BB: USAC: USA South Athletic Conference

[Diamond King]

Congrats to SU, but I have to give a tip-of-the-hat to my boys in Newport News as well...they battled their rears off this weekend. It is still beyond me (and some of the players) how they didn't hit SU's pitching better than that considering the quality of their arms. But despite never passing the "eye" test, they got it done and should be commended for that. Best of luck to SU in the regionals as I'm not sure what the future holds for the rest of the USAS, but I don't see my Captains getting in without some act of God. This isn't basketball, meaning you don't get rewarded for simply playing tough OOC opponents, and I don't think CNU did enough against those opponents to garner any votes.

They were fairly young this year, and losing a bat like Despins that early in the season DEFINITLEY hurt the offense, but given finding a pitcher or two I expect big things from the Captains next year. Hopefully you guys can finish the season off on a strong note by knocking Salisbury off a time or two...

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but one thing I'm looking forward to watching in the future is the progession of Shenandoah. Every squirrel finds a nut (or two in their case), but can they keep this level of talent in Winchester and sustain this amount of success to become a year-in-year-out threat like NCWC, Methodist, or CNU...or will they eventually fade back to being "Shenandoah"??

Just fade back to being "Shenandoah"?? I don't think so,  friend! As long as Anderson is around, I don't think you're going to see this bunch again become mediocre. The coach before Kevin didn't care about anything, and his record spoke it. His players did not respect him, thus his name is not worth mentioning. When SU had Paul O'Neil it had a respectable and top-flight baseball program. Go look it up, if you can. O'Neil got the Hornets to the conference championship game in 2000 and that team won 30 games and should have been allowed to play in the postseason. But they got the snub, and after O'Neil left the next year the program took a hit for awhile.
When Kevin Anderson left a comfortable high school coaching job at Warren County High School in Front Royal, Va., in July 2003, he took on another challenge in his long and successful career as a man who teaches the game of baseball as well as just about anyone in the state. This includes leadership qualities that his players use for everyday life off the field,  and once they leave college and enter the job field, too. Anyone that has ever had the chance to play for Coach K is blessed.
Because he came in so late, Kevin had a roster of 14 (this is not a typo) in the fall of 2003. By the next spring for his first season leading the Hornets, they had increased their number by 3. Still, 17 leaves a very small bench with few options. But SU competed and competed well.
Kevin has developed talent every season he has been in charge. Only recently has the program finally gotten some deserved reward for their hard work. Tough breaks set this program back a few years, but teams always knew the Hornets were there. The questions persisted: Can we just get a few more good arms? Can't we get just one more clutch hitter? Can this team come together and prove it has as much talent as everyone else? Well, I think that has been answered.
Over the last two years, SU has gone 71-17 overall. Guess Methodist, NCW, and CNU can't say that, although all are very good programs. That's winning at a .806 clip. Sure, pound these Hornets for playing a few creampuffs. Guess they need to get Galludet next, huh? Since 2005, SU is 166-84 (.650). During the Anderson years, they are 189-109 (.634). I challenge any other program on SU's campus to come remotely close to living up to those standards! SU baseball won the school's first USA South Conference Tournament title in any sport since 2005 (it wasn't those "glamour" boys in football or basketball, either, that last celebrated, either).
Kevin has this team on the right track and it will not derail for years to come, trust me! David Jenkins is one of the best young assistants on the East Coast for a D3 program. He would make an outstanding head coach some day, if given the chance. Taylor DuFrene is gradually learning to handle the pitch staff, too. He interned in Donny Foltz's camp for the Woodstock River Bandits last summer, gaining valuable experience with pitchers from all over the country and from all different levels of college baseball. So what does Jenkins and DuFrene have in common? Both are Anderson Men. Played for the man  and learned from the man well. Kevin brought in Bruce Cameron two years ago and the hitting coach has made the Hornets one of the most feared offensive teams in the country. The stats will prove that, too. It works against Cupcakes and USA South "Powers" alike. Pat Wingfield, the former two-year starter at UVa, has been a good addition to the staff as a bench coach.
Remember, SU is no longer a team others can push around and mark as a W on their schedule. They will recruit well, continue to be with the best teams in their conference, and keep that drive to play on Championship Sunday for years to come.

[SUbaseballfan]

I am just as much an SU player as you are a CNU player hokieone!! HAHA....not at all a player just a very big fan!!!!

[SUbaseballfan]

DK and Rof F, I totally agree with both of you. SU should and will get the respect it deserves!!!

[Diamond King]

Well we have finally gotten the "monkey" off our backs with that win.  The guys played well all weekend are much deserving of what they achieved.  We can finally put to rest our "weak" schedule argument with the automatic bid.  I will say that CNU did a nice job with the win in game 1 yesterday.  They did lead from start to finish.  SU cold never get that big hit or have that big inning.  I thought once Brashears homered in the 7th the wheels would get turning and we would pull it out in game 1.  Brinkman did pitch well for CNU going 7.0 tough innings as he had the SU hitters off balance and over powered.   I just hope that kid has a Lloyds of London policy on his arm as Coach Harvell let him throw somewhere in the neighborhood of 140 pitches on 2 days rest.  I heard walking through the grandstand that he hit 100 in the 5th, to me this is crazy.  I know they needed a win to stay alive but still they are a state school should have at least another pitcher available to carry that load.  Game 2 Van Dusseldorp got a hit, "Finally" is how the SU twitter page said during the game.  Scott did struggle this weekend, but if he gets this out of his system now reagionals can be big for him.  I thought that everyone did their parts for the win this weekend.  Coach Anderson had the guys stay calm with the let down in game one yesterday and they came out hacking early and that played to our benefit.  

I am noticing that we are being referred to as a "blind squirrel that finds a nut every once in a while."  To date SU baseball is 71-17 the last 2 seasons.  Now the argument can be made that we play a weak schedule, this is the agreement that I will get with that comment; then let me give you something else to think about.  We are roughly 212 miles away from the closets conference team.  We play the teams that are in our region and the teams that want to play us.  Hopkins and Salisbury are closer to us than the rest of the conference.  But they don't want to play us, and frankly they shouldn't after last year.  Anderson gets a schedule that helps his players prepare for the tournament and regionals.  He has spent many hours and I know from personal interaction with the man has worked to build a program that will keep doing this for years to come.  I guess what I am getting at with my rambles is this, weak schedule or not.  NO ONE and let me make this clear NO ONE hits like SU does in tournament games or regular season games.  This group finished yesterday what they let slip away last year and I know they are gearing up for the next step in their season which is on Wednesday at Bridgeforth.  They will not over look the next 2 games, because Anderson will not allow them too.  
Congrats to everyone on the All Tournament Team and to my Hornets for finally breaking the seal and getting the conference championship.  See ya from the yard on Wednesday going after #34.

GO HORNETS!!

"Blind Squirrels"? Wasn't that one of the gangs in the flick "Gangs of New York"? Ha, just kidding! (though Leo and Day-Lewis did some fine work on screen, that included the "Dead Rabbits.")
I thought Brinkman pitched his can off. His effort was to be admired, but yet, whatever he threw (Someone told me Coach K was talking to his kids during an in-between inning deal about 'Brinkman's thrown 138 (?) pitches, let's get some runs!' Give Brinkman his due, he is one of the few pitchers this season that, technically, owned SU. Yeah, he tired late and SU got a few runs off him and the guy they brought in next. But we had to stay for another game because also for one of the few times this season, not many Hornets stepped up and hit when needed.  If they had gotten just a few hits here and there by a few guys who have pounded it all year, then we're all back home by 8. I was down right shocked! Thank goodness they got it done and knocked around the same pitcher that held them down for two innings in the first game, like he had nothing in the second game!
Here's a shoutout to the best crowd at the tournament too. Farthest to come, and SU had more numbers and louder fans than anyone else in Burlington. No contest! This group will follow their Hornets anywhere. And just so folks know, I do not have a son on SU's team. I just admire the work Kevin and his staff does.  Go Baseball Hornets!!!!!!

[cnuball25]

Not going to go into a long description here of my thoughts and feelings on Shenandoah, their success over the past 2 seasons, or Anderson...mainly because I feel the attention needs to be focused on their recent championship. But I will say this...

While I appreciate the brief history lesson on Shenandoah and their baseball program, I grew up 20 miles away from Winchester and never heard a peep about them...not in the papers, on the radio, nothing. Shortly after committing in 2003 to a college in South Carolina I recieved a recruiting phone call from Shenandoah on a weekday evening. One of the first things said on the phone to me was "Just please give us a chance to recruit you"...doesn't like sound something a program with a history of success would say to a recruit. But I have no idea about their past, and quickly frankly I don't care...I just know that when I transferred to CNU is was generally felt that we should walk all over them. Which was ironic considering my first year at CNU, we fielded one of the worst teams in recent CNU memory and SU took 2 out of 3 games from us, and the 1 win we got was a gift...

I can't argue the success Anderson has had recently. However, my opinion towards him as a person was developed in the summer of 2004. I played for the Woodstock River Bandits and we were playing the Winchester Royals for the annual July 4th (or it might have been 3rd) game followed by a fireworks display. Our starting pitcher allowed a homerun that MIGHT have traveled 315 feet...and that's being generous. He yelled "booooom" when he hit it and pimped the crap of that rather weak homerun. His next at bat, he was greeted by a 92 mph fastball in the ribs (as he should have) and that set Anderson off. After our starter was pulled he asked for ice for his arm, which he was then told he would have to get that from the trainer in the Royals dugout. He went over to get it and the next thing we know Anderson is yelling and him and he is being pulled from the dugout. Anderson yelled, and I quote, "Get your f****** bag of ice you f******* p***y and get the f*** outta here!!". He yelled that at our pitcher in front of an estimated 2000+ in attendance. Attempting to belittle/bully a 20 year old kid isn't exactly a trait I view as one of admiration in a coach, but maybe our morals differ. If that is an "Anderson Man" I don't want a damn thing to do with it. I understand everybody has a moment of weakness, but that is something that has stuck with me to this very day.

The question I posed is a very intersting one. Having 2 successful seasons, albeit 2 very successful seasons, doesn't necessarily make a program. In 10 years will people from the conference look back and view this a simply a high-period in Shenandoah baseball, or rather as a stepping stone for something much bigger. Only time will tell that...2 great seasons won't. But to say you guys haven't gotten credit is BS. You've gotten credit for your accomplishments the past 2 seasons as you've been the best in our conference, which is certainly something to be commended for. No use in beating a dead horse, but the OOC issue needs to be addressed...that schedule is simply terrible. I see you referenced Galludet in CNU's OOC schedule...you also failed to mention Salisbury (twice), Rowan (twice), Virginia Wesleyan (twice), Bridgewater (twice), William & Mary, and York. Some of these schools were down this year, but these respective universities and colleges are on CNU's schedule every year (with the obvious exception being William & Mary). If SU were to schedule like that I doubt that post-2005 winning percentage you guys brag about would be as such. I understand that Shenandoah is no longer a push-over, but that wasn't the point...can they continue to be as such is what I'm curious about.

One thing we can agree on is Jenkins (who has to know who I am). I ran into him last fall at the softball fields in Winchester and the first thing he did was show me his ring (a couple years ago during Apple-Blossom at Sweet Caroline's I was poking fun at him, showing off my ring) and playfully rubbed it in my face. Getting a ring is the reason we play college baseball and everybody who gets one should be commended for it. I've worn mine nearly every day since getting it, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Jenkins was/always has been a good man and I certainly hope he gets that opportunity coach somewhere soon!

Best of luck to the Hornets in the regional tourny.


Jeez, didn't mean to type that much...sorry fellas...

[Falcon2720]

http://www.d3baseball.com/notables/2010/04/19/strength-of-schedule-ratings.html

Mock Regional Rankings going on in the national topics section.

You can see in-region records, winning %, sos, owp, oowp

USA-South SOS

CNU- 55
NCWC- 61
MU- 101
GC- 115
FC- 122
SU- 148
AU- 195

[narch]

My feelings on the naysayers....whe you have SU's record and are ranked nationally...come back and talk!!!!

i'm not necessarily one of the naysayers (I think su is a very good team), but i do like calling things as they are when possible...let's break this down...if a team like, say, methodist were to play su's schedule, what do you think the monarch  record might be?

i'm not confident saying that su is a far superior team to methodist...in 3 games this season, su was 2-1 and outscored mu by 3 runs and finished tied in conference standings...we may not agree that the two teams are comparable, but for the purposes of comparison, I'm going to assume that they are similar teams (as head-to-head competition and record vs. similar opponents would indicate)

i compared the su and mu non-conference schedule, and removed the common teams to illustrate the scheduling differences  – the monarchs had 15 games vs. teams that were 287 – 230 (.555)  – the monarchs were 12-3 in those 15 games with just 5 games vs. teams with a losing record and only 1 loss in those 5 games - su had 18 games vs. teams that were 222-276-1 (.446)...su had just 4 games vs. teams with a winning record and lost 2 games to sub .500 teams

it isn't unreasonable to think that if the monarchs (or cnu,  ferrum or ncwc, for that matter) were to play a schedule that swapped out vwc for richard stockton, or lynchburg for f&m or lagrange for emu, their record (and national ranking) might be similar to su's, is it?

and don't give me the "they're scared to play us" thing...lynchburg has never shied away from mu, ncwc, fc or cnu...neither has vwc, york, salisbury or any other good, regional team (and all of these teams have a much longer history of sustained success than su does) - the good teams in the region always seem to play one another...I just simply don't buy the argument that su wants to schedule those strong teams and those teams refuse to play them...I think the su coaching staff uses location as an excuse to build a schedule conducive to wins (and it has worked)...mary washington, lynchburg, york, vwc, salisbury...none of them are that much further (if further at all) than some of the cream-puffs su plays – I'm not saying that su needs to play ALL of them, but how about mixing it up a bit and getting some balance in the schedule...the hornets played 7 of 23 non-conference games vs. teams above .500, while mu played 15 of 20 non-conference games vs. teams above .500 (with 6 remaining against teams currently over .500)

[D-BAT]

My feelings on the naysayers....whe you have SU's record and are ranked nationally...come back and talk!!!!

i'm not necessarily one of the naysayers (I think su is a very good team), but i do like calling things as they are when possible...let's break this down...if a team like, say, methodist were to play su's schedule, what do you think the monarch  record might be?

i'm not confident saying that su is a far superior team to methodist...in 3 games this season, su was 2-1 and outscored mu by 3 runs and finished tied in conference standings...we may not agree that the two teams are comparable, but for the purposes of comparison, I'm going to assume that they are similar teams (as head-to-head competition and record vs. similar opponents would indicate)

i compared the su and mu non-conference schedule, and removed the common teams to illustrate the scheduling differences  – the monarchs had 15 games vs. teams that were 287 – 230 (.555)  – the monarchs were 12-3 in those 15 games with just 5 games vs. teams with a losing record and only 1 loss in those 5 games - su had 18 games vs. teams that were 222-276-1 (.446)...su had just 4 games vs. teams with a winning record and lost 2 games to sub .500 teams

it isn't unreasonable to think that if the monarchs (or cnu,  ferrum or ncwc, for that matter) were to play a schedule that swapped out vwc for richard stockton, or lynchburg for f&m or lagrange for emu, their record (and national ranking) might be similar to su's, is it?

and don't give me the "they're scared to play us" thing...lynchburg has never shied away from mu, ncwc, fc or cnu...neither has vwc, york, salisbury or any other good, regional team (and all of these teams have a much longer history of sustained success than su does) - the good teams in the region always seem to play one another...I just simply don't buy the argument that su wants to schedule those strong teams and those teams refuse to play them...I think the su coaching staff uses location as an excuse to build a schedule conducive to wins (and it has worked)...mary washington, lynchburg, york, vwc, salisbury...none of them are that much further (if further at all) than some of the cream-puffs su plays – I'm not saying that su needs to play ALL of them, but how about mixing it up a bit and getting some balance in the schedule...the hornets played 7 of 23 non-conference games vs. teams above .500, while mu played 15 of 20 non-conference games vs. teams above .500 (with 6 remaining against teams currently over .500)

I don't get it, SU was the 4th seed last year and was in the winner's bracket undefeated and lost 2 to NCW but received an at-large bid to advance to the South Regional and won 4 straight to advance to the World Series.

This year, SU #3 seed advances to the winner's bracket undefeated yet again and finally win 1 of 2 games to get automatic bid for Regionals as they are crowned USA-South Tournament Champs.

Did not everyone within the USA-South have an equal opportunity to get into to the USAS Title game regardless of who you played throughout the year ... correct?

I don't care who played who throughout the year, the USA-South Conference tourney winner gets the automatic bid and SU was sitting in the winner's bracket for the last 2 years undefeated and who they played throughout the year had no affect on that.

Starting to sound like a bunch of sour grapes to me.

[vabaseball]

Narch never questioned SU's spot in the NCAA tourney.  Can't dispute a tournament title. Rather, the entire post discussed comparability or lack of it between Methodist's schedule and Shenandoah's.... 

[hokieone]

Narch, good analysis.  SU has earned their trip to regionals fair and square, no disputing that, and they're plenty good, no disputing that. But the argument that their schedule isn't weak doesn't hold water. Having said that, they have jumped up in the baseball world and maybe that's a smart route to the top. It surely worked for them. If they played CNU's schedule, or vice-versa, I suspect they'd have more losses and CNU more wins, but it doesn't much matter.  Shenandoah won head to head in the ones that counted most. It also doesn't hurt a thing that they clearly have some very good baseball talent there right now. Their lineup seems like one good stick after another and there are no breathers. Very impressive .


Question, and you SU guys/fans can take a breather here, it doesn't affect you:  How much does SOS factor in?  If CNU and MU end up fighting for the same pool C spot, how much help does CNU get from a stronger SOS if MU has a better regional record?   MU will likely have a better in region record, but perhaps not hugely so-is the CNU SOS enough to carry them up and over? 

   Granted, this is purely academic-MU and CNU have a few games remaining, and for my Captains, 2 with Salisbury and 2 at York are toughies...and with some of our mid-week performances, today's St. Mary's game better not get overlooked at all as they've played some good teams very close.

  Looks like an uphill climb to me, or maybe since we're talking about Captains, a long way to row...

[Falcon2720]

Methodist is now playing Stevenson 3 times instead of 2.

7 more in region games for them against teams that are all over .500

hokieone,

SOS is very important.  In 07, MU got an at-large bid because of their sos and one of the reasons CNU got in last year was because of sos.

The problem is both MU and CNU sos will go up because of their remaining schedule.  CNU needs alot of help and they need MU to stumble down the stretch.

D3 baseball needs to go to an RPI top teams get in.  The problem with an RPI is the NCAA would have to pay to send teams all over the country because the regions would be unbalanced.

[NoVa Baseball]

Any chance MU and CNU both can get in?  I realize the Salisbury tournament stumbel hurt the chances of that, but what happens if both MU and CNU win out and have similat S0S's? 

How many pool C's will likely available for the south regional?

[D-BAT]

Narch never questioned SU's spot in the NCAA tourney.  Can't dispute a tournament title. Rather, the entire post discussed comparability or lack of it between Methodist's schedule and Shenandoah's.... 

Of course it's going to be different just based on the distance between the two schools alone.

It's most likely a proven fact that there are more competitive baseball teams further south and unfortunately, Shenandoah is the northern most school in the USAS.

Analysis all you want, but in the end, you must win "in-region" baseball games throughout the year and your team must win in the conference tourney.

Let's hope that MU or CNU gets an at large bid, if not then the USA-South is not living up to their #1 conference in the country ranking from 2009 per massey rankings or whatever it's called.

[Falcon2720]

USA-South_Fan,

Nobody can argue that Shenandoah is a great team.  They won the south regional last year and the USA-South tournament this year.

You can argue that if they played a tougher schedule they wouldn't have as many wins.

Look at York College.  They are in the South Region and they are in Pennsylvania.

York has played is going to play 34 games against "True South Region" teams. York went down to GA and played LaGrange, Emory, Rhodes. They are going to play Ferrum at Ferrum and are traveling to Fayetteville to play, Piedmont, and Methodist 2 times each.

Shenandoah has played or is going to play 24 games against "True South Region" teams.

[LTBB1971]

Although NCWC is 12-10 vs South Region teams, I still do not see them getting in if they beat Salisbury this weekend twice, which would put them at 14-10.  Going 2 and out in Conference play really hurt them.  SS Justin Rahm and 3B Brian Allen should be back for this weekend series.