(Seahawk (Sports
Jfc- Marol
Window of
Opportunity
NCAA Tournament
opens doors for
mid-majors
Greg Dew
Correspondent
March 31, 2005
Seahawk centerfielder storms back from injury
Two weeks ago, few sports fans
had any idea who Kevin Pittsnogle
of Martinsburg, WV was. Now,
one could say Pittsnogle is a house
hold name.
That is because of the glory and
the popularity of the NCAA Men’s
Basketball Tournament. One day
you are an unknown, the next you
are one of the most popular players
or teams in the country.
All of America’s eyes are fixat
ed on the brackets and their office
pools and when a team is able
to win a game or two, everyone
takes notice. A team can get press
coverage that they only dreamed
of during the season. Here in ACC
country, everyone is aware of the
stars at Duke, UNC, and NC State.
It’s not until tournament time that
the smaller teams such as West
Virginia, Vermont, Bucknell,
Alabama-Birmingham and UW-
Milwaukee become the focus of
much deserved attention.
Some call it the Gonzaga effect.
In 1999, the small Jesuit school
from Spokane, WA battled and
was a game away from making the
Final Four. Gonzaga was the first
.school that relished in the attention
of the tournament, and now six
years later they are considered a
basketball powerhouse instead of a
basketball obscurity.
The NCAA tournament is that
one chance for a smaller school
to show the country that they are
a great basketball team. If a team
can manage to win in the extreme
ly competitive tournament then
they are guaranteed to be all over
the television highlights.
This exposure leads to better
recruiting, more endorsements,
and national attention. All of which
translates into more money for the
see NCAA page 11
Chris Kronmueller
Correspondent
There was feeling of deja vu
on Saturday night, as Seahawk
outfielder John Raynor come rac
ing around second base, trying to
stretch a double into a triple in the
sixth inning of UNCW’s win over
the Tribe of William & Mary.
Raynor had just put the ball in
the left-field comer, when he saw
base coach Randy Hood motion
ing down with his arms, the slide
signal. During a similar play in
the Seahawk's opening weekend,
Raynor injured his hamstring.
This time, however, he did not
come up lame.
Nor has he come up lame for
the Seahawks during the team’s
recent hot streak, as the sweep of
the Tribe made it nine wins in the
last 10 games for UNCW (16-11, 3-
0 CAA). Over the course of the last
few weeks, Raynor has improved
his performance at the plate, as he
has brought his batting average up
to .313, tying with fellow junior
Matt Poulk for third best on the
Lisa Moye I THE SEAHAWK
Sophomore infielder Krista
Searle gets set at first be
fore rounding the bases af
ter a hit from her teammate.
First baseman Lee McLean attempts to pick off an opponent
March 26. The Seahawks won all three games in the series and sit
at 16-11 on the season.
is what’s made all the difference,”
Raynor said.
"He has had some really good
at-bats over the last two weeks and
he has gradually gotten himself in
a comfortable position," assistant
coach Randy Hood said. "Hitting
is all about feeling confident and
Brant Wilkerson-New
Staff Writer
As the temperature rises with
Spring’s arrival, UNCW, currently
standing at 18-23, are only one
behind last year’s win total. Voted
to finish fifth in the CAA Preseason
poll, the Seahawks are on par with
expectations.
Head coach Melissa Jarrell,
in her fourth year, anticipated the
performance. “I expected us to
be around the five hundred mark,
considering the tournaments we’ve
played and still trying to work some
players in,” she said. Jarrell is also
looking to surpass the 22 win high
she’s established at UNCW.
“We’ve won a lot of the games
we’re supposed to,” Jarrell said.
being in good rhythm. He’s allowed
us to get a little more depth in our
lineup.”
Coming back from the ham
string injury early in the season,
ironically, has helped Raynor build
confidence. As of Sunday, Raynor
led the team with three triples, and
is tied for first in stolen bases with
nine.
“I’m a guy who has to have my
speed. Getting my hamstring back
in good health and working with
the trainers was really important.
That gave me some confidence
back,” Raynor said.
Raynor’s low number of strike
outs (13) has also played a role in
his recent success.
“Confidence is built on top of
confidence by not striking out and
1 just have to keep workjng to stay
with that,” he said.
Raynor hit his first home run
of the season against William &
Mary, and finished the series with
five runs batted in and a .367 aver
age.
“He’s got a lot of talent and we
have always thought that he was
going to put it all together and he is
starting to play pretty solid for us.
We need that out of him because
he is such a good athlete and he
can make a lot of things happen,”
Hood said.
Raynor and the Seahawks will
take their streaks on the road this
weekend for a three-game series
with Hofstra. It will be UNCW’s
second series against a conference
opponent as the team continues its
defense of its CAA crown.
“We picked up three wins against
[NC] State. Those were three really
quality wins for us."
Krista Searle has led the way
early for the Seahawks. Searle, a
sophomore from Chesterfield,
Virginia, is batting .344 with 10
home runs, 35 RBIs, and an impres
sive .986 fielding percentage.
Her breakout game came against
Fairfield, in which Searle went 2 for
3, with a first inning home run and
5 RBIs.
Jarrell isn’t happy with one
offensive star though, saying “We
need to stress that we need others
to step up.”
Freshman outfielder Whitney
Knudsen has answered the call,
swinging well lately. Knudsen bat
ted in two runs in the CAA-open-
ing series against Drexel. On the
year, Knudsen is batting .278 with
4 home runs, and has brought 20
runs across the plate. Searle and
Knudsen have combined for 55 of
the teams 125 RBI’s this year,
nearly 45% of the runs.
Standing at 18-23, going into
the thick of conference play, the
Seahawks are in good position to
make a run at the league crown.
Favorable scheduling has given
UNCW Drexel last weekend, and
Delaware at home this weekend
before going on the road to face
preseason favorite Hofstra. We
have the first two conference week
ends at home, we need to get off to
a good start and get ahead of the
game,” Jarrell said.