Wildcats have given their all for perfect SHAC mark
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
The Whiteoak Wildcats have given their blood and sweat in Southern Hills Athletic Conference games this 2013 season, but not tears, because as Tom Hanks said in "A League of Their Own" ... "There's no crying in baseball."
What a conference season the Whiteoak Wildcats just accomplished!
It was the first time in school history the team based in Mowrystown won all of the conference games in the SHAC (formerly referred to as the Southern Hills League). They won some games easily, some games with wild endings (think the 7-2-1 final out at the plate in the Lynchburg-Clay game), some with very high-quality pitching and on some days, they had to grind out a run in extra baseball to get the elusive victory.
"We've just taken this game by game," Whiteoak head coach Chris Veidt said following the clinching of the perfect SHAC season. "I never thought about winning all the conference games when this season started, but this group did it."
What really stands out with this roster is their ability to play the game with hustle. Opposing coaches have talked about it, and if anyone has watched a Wildcat game this season … whether they are ahead by 10 runs or on the comeback trail, anyone could see this team has more than the usual amount of hustle.
But this team knows how to have fun from time to time.
In SHAC games this spring, they've outscored their opponents, 96-14, and in celebration, the Wildcats expressed their excitement as they "posed" for a team photo, but really it was just a ploy to douse head coach Chris Veidt with a bucket full of water.[[In-content Ad]]Again, though, there was a lot of hustle.
Two games in which I was in attendance that stand out are home games against Ripley and Fayetteville, which were won by scores of 2-0 and 2-1, with the latter taking eight innings.
Those two games showed the character the Wildcats had on the field as they not only played to a high level, but the way they battled at the plate, in the field and on the mound was unbelievable.
Looking back at the eighth inning from April 30 against Fayetteville, what comes to mind first is the toughness of Zach Docter and how his teammates rallied in the eighth inning. That was the inning where the "blood" of the Wildcats comes to mind, as he had a baseball fly off his nose on a bunt attempt.
Here is a quote from that game from Coach Veidt: "Zach (Docter), the first thing he said to me when I got to him after he was hit by the baseball, with blood running out of his nose, was 'I'm hitting.' I told him if he does … he's not bunting."
That set the tone for what became, in my opinion, the biggest Whiteoak win of the season, with Gage Carraher sending the ball to left field, scoring Luke Taggert for the one-run win on the ensuing at-bat.
I keep harping on this, but if anyone has watched this team play baseball in the '13 season, on the field, they play the game the right way.
Against Ripley on April 12, it was the same story with WHS having timely hitting to score two runs, then depending on the pitching of Carraher to lead them the rest of the way in what may have been his best pitching performance of the season. That game, he outdueled not only a conference rival, but a summer league teammate and a Division I signee.
Those two wins come back to their … a word written previously in this column … hustle. If I were playing baseball today, I would love to play for Coach Veidt. I respect how he's always in the game, telling players the situations and making darn well sure they know where they need to be on any given situation. Maybe that's why you see so few mistakes on the bases by the Wildcats, or it could be the fact there are poles to be run afterward if they do happen.
I've followed this team closely, not only this season, but in seasons past, and as Veidt mentioned in the preseason, they've been waiting for this year since the start of the current seniors' freshman campaign. Four of the seniors (Carraher, Taggert, Docter, Jesse Bradds) have been at the varsity level four seasons now, and it's paid off with the aforementioned perfect conference season, along with 18 wins as of this writing. They also are the No. 1 seed in the SE District tournament.
With the final week of the season wrapping up, and the postseason waiting in the wings, I'm looking forward to see what this group of baseball players the Wildcats have on their entire roster can do in tournament play.
They've done all they possibly could do in the SHAC, played well for the most part out of their conference, and as of late, have played a very high level and quality of baseball with 12 straight wins.
Maybe this group of Wildcats aren't finished with making school history this season.
The first mark in the record books was this perfect SHAC season. Now all we can do is continue to watch and see what awaits. Either way, this group of ball players will be remembered as the first 13-0 Wildcat baseball team in school history, and as Coach Veidt, who waited 22 seasons for the perfect conference season, said … "I want them to realize how special this is. It doesn't happen often, if ever … It may never happen again. I hope it does, but this group of players did something special."
Stephen Forsha is the sports editor of The Highland County Press. Follow Stephen on Twitter @hcpsportseditor.
What a conference season the Whiteoak Wildcats just accomplished!
It was the first time in school history the team based in Mowrystown won all of the conference games in the SHAC (formerly referred to as the Southern Hills League). They won some games easily, some games with wild endings (think the 7-2-1 final out at the plate in the Lynchburg-Clay game), some with very high-quality pitching and on some days, they had to grind out a run in extra baseball to get the elusive victory.
"We've just taken this game by game," Whiteoak head coach Chris Veidt said following the clinching of the perfect SHAC season. "I never thought about winning all the conference games when this season started, but this group did it."
What really stands out with this roster is their ability to play the game with hustle. Opposing coaches have talked about it, and if anyone has watched a Wildcat game this season … whether they are ahead by 10 runs or on the comeback trail, anyone could see this team has more than the usual amount of hustle.
But this team knows how to have fun from time to time.
In SHAC games this spring, they've outscored their opponents, 96-14, and in celebration, the Wildcats expressed their excitement as they "posed" for a team photo, but really it was just a ploy to douse head coach Chris Veidt with a bucket full of water.[[In-content Ad]]Again, though, there was a lot of hustle.
Two games in which I was in attendance that stand out are home games against Ripley and Fayetteville, which were won by scores of 2-0 and 2-1, with the latter taking eight innings.
Those two games showed the character the Wildcats had on the field as they not only played to a high level, but the way they battled at the plate, in the field and on the mound was unbelievable.
Looking back at the eighth inning from April 30 against Fayetteville, what comes to mind first is the toughness of Zach Docter and how his teammates rallied in the eighth inning. That was the inning where the "blood" of the Wildcats comes to mind, as he had a baseball fly off his nose on a bunt attempt.
Here is a quote from that game from Coach Veidt: "Zach (Docter), the first thing he said to me when I got to him after he was hit by the baseball, with blood running out of his nose, was 'I'm hitting.' I told him if he does … he's not bunting."
That set the tone for what became, in my opinion, the biggest Whiteoak win of the season, with Gage Carraher sending the ball to left field, scoring Luke Taggert for the one-run win on the ensuing at-bat.
I keep harping on this, but if anyone has watched this team play baseball in the '13 season, on the field, they play the game the right way.
Against Ripley on April 12, it was the same story with WHS having timely hitting to score two runs, then depending on the pitching of Carraher to lead them the rest of the way in what may have been his best pitching performance of the season. That game, he outdueled not only a conference rival, but a summer league teammate and a Division I signee.
Those two wins come back to their … a word written previously in this column … hustle. If I were playing baseball today, I would love to play for Coach Veidt. I respect how he's always in the game, telling players the situations and making darn well sure they know where they need to be on any given situation. Maybe that's why you see so few mistakes on the bases by the Wildcats, or it could be the fact there are poles to be run afterward if they do happen.
I've followed this team closely, not only this season, but in seasons past, and as Veidt mentioned in the preseason, they've been waiting for this year since the start of the current seniors' freshman campaign. Four of the seniors (Carraher, Taggert, Docter, Jesse Bradds) have been at the varsity level four seasons now, and it's paid off with the aforementioned perfect conference season, along with 18 wins as of this writing. They also are the No. 1 seed in the SE District tournament.
With the final week of the season wrapping up, and the postseason waiting in the wings, I'm looking forward to see what this group of baseball players the Wildcats have on their entire roster can do in tournament play.
They've done all they possibly could do in the SHAC, played well for the most part out of their conference, and as of late, have played a very high level and quality of baseball with 12 straight wins.
Maybe this group of Wildcats aren't finished with making school history this season.
The first mark in the record books was this perfect SHAC season. Now all we can do is continue to watch and see what awaits. Either way, this group of ball players will be remembered as the first 13-0 Wildcat baseball team in school history, and as Coach Veidt, who waited 22 seasons for the perfect conference season, said … "I want them to realize how special this is. It doesn't happen often, if ever … It may never happen again. I hope it does, but this group of players did something special."
Stephen Forsha is the sports editor of The Highland County Press. Follow Stephen on Twitter @hcpsportseditor.