The Student News Site of Appalachian State University

The Appalachian

The Student News Site of Appalachian State University

The Appalachian

The Student News Site of Appalachian State University

The Appalachian

Newsletter Signup

Get our news delivered straight to your inbox every week.

* indicates required

Club baseball set to participate in NCBA Greenville Invitational

The+Appalachian+Online
The Appalachian Online

The App State club baseball team will travel to Greenville, South Carolina this weekend to participate in the 2014 National Club Baseball Association Greenville Invitational tournament.

Other notable teams participating this year include Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, East Carolina and NC State.

“This year I think we definitely have a chance to advance past pool play,” team president junior Patrick Sekel said. “With club sports it’s pretty hard to tell who stays and who goes, but I think this year [we have] one of the best teams we’ve had in a while.”

App State will play UNC Wilmington, Virginia Tech and Kennesaw State in pool play at the tournament, with hopes to advance to play Sunday as one of the top four teams in the tournament.

Sekel said a strong tournament result would depend on a group effort, rather than one player specifically.

“Obviously, it doesn’t come down to one player but the biggest players would definitely have to be Ryan McQuirt, one of our ace pitchers, and Jon Smith, our best hitter,” Sekel said. “If Ryan pitches and Jon hits, we’re going to be in great shape, but like I said before, it doesn’t come down to one player – it comes down to one team.”

Because it is a club team, Sekel and his players are largely responsible for organizing games and tournaments  themselves such as the Greenville Invitational. Sekel said a lot organization is required to pull this event off.

“We have to plan hotel rooms, finance gas and rides for car pool, figure out lineups and pitching matchups as best we can,” Sekel said.

Sekel, in his first year as president of the team, has been faced with an unusually high turnout rate concerning player participation.

Roughly 30 students have consistently attended practices, a number that is much higher than past years.

“We had to cut down our roster several players for the [Greenville] tournament, which was difficult because everyone on our team has been working very hard,” Sekel said.

Club baseball has played three series so far this fall, splitting a two-game matchup with Surry Community College, winning one of three games against UNC Charlotte and losing both games against Catawba Valley Community College.

The team will travel to Greenville on Friday for its first matchup of the tournament at 7 p.m. against UNC Wilmington. This is App State’s third consecutive year participating in this tournament, but a championship would be the team’s first at this event.

Story: Brooks Maynard, Intern Sports Reporter

Leave a Comment
Donate to The Appalachian
$1201
$5000
Contributed
Our Goal

We hope you appreciate this article! Before you move on, our student staff wanted to ask if you would consider supporting The Appalachian's award-winning journalism. We are celebrating our 90th anniversary of The Appalachian in 2024!

We receive funding from the university, which helps us to compensate our students for the work they do for The Appalachian. However, the bulk of our operational expenses — from printing and website hosting to training and entering our work into competitions — is dependent upon advertising revenue and donations. We cannot exist without the financial and educational support of our fellow departments on campus, our local and regional businesses, and donations of money and time from alumni, parents, subscribers and friends.

Our journalism is produced to serve the public interest, both on campus and within the community. From anywhere in the world, readers can access our paywall-free journalism, through our website, through our email newsletter, and through our social media channels. Our supporters help to keep us editorially independent, user-friendly, and accessible to everyone.

If you can, please consider supporting us with a financial gift from $10. We appreciate your consideration and support of student journalism at Appalachian State University. If you prefer to make a tax-deductible donation, or if you would prefer to make a recurring monthly gift, please give to The Appalachian Student News Fund through the university here: https://securelb.imodules.com/s/1727/cg20/form.aspx?sid=1727&gid=2&pgid=392&cid=1011&dids=418.15&bledit=1&sort=1.

About the Contributor
Brooks Maynard, Reporter
Donate to The Appalachian
$1201
$5000
Contributed
Our Goal

Comments (0)

All The Appalachian Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *