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The Bluefield College Rams varsity baseball team will be starting its official season Friday, Feb. 4, against Southern Wesleyan University in South Carolina.

February 1, 2011

The Bluefield College Rams varsity baseball team will be starting its official season Friday, Feb. 4, against Southern Wesleyan University in South Carolina.

This will be the first of three games for the weekend. Game one will be at 4 p.m., followed by game two on Saturday, Feb. 5, at 12 p.m. Being around these student athletes, it is easy to feel the excitement that they exhibit in anticipation for the quickly approaching season.

“The expectations that we have for this season are to one, win conference, and two, to qualify for regionals,” said Coach White. “Most of the guys on the team were on the winning conference teams at their high school and previous colleges, and anything less than a win would be a disappointment for them. But I know we have a team that will compete with the top teams in the country.”

It is not only Coach White who believes in the success of this team. Assistant Coach Danny Flores is confident that this varsity team will once again be National Conference champions. Flores was excited to make history his first year coaching with White, and he is hoping to do it again

“We have a strong pitching staff to lead us to victory. We are looking forward to a great start to a new season.” said Flores.

Even with the loss of the team’s second basemen Billy Funk, the team still has optimistic views for the season. White said he thinks they could never replace a guy like Billy. The two new guys he has recruited to fill the position can come in and do a great job, but never replace him.

“It’s tough because Billy was a team leader and someone you could count on day in and day out in the lineup. It’s going to take some time getting used to new second basemen, but I know Eli (Smurthwaite) and Nick (Balisteri) will do a great job,” said senior shortstop Travis Weaver.

Among the team players, the expectations seem to all be the same. Sophomore pitcher Joey Andrews worries about his personal goals to assist the team with their season.

“I hope to be a productive pitcher from the left side of the bullpen, and be a quality starter,” said Andrews. “The key to success is consistency with defense, pitching and hitting.”

The Rams baseball team will gear up and hit the road for its 55 regular season games Thursday afternoon, Feb. 3. It is obvious that the hope for a great outcome is the same throughout the team. They already have a huge support system from parents and friends who have been known to go out to the games and cheer on their Bluefield College athletes.

“One thing we can approve on is getting off to a better start. Not letting teams sneak up on us and not staying under the radar, we’re not under the radar anymore. In order to get every teams’ best, we have to give our best,” Josh Mcquade, a senior pitcher, told reporters.

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