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 Catamounts playing summer league baseball |
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June 4, 2008
Cullowhee, N.C. - Ten Western Carolina Catamount baseball players will look to hone their playing skills in the various summer wooden bat baseball leagues scattered around the nation. WCU has three players playing in the Northwoods League, with two each in the Valley and Cape Cod and one in the Coastal Plain and California Collegiate Leagues.
The majority of the Catamounts' returning roster is taking the summer off to recoup and prepare for next season. Several players are also attending summer school.
Sophomore infielder Nick Liles and left-handed hurler Chris Masters are playing this summer in the prestigious Cape Cod League in the Northeast. The duo will be playing for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, the same team former Catamount standout Steven Strausbaugh played for two summers ago.
Liles posted the ninth-best, single-season in WCU school history with 93 base hits this year, with his team-leading 19 doubles ranking tied for 15th in the Catamounts' record book. His 22 stolen bases tied for tops on the team and ranked tied for 10th overall. Masters' team-best 28 appearances ranked tied for 15th in Western's all-time, single-season record books, with his team-high eight wins tying for 19th. Entering his third season in Cullowhee, Masters' 3.83 career ERA ranks 16th in school history.
Classmates Tyler Kirkpatrick and Daniel Ottone are scheduled to play in the Valley League this year which features teams scattered through the Shenandoah Valley in western Virginia. Kirkpatrick, who was third on the team with eight home runs last season, is on roster with the Winchester (Va.) Royals while Ottone returned to the Fauquier (Va.) Gators. Last season, the Cary, N.C., native boasted a 2.04 ERA with 25 strikeouts.
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A trio of Catamounts will square-off against one another this summer in the Northwoods League, which features 14 teams scattered between Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada. Rising-sophomores Brandon Johnson (Madison (Wisc.) Mallards) and Matt Benedict (Duluth (Minn.) Huskies) will be joined by transfer, Jason Sullivan, in the league this summer. The two right-handed pitchers combined for a 2-2 record with four starts and 28 total starts, striking out 37 as freshmen.
Two of the newest Catamounts - transfers Logan Bland (Jr., Spartanburg Methodist) and Jason Sullivan (So., Kaskaskia College) - are also playing this summer. Bland, who hit .347 (59-of-170) with nine doubles and a team-leading 14 home runs with 44 RBI last season for the Pioneers, is playing in Forest City, N.C., for the newest Coastal Plain League (CPL) team. Sullivan went 3-0 with an earned run average of 2.88 at Kaskaskia, striking out 33 batters against 10 walks in 25 innings. He is playing in the Northwoods League for the Alexandria Beetles, the same team for which Drew Saberhagen and Blake Murphy played last summer.
Dylan de Graaf was the lastest addition to a summer league roster, joining with the Thomasville Hi-Toms of the CPL. Former Catamounts Alan Beck and Ryan McCurry each coached in Thomasville, with the latter guiding the Hi-Toms to the CPL Championship a year ago.
And finally, sophomore catcher Stephen Notaro, who finished with a .403 (29-of-72) seasonal batting average thanks in part to going 22-for-44 (.500) with three home runs in his last 11 starts, returned to his home state of California to play this summer. The Thousand Oaks, Calif., native is slated to play for the California Oaks in the California Collegiate League.
Fans can follow each of the Catamounts playing summer league baseball at the following links:
California Collegiate League
Stephen Notaro, California Oaks
Cape Cod League
Nick Liles, Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox
Chris Masters, Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox
Coastal Plain League
Logan Bland, Forest City Owls
Dylan de Graaf - Thomasville Hi-Toms
Northwoods League
Matt Benedict, Duluth Huskies
Brandon Johnson, Madison Mallards
Jason Sullivan, Alexandria Beetles
The Valley League
Daniel Ottone, Fauquier Gators
Tyler Kirkpatrick, Winchester Royals
