BB: SCAC: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

[Lynx Fan]

Look for Rhodes to finish strong . Flanagan and Holt are both quality pitchers who can go very deep every time out. Simmons and Catalanato add considerable depth to the staff and are getting better with each outing. Solid defense around the diamond helps keep them in every game and a surprisingly mature approach at the plate 1-9 keeps consistent pressure on opposing pitchers.

The next two weekends are big for the Lynx. Depaw and Centre. If needed, I expect help from Oglethorpe as they are a quality opponent who will add depth to the east side for a couple of years.

[Tom Brady]

Gus Sinski    Best name on the board.

Yours Truly,
     Billy Chapel

[frank_ezelle]

Gus--I was referring to the stories under this link: http://www.hendrix.edu/goodbyegrove/grove.aspx?id=9040, which I assumed were yours.  I read a couple of those stories and I'd like to get back and read more.

Glad to see Lynx Fan join in.  I don't know why we don't get more participation from Rhodes on the message boards but maybe one of the best records in D3 baseball at the moment will keep Lynx Fan around and encourage others to join in.  If Holt and Flanagan stay healthy then Rhodes will be tough indeed.  Is there any insight from the Rhodes fans on why Holt has turned things around so much this season--if memory serves me correct he was 3-7 last year.  My guess is that it is a lot of improvement on his control but that's just a guess.

Millsaps plays Ill. Wesleyan this afternoon at 4.  IW beat MS College 18-0 yesterday but MS College is thin on pitching and they may have been saving their key pitchers for conference play.  I'm going to try and get by the game without my camera so I can watch a game as a fan--something I've probably done less than 5 times in the last 2 years.

[Lynx Tracker]

In the fall of 2004 the first group of players recruited by Rhodes' head coach Jeff Cleanthes came to Memphis. Daniel Vanaman, Richard Hurd and Matt Beesley were plugged into the lineup immediately, bringing with them a new work ethic that set the standard for seasons to follow, hitting a combined .339 their freshman year. 

Robert Flanagan, who posted a 3-10 record in 2005, with lackluster defense and offense in support, has worked hard to achieve the status he enjoys today. With "Flanny" on the hill the Lynx Cats of 2007 are tough.  Equally impressive is sophomore Andy Holt, who takes the mound with confidence and tenacity. Comparisons between the two are inevitable.  Lynx fans are delighted that they both wear the same uniform!

Coach Cleanthes has continued to throw young players to the fray, adding J. R. Bizzell, Mason Mosby, Drew Hubbard and Charles Simmons in 2006.  Left-hander, Chris Catalanotto has come on strong and will be a deciding factor in conference and post-season play.  Jeff Mueller will be a big factor for the Lynx, coming on in relief.

Freshman infielders Andy Boucher and Brooks Royer have been a welcome addition to this year's lineup, as have been pitchers Adkins, Chadwick, McAlpine and Gertz.

While a diehard Lynx supporter, a few comments about other programs in the SCAC...  Hendrix baseball is on its way up. Their coach and young players are to be commended. Congratulations to Millsaps' Nick Crawford on the amazing 17 on-base streak. Tim Ernst of Oglethorpe set a school record for hits during the Rhodes-Oglethorpe series. He does everything well.  Ernst and Crawford will be missed next year.

[Lynx Fan]

Arguably Holt did not live up to expectations as a freshman but he is a gamer with excellent composure. Simply put, his off season dedication and commitment to the game are two of the reasons why he has improved over last year. Confidence in your defense can never be over rated either.

[Gus Sinski]

Gus--I was referring to the stories under this link: http://www.hendrix.edu/goodbyegrove/grove.aspx?id=9040, which I assumed were yours.  I read a couple of those stories and I'd like to get back and read more.

Holy cow! I never knew they got around to putting those on there.  

Though I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Obviously inspired by my complimentary posts, Hendrix went out today and lost to Elmhurst 16-6. With the new conference weekend format, I predict that coaches will be scheduling midweek conference games much more judiciously than in years past. Though I know most of the conference's schools may have a bit more depth, I'd be curious to see how these coaches are handling their pitching staffs in terms of conference games vs. non-conference games. That one extra weekend game can take a bite out of a staff.

Or, in the case of the Warriors, several bites and dessert to go with it.

On the subject of pitchers, maybe someone from Rhodes can answer a question I've had for a year now: How in the heck did you guys get Robert Flanigan?

Rarely do you see pitchers of his physical stature playing in this league. If you do, you can usually rest assured that they're a lot like my present cell phone...impressive looking but fragile, erratic and undependable.

But if there's one guy in the SCAC that I would pay to see, right now it's Flanigan. And while I'm no expert, I do sniff around the occasional Division II and mid-major Division I game...I'm not sure he could be any worse than the mid-week pitchers on some of those squads.

[infielddad]

Gus, the SCAC has had some pretty talented pitchers over the past years.  Forest Martin from Southwestern was as good as they come until he had TJ surgery after his junior year.  But he came back, had a solid 5th year, signed as a free agent and did well for a few years in minor league ball.
Doug Garner and John Fox from Millsaps  and Mike Frost and Adam Frye were both talented guys.  Fox battled a very serious injury but still had a very fine career.  Heck, the top pitcher for UC Santa Barbara this year was a walk on transfer from Trinity.  He is doing quite well at the DI level, better in fact than at the DIII.  I have not seen Flanagan pitch but it sounds like he fits well within this type of group. 
I think it is great for the SCAC to see what is happening at Rhodes and Hendrix.  Coach Groat played against our son.  Some of those games were not pretty. Even then Neil Groat competed very hard and you could tell really loved the game.  I hope they continue to have success and when they get it, it will have to feel awfully good when he looks back.
When the new Rhodes coach took over in 2004, he stated he thought they had the talent to compete with anyone in the SCAC.  To his credit, he learned quickly how wrong he was and has done a wonderful job of upgrading.
From a distance, Rhodes moving up, Hendrix battling Trinity and Southwestern struggling show how quickly things can be changed in college baseball.  I think they also show the importance of coaching.  I don't know what has happened in Georgetown but I always admired the job Jim Mallon did. Following him would have to be  challenging.

[Lynx Fan]

My speculation on why Flanigan (or any one else) chooses Rhodes College;

Parents want their sons to get a world class education.

Rhodes has a georgous campus on the outskirts of a great American City.

Coach Cleanthes and Coach Schrier are very good coaches, genuinely interested in your sons personal advancement, and excellent recruiters.

The opportunity to contribute immediately is available if you are good enough.

Everyone wants to win while applying the proper perspective.

I could go on for a while but I think you get the general idea. After a visit or two you just walk away with the right feeling about the Rhodes experience. And the best part now is all the hard work is paying off on the field as well.

[Gus Sinski]

Gus, the SCAC has had some pretty talented pitchers over the past years.  Forest Martin from Southwestern was as good as they come until he had TJ surgery after his junior year.  But he came back, had a solid 5th year, signed as a free agent and did well for a few years in minor league ball.
Doug Garner and John Fox from Millsaps  and Mike Frost and Adam Frye were both talented guys.  Fox battled a very serious injury but still had a very fine career.  Heck, the top pitcher for UC Santa Barbara this year was a walk on transfer from Trinity.  He is doing quite well at the DI level, better in fact than at the DIII.  I have not seen Flanagan pitch but it sounds like he fits well within this type of group. 
I think it is great for the SCAC to see what is happening at Rhodes and Hendrix.  Coach Groat played against our son.  Some of those games were not pretty. Even then Neil Groat competed very hard and you could tell really loved the game.  I hope they continue to have success and when they get it, it will have to feel awfully good when he looks back.
When the new Rhodes coach took over in 2004, he stated he thought they had the talent to compete with anyone in the SCAC.  To his credit, he learned quickly how wrong he was and has done a wonderful job of upgrading.
From a distance, Rhodes moving up, Hendrix battling Trinity and Southwestern struggling show how quickly things can be changed in college baseball.  I think they also show the importance of coaching.  I don't know what has happened in Georgetown but I always admired the job Jim Mallon did. Following him would have to be  challenging.

Good points.

I remember a few of those guys...Martin had one of the best, most biting breaking balls I've seen from an SCAC pitcher, and Frost was just dominant.

If there's one pitcher I really came to admire, it was Millsaps' Chat Lenhart. Nothing dominant, nothing overpowering, he just went out there, took the ball and won ballgames. A prototypical DIII pitcher if there ever was one.

Does Flanigan belong in that echelon? In my mind, absolutely. It'd be a fun argument to dicker over who the top five pitchers from the SCAC would be, and while I'm not sure Flanigan would fall in there, he might make the top 10.

Incidentally, if your son is who I think he is, watching him compete was always a pleasure and he always did it with class. And I know Coach Groat would appreciate your compliments. Lots of guys play four years on a losing team and then take off...to stick around and try to be part of the solution takes guts.

[Pat Coleman]

Those stories on the Hendrix site are pretty interesting. But I can't find where it tells what the heck the AIC is. Can someone explain?

[DPU3619]

I believe it's an old NAIA conference.  Arkansas Intercollegiate.  Ozarks was in it.  I had a relative go there a while ago.  Central Arkansas was in it (before it was UCA, Arkansas Teachers College I think). 

Couple of schools I haven't heard of.  Henderson, Ouchita Baptist, and Harding.

Another note, DePauw lost 12-3 at Franklin today.  They're good.  Again.

[frank_ezelle]

It's great to see a board with so much activity and with so many interesting facts and insights.  It's a good point about the depth of pitching and the new SCAC 4-game format. 

Ill. Wesleyan was at MS College Monday and beat them 18-0 and my guess would be that MC had used all of their pitching over the weekend.  Yesterday was a different story as Millsaps beat IW by an 11-6 margin, getting 5 strong innings and a shaky 6th inning from Brandon Ingram.  Millsaps has good starting pitching but at the moment they don't have the 1-2 punch like last year with John Fox and Doug Kindler.  That's not surprising since they were two of the winningest pitchers in school history and were 19-3 combined last year.

Rhodes apparently has that 1-2 combination this year and that's going to take them a long way.  Based on what I saw last year, just how far Rhodes goes will depend heavily on how well the 3 and 4 starters can perform against top-notch teams.

[Ralph Turner]

Those stories on the Hendrix site are pretty interesting. But I can't find where it tells what the heck the AIC is. Can someone explain?

Here is a link to the football champions in the old AIC at College Football Data Warehouse.

I have not found a comparable database for basketball, not have I found the archives of the AIC online.

[Ralph Turner]

It's great to see a board with so much activity and with so many interesting facts and insights.  It's a good point about the depth of pitching and the new SCAC 4-game format. 

Ill. Wesleyan was at MS College Monday and beat them 18-0 and my guess would be that MC had used all of their pitching over the weekend.  Yesterday was a different story as Millsaps beat IW by an 11-6 margin, getting 5 strong innings and a shaky 6th inning from Brandon Ingram.  Millsaps has good starting pitching but at the moment they don't have the 1-2 punch like last year with John Fox and Doug Kindler.  That's not surprising since they were two of the winningest pitchers in school history and were 19-3 combined last year.

Rhodes apparently has that 1-2 combination this year and that's going to take them a long way.  Based on what I saw last year, just how far Rhodes goes will depend heavily on how well the 3 and 4 starters can perform against top-notch teams.

Frank, you are correct.

MissColl's Jared Gregg got his first start of the season and they used 7 pitchers.  Miss College seems to have one good pitcher this year and he got middle inning (mid-start?) work.

Tactically, this game is not even an in-region game for Miss Coll under the expanded guidelines, so little harm was done.

Season stats for MissColl

MissColl-IWU game stats

[Lynx Tracker]

Found the following interesting, funny and sad:

http://www.aolvideoblog.com/2007/03/15/baseball-player-fakes-getting-hit-by-pitch/