East Carolinian

Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: Sports

Media Credit: jessi Braxton

Media Credit: STAFF

Classes end on Monday.

Exams end May 8.

But sports will not be ending anytime soon.

As students mourn in summertime blues, figure out post-graduation plans or move away from Greenville for the summer, they all have one thing to look forward to-sports.

And that optimism should start with the ECU baseball team.

The baseball team has been in and out of the Top-25 all season, has looked great at times and not-so-great at times, but overall, this team has the most postseason potential of any ECU baseball team in recent years.

Despite being recently swept by Conference USA powerhouse Rice, which is currently one of the hottest teams in the entire nation and has been a thorn in ECU's side for years, the Pirates are in the thick of the conference race and, with a strong end to the regular season, could position itself for a legitimate postseason run.

ECU is at or near the top of almost every offensive category in C-USA, most notably, home runs. The Pirates have hit 53 home runs this season, which tops C-USA, and is 15 more than the two teams tied for second.

Led by breakout seasons by senior Corey Kemp and infielder Ryan Wood, ECU's offense has been as explosive as ever in the Billy Godwin era.

Kemp, who had five home runs and 41 RBIs all last season, is leading C-USA with 12 home runs and has drove in a team-high 46 runs. As gaudy as those numbers seem, what's even more impressive is Kemp's consistency at the plate, as he has came through in clutch situations multiple times for the Pirates so far this year.

Wood is first on the team in batting average, second on the team in RBIs and has scored more runs than any other player in C-USA.

Junior Brandon Henderson has also come into his own at the plate, having his most productive and consistent season of his career.

These players' stellar offensive seasons coupled with the usual offensive suspects like Harrison Eldridge, Kyle Roller and Stephen Batts having productive years has made ECU a very dangerous baseball team.

But what is even more dangerous, and usually more valuable as the postseason approaches, is the pitching depth.

Coming into the season, many people thought the Pirates would struggle on the mound because of the lack of experience behind senior No. 1 pitcher T.J. Hose.

But it's been two freshmen and a transfer who have carried the pitching staff this spring, providing ECU with a very valuable weapon-starting pitching depth.

True freshman Seth Maness has yet to lose a start (6-0) in his young career, and leads the team in strikeouts with 52.

Maness' true freshman sidekick, Sthil Sowers, has settled in as ECU's No. 4 starter-which can be huge during the postseason.

Sowers threw a complete game against UNCW on Tuesday and has had multiple solid outings after a somewhat rough start to the season.

Auburn transfer Justin Bristow has been very impressive in his role as the Pirates' Sunday pitcher, boasting a 3.15 ERA and 5-2 record in a team-high 60 innings.

Hose has had a bit of a down year after a stellar three years at ECU, but the gritty pitcher has always shown the ability to step up in clutch situations, and that hasn't seemed to wear off.

What does all of this mean?

It means that ECU will have multiple pitching options as we approach summer college baseball. And in the postseason, most college baseballs team's shelf-life comes down to how many productive pitchers it has, and right now ECU is strong in that category.

But even with four strong starting pitchers and an explosive offense, ECU's postseason fortune could very well depend on the bullpen.

The Pirates have only recorded two saves all season, which ranks last in C-USA.

Projected closer Bailey Daniels has been used sparingly due to a preseason injury, and Godwin has been forced to use a closer-by-committee approach with left-handed senior Josh Ruhlman and true freshman Brad Mincey leading the way. Neither has fully embraced the role or shown the ability to dominate late in games, which is a characteristic that you will usually find when watching teams that make it to the College World Series.

In years past, including last year, ECU has lost postseason games and has seen its season end because of the inability to win the close games in the final innings.

This year's bullpen has shows flashes of potential, and if the Pirates can find some consistency from the back end of its pitching staff, pitching depth can be a valuable asset in the coming months-something that ECU hasn't recently had during the postseason.

Whenever the baseball team's season ends, all students will have one other huge sport to look forward to, and that's football.

Last year, the ECU football team went 8-5, its highest win total since 2000. The successful season, which was capped by a Hawaii Bowl victory over nationally-respected Boise State, also marked the first time the Pirates have recorded back-to-back winning campaigns for the first time since 1999-2000.

With one of the brightest young coaches in college football in its arsenal, and now a couple of winning season to build on, the sky is currently the limit for ECU football.

Next year's schedule includes games with NC State, Virginia, West Virginia and a season-opening matchup with Virginia Tech in Charlotte. Matchups like these and the success under Skip Holtz gives students a lot to look forward to next fall-and it will be here sooner than you think.

Also, both ECU basketball programs are as stable as they've been in years, thanks to coaching stability.

The women's program has a very knowledgeable, hard-working coach in Sharon Baldwin-Tener, and will only lose one senior from this year's team when they hit the hardwood next semester.

With the recent contract extension Mack McCarthy, the men's program also has coaching stability for the first time in a long time, and will also have key scorers returning, led by senior Sam Hinnant and James Legan.

So as you sell your books back, finish up exams and forget about school for awhile, don't forget this schools' sports-because you just never know what you could miss.



This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com

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