|
Blue Eagles Salvage Split In Doubleheader On Account Of Cole,
Good Defense
Web Posted June 4, 2010
 SPARTANBURG,
S.C. – The Spartanburg Blue Eagles finally were able to play their season opener Friday night in Morganton North Carolina.
“Baseball is a game where the more you play, the better you are”, said manager Ryan Thomas. “We were just glad we were actually able to get out there and play today”.
As Thomas accurately stated, the more you play, the better you are, and that statement proved to be true for the Blue Eagles as they lost their season opener 7-1, but rebounded and salvaged a split with the Morganton Aggies by winning the second game 3-0.
Wofford Terrier Gus White took the mound for the Blue Eagles in the first game and pitched well enough to win giving up two runs in 4.0 innings pitched.
“I haven’t pitched in about two weeks, so it felt great to get back out there,” said White. “My curve ball was a little flat, but it definitely got better as the game went on.”
White’s ability to locate his curve ball and keep the ball down in crucial situations resulted in him pitching out of situations his defense placed him in.
In the fourth inning alone, Spartanburg committed two errors, not to mention two mental mistakes that were not counted as errors, which resulted in the Aggies scoring one unearned run. Morganton had the bases loaded with one out before White maintained his composure by getting two consecutive Aggies to pop out in the infield.
“I’ve really worked on keeping my composure since I began playing baseball,” said White. “My Wofford pitching coach is really big on that and I’m glad I was able to do it tonight.”
White left the game after the fourth inning on account of the league’s 85 pitch count rule. As he left, so did the Blue Eagles positive momentum. Charleston Southern’s George Schaefer appeared briefly in the fifth, but had a shaky outing allowing three runs on four hits in 2/3 innings. “Sometimes it’s just not working for you,” said Schaefer. “My slider and curve weren’t working; I was leaving my pitches up. I’m going to continue to work though and hopefully I’ll get another chance tomorrow or Sunday”.
The Aggies cruised to a 7-1 victory behind the strong pitching performance of Derek Cape. Cape pitched a strong 4 innings, often blowing Blue Eagle hitters away with an overpowering fastball.
The second game was a completely different story for the Blue Eagles as Furman’s Dylan Cole pitched a complete game shutout in route to Spartanburg’s 3-0 win. Cole mixed up his fast ball, curve ball and change-up often confusing Aggie hitters. He breezed through the Aggie lineup only throwing 74 pitches in the seven inning shutout.
“I really felt better in the bullpen, but I mean my stuff was working. I kind of got tired in the fourth inning, but that’s probably because I haven’t pitched since February,” said Cole. “I kept my stuff down the entire game which really helped me get people out.
Cole pitched toward contact and the Blue Eagle defense rewarded him as no errors were made. Blue Eagle right fielder Tyler Miller gunned down an Aggie runner trying to go from first to third on a line drive single in 6th. Miller threw a rocket to third base and the Aggie runner didn’t even have a chance to slide.
The game ended with shortstop Matt Moore turning a double play to secure the victory.
Coach Thomas was ecstatic after the game and didn’t hide his enthusiasm when talking about this year’s team.
“I’m excited about our guys and I’m looking forward to playing the Chaos this weekend,” said Thomas. “I’m glad we were able to rebound behind strong pitching and good defense. Tomorrow’s going to be fun”.
As long as the Blue Eagles continue to get strong pitching and good defense, the entire season will be fun for Coach Thomas and the rest of the Blue Eagle organization.
The Blue Eagles host the Carolina Chaos Saturday and Sunday at 5 and 7pm as a part of a two day doubleheader.
|
