —         48
7.   Charleston Southern………–  —   —    —    6    5  20    9   —    —        40
8.   Gardner-Webb……………..–  —   —    —    6   10  —   18   2     —        36
9.   Presbyterian College……..–  —    —    —   —    5   —    —   8     5        18
10. UNC Asheville………………–  —    —    —   —    —  —    —  10    5         15

Note: points are based on a weighted system, with first-place votes receiving 10 points, followed by nine points for second-place, and so on.