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Bailey's
Take on Pirate Sports
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From the Anchor Desk
Friday, May 2, 2003
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By Brian Bailey
Sports Anchor of WNCT-TV 9 |
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Non-league strategy
understandable but painful
©2003 Bonesville.net
If you think about it, college baseball is an odd
sport. In what other sport do you not go with your very best when you take
on your biggest rivals?
With league pecking orders on the line, though, it’s
the weekend that matters most. For East Carolina, the battles of highest
priority are those in Conference USA.
Still, wouldn’t it be nice to see the Pirates put
their best on the mound against the likes of North Carolina and N.C. State.?
“These midweek games are difficult,” Coach Randy
Mazey said. “We are just so thin on the mound that somebody has to step up
and help us out.”
Not that the staff didn’t perform well in the second
meeting this year with North Carolina State, because it did for the most
part.
There are no moral victories in sports, but you can’t
feel but so bad when you play the Wolfpack, the fifth best team in the
country, twice during the season, and both games are one-run affairs.
State's Chad Orvella hit a walk-off home run in the
eleventh inning to win Wednesday night's game at Doak Field. Orvella, whose
arm might be as good as his bat, also got the victory in relief for the
Wolfpack.
Mazey banks on loud
crowd as ally versus league leader USM
So now the Pirates turn their attention back to
C-USA. This weekend, East Carolina will play host to Conference USA leader
Southern Miss.
“They are obviously very good,” said Mazey. “But we
really hope to catch them away from their element. We’re hoping for some
big, rowdy crowds for the weekend to give us a boost. Our fans will be key
this weekend.”
The Pirates and Golden Eagles open the three-game
series tonight at 7 p.m.
"R.V." gets wins
record
Congratulations to J.H. Rose Coach Ronald Vincent,
who became the all-time winningest high school baseball coach in North
Carolina history last night.
Rose beat Northern Nash to give R.V. his 619th
coaching win. Vincent passed Charles Howell on the all-time list with the
victory over Northern Nash.
East Carolina has plucked away many a player from
Vincent’s program over the last four decades. This year’s ECU roster
features a number of former Rampants, who’ve had a chance to play college
baseball in their own hometown.
One look at this year’s Rampants roster says that
trend should continue. Even though Randy Mazey is on record as saying he
will recruit nationally, you have to think that the talent pool at Rose will
still play a role in the Pirates' plans.
Coach Vincent says his record is a credit to all of
Greenville and even to East Carolina, because baseball holds a special place
in this town.
“The record is really a reflection on all of the
children, all of the parents, the volunteers, the city, the facilities,”
Vincent said. “We all know that this is a great place, especially for
baseball!”
Ronald Vincent obviously doesn’t like the spotlight.
He’d certainly rather chalk a field then talk into a microphone. But even
R.V. knew that Thursday night was special.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Vincent. “It’s something
that hasn’t sunk in yet. I saw a lot of former players here tonight, former
parents. It’s a good feeling.”
Congratulations Coach Vincent, and we’ll see you at
#700!
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Brian Bailey.
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02/23/2007 01:26:30 AM
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