The Longwood baseball team opens its 2014 campaign this Friday when they will travel to Johnson City, Tenn. to take on the East Tennessee State Buccaneers. The Lancers are coming off their inaugural season in the Big South Conference where they held a 12-12 record, going 26-28 overall.
The squad will bring back two of their top pitchers from 2013, Aaron Myers and Brandon Vick, who both had earned run averages below 4.00. First-year Head Coach Brian McCullough is optimistic about the upcoming season and maintains that the team has one central goal.
“When we first all got together in the fall, the seniors definitely laid the ground work for our main goal of winning a championship,” said McCullough. “Our non-conference schedule will be huge for us as well. On the pitching side there are some roles to be won, and this will give us a chance to see guys throw in certain situations. In our lineup, the first six or seven guys will play a lot, then after that there are some key spots to be won as well.” McCullough explained.
The Lancers were picked fifth in the 2014 Big South North Division in the preseason poll after being picked dead last in 2013, but McCullough contends the poll doesn’t really mean much at all. “Our goals are going to stay the same no matter where they put us at. We were picked last, last year which is understandable. I am a firm believer that you have to earn it,” he said.
McCullough commented directly on pitching, “The freshman arms we added will definitely be able to contribute, but our two horses are definitely Myers and Vick,” he said. “But we will need more than two to make a run for the tournament, we need guys to step up and perform.” McCullough later stated he hopes his team will have eight or nine guys that can go in the game and get outs over the course of the year.
Since Myers will be moving away from his closer/late-game position and become the No. 1 starter in 2014, the Lancers will be looking for someone new to come in during late game situations and close out ballgames. The coaching staff has a few candidates for the position, but there seems to be one front runner.
The coaching staff has made some big decisions in the off-season, including moving three year starting third baseman and team co-captain, senior Alex Owens, to first base where they believe he could be all conference caliber.
Owens commented saying, “It is different, but I feel relaxed over there, I am involved in every play which is exciting, so hopefully I can do well over there. I move pretty well so hopefully I will be able to get to a lot of balls down the line, and with all of our second baseman being pretty quick, we should be able to cut down on balls in the gap.”
The Lancers have an advantage in that the players transitioning (Dickason and Owens), are co-captains and leaders on the team, as well as roommates, which, according to them, should make the transition that much smoother.
“It is a pretty cool role,” said Owens commenting on being a co-captain. “We get a lot of responsibility from the coaches because they look towards us to lead, and that should help us as we change positions.”
These two moves make the right side of the Lancers’ infield one to be reckoned with, as Dickason led the team in batting average last year. These decisions also create some uncertainty for the Lancers as two freshmen, Brandon Harvell, shortstop, and Alex Lewis, third base, will move into the starting lineup and try to make an immediate impact. Freshman Mac McCafferty, out of Pa. will also come in and get a lot of time, being the primary starter behind the plate.
While all the different aspects of the 2014 version of the Lancers have high expectations, none are higher than for the Longwood outfield this season. In left there is Kyri Washington, a burst of energy with solid speed who the coaching staff hopes has a breakout sophomore season. In center is sophomore Colton Konvicka, leading the team in stolen bases (14), and adding 51 hits. He is “lightning fast” according to a couple of his teammates and makes an immediate impact as soon as he gets on base. Right field is the home of Junior Brandon Delk who was in the upper echelon in at bats, runs, doubles, home runs, stolen bases and total bases.
