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Baseball
THE SPRING BASEBALL SEASON IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER
"Hope Springs Eternal"-as it is with all baseball teams this time of year, things are no different at Skagit Valley College.
The 2011 season was full of ups and downs. The pinnacle of the season came when the Cardinals won the Clackamas invitational Tournament. During the tournament they beat the West Division Champs, Pierce College, who took 4th in the NWAACC tournament, along with strong teams from Linn-Benton, Clark and Clackamas. Unfortunately for the Cardinals they could not keep the momentum going through the season ending, North Division Playoff Tournament. With 2 quick losses; one to eventual NWAACC champion Bellevue, and another to NWAACC tournament participant Everett; the Cardinals season came to an end under first year Head Coach Ben Silva.
The 2011 Cardinal team was full of sophomores and 11 of them moved on to play at 4-year schools. players transferred on to the University of Central Florida, Western Oregon University, Niagara University, Central Washington University and other schools in between.
The 2012 version of Cardinal Baseball will be a young group of hungry freshman along with a handful of talented sophomores. This year should be a very entertaining and energetic brand of baseball played at Skagit Valley.
Sophomores to watch for in 2012 will be led by Alexander Lee, who will be pulling double-duty between his role as a starting pitcher and 3rd baseman and will be asked to anchor the middle of the hitting lineup.
Nick Studer who transferred in from West Texas JC in the fall, will handle most of the catching duties and play some 1st base.
Jered Stoffal is our 5'7", switch-hitting, sparkplug 2nd baseman who will hit in the 2-hole.
Jordan Sovich will be a leader on our pitching staff and is a very versatile arm that can be used in any situation.
Freshman to watch include the following:
Peter Irvin, a 6'8" hard throwing lefty from Redmond, WA, has the potential to be the ace of the Cardinal staff this year.
Cody Andersen, from Shelley Id., is a big, strong, middle of the order, switch-hitting OF/1B.
Jay Stout, will be our lead-off hitter and play CF for us. Jay will see time on the mound as well. Jay is from Oak Harbor.
Cal Campbell, from Wenatchee, WA, is a strong armed outfielder that should be a big contributor at the plate.
Shimpie Sato, a RHP from Tokyo, Japan, should be a middle of the rotation pitcher for us.
Jordan Kern will be our starting SS this season. Jordan is a hard-working, hard-nosed player who leaves it all on the field. Jordan is from Billings, Mt.
Other names to watch for: Steven Leverett, Shayne Honcoop, Chase Myers, Tanner Olson, Eric Thorvilson and Keegan Volpone
SKAGIT VALLEY CARDINALS 2011-12 FALL OUTLOOK
As the new school year approaches so does the start of the new baseball season for the Skagit Valley Cardinals. With the 1st practice slated for Sept 15th at the Skagit Valley Dream field, 2nd year Head Coach Ben Silva will have a whole new set of circumstances to navigate this year. Last year's playoff team was full of sophomores, of which eleven moved on to 4 year schools. The 2011 squad was full of experience but were hit by the injury bug, especially on the pitching staff. The Cardinals lost their top 3 returning pitchers to injury, and for the bulk of the year the Cardinals only had 7 healthy pitchers. They played gritty and tough, and the Cards still made the playoffs.With only 6 returning sophomores, the 2011-12 will be a very young team, depending on many of the young freshman to step up and contribute right away. "I am very excited about the group of freshman coming in" said coach Silva, "In community college baseball there is always a lot of turnover of kids because you only get them for 1 or 2 yrs, then we get them off to a 4 yr school to continue their education and play some more ball, but with only 6 players returning, the challenges will be a little more". Coach Silva also said "We always look forward to working with the incoming freshman so we can mold them in the Cardinal way of playing baseball".
The incoming freshman pitchers that the Cardinal coaching staff are hoping can contribute right away includes pitchers Peter Irvin, Eric Thorvilson and Tanner Olson. Irvin, from Redmond high school, is a 6'7" LHP who can really rush the ball to the plate. "If Peter can get more consistent and finds his rhythm this fall, he could really be something come this spring" said pitching coach Darren Westergaard. Thorvilson, a RHP, comes from just down the road at Marysville-Pilchuck HS. He looks to find lots of time on the mound for the cards. Tanner Olson from Ferndale is a tall lanky kid who could develop into a rotation guy in the spring if he has a solid fall. Returning redshirt sophomore pitcher Alexander Lee looks to anchor the staff after having to take last year off due to an injury, "I would love to find more ways to contribute this year" said Lee, "maybe Coach Silva will let me get some at-bats this year". With only one returning pitcher from last year's team, Jordan Sovich, it should be a very competitive fall for the pitchers.
The young guys will have their hands full in the middle of the infield with returners Jared Stoffal and Brendan Campbell having a year under their belt and the potential for Alexander Lee to find some time at the hot corner. The battle for playing time in the infield and outfield will help push everyone to succeed at a high level. The Cardinals will have all new backstops this year as well, including West Texas transfer Nick Studer who will be the lone sophomore catcher. The Cardinal baseball team will have an International flavor this year as well, with 3 players coming in from Japan for the school year.
The fall schedule has been released and once again the Cards once again play a very tough fall schedule to make sure everyone is ready to go come spring!
Sept. 14th: 1st meeting with players
Sept. 15th: 1st Practice
Sept. 17th: DH versus Rijo Athletics 12pm
Sept. 24th : NWAACC Sophomore Showcase, Longview Wa.
Oct. 5th: DH vs. Chaffey Baseball 5:30 PM start
Oct. 8th: DH vs. Seattle Mariners Scout team, Noon Start
Oct. 21st: 3-way DH vs. St Louis Cardinal Scout team and Defending NWAACC champs Bellevue
PLEASE SUPPORT THE CARDINALS THIS YEAR IN THEIR QUEST FOR AN NWAACC CHAMPIONSHIP!
GO CARDINALS!
Weekend Schedule Adjusted to Accomodate the Easter Holiday
April 20, 2011
The weekend series against Edmonds Community College has been adjusted. The Cardinals will travel to Edmonds on Friday for a 4PM double-header. Both teams will then meet up again on Saturday at Skagit Valley College for a 1PM double-header.
Series With Tacoma Adjusted To Make Up Rained Out Game
April 11, 2011
The Cardinal Baseball team will travel to Tacoma Community College on Thursday, April 14th for a 1PM double-header, and then both teams will meet up again at Skagit Valley College on Sunday, April 17th for a 1PM double-header. This will change the game site for the Sunday game in order to accomodate making an earlier rained out game.
CARDINAL BASEBALL 2011 SEASON PREVIEW
"Hope springs eternal", as is with all baseball teams this time of year. It is no different at Skagit Valley. After a disappointing ending to the 2010 campaign and being denied a trip to the NWAAC championships for the first time in 4 years, the Cardinals have re-loaded and are ready to get back into the mix.
New head coach Ben Silva, who has a 210 and 96 record since joining the coaching staff in 2004, is ready to take the cardinals to the next level. Coach Silva's coaching philosophy is based on good pitching, good defense and aggressive offensive baseball! "I like to coach a good 2 to 1 game" said coach Silva, "it makes our players and coaches tougher and not afraid of failure, but mostly to see it as an opportunity to do something great" "in a game where you fail 7 out of 10 times at the plate and are considered a good player, you need to not be afraid of failure and cherish your successes".
The Cardinals have an experienced squad returning this year, with possible starters at each position being sophomores except 2nd and 3rd base; both of those spots are projected to be filled by red-shirt freshman transfers from 4 yr. schools. There are also many talented freshmen who will be challenging for playing time as well. The coaching staff is pleased to have that kind of experience because they should be able to handle the adversity when it is dealt to them.
The pitching staff is full of experience this season as well. Last year the cards had to start the year with only 1 pitcher with any NWAAC time at all on the roster. This year there are 7 pitchers on the staff with college pitching experience. "I think there is no substitute for experience on the bump when you get into tight games" said new pitching coach Rick Guttormson. After a successful fall season with the staff, coach Guttormson was excited to here there was a couple of new additions to his staff over the winter. Dan Barnet transferred in from WSU and Troy Oneill came back this year as a full time pitcher.
The Cardinals start the season as the underdog in the northern region. Skagit has been voted to the number 8 spot in the NWAAC preseason poll. They also received votes in the west coast poll (Washington, Oregon and California), which is a testament to the solid play and program reputation build over the past 8 yrs, but are still ranked behind 3 other teams in the northern division. The northern division is perennially the toughest division in the NWAAC and 2011 looks to be no different.
Position players to watch for this spring for the Cardinals; 1b- soph. Elijah Firestone, 2b- Fr. Jon Poch, CF- soph. Ryan Moore, C- soph. Jeff Calhoon, OF- soph. Ian Capron
Pitchers to watch for; Fr. Dan Barnet, Fr. Davis Engels, Soph. Jim Reed, Soph. Dan Odell, Soph. Luke Scott.
The 2011 season is looking to be a good one for the Cardinals, so come on out and check out some good baseball!
Season starts on Friday, March, 4th, at 3pm at the beautiful Skagit Dream field located on the campus of the Skagit valley Cardinals
Go Cardinals!
