Spartans Wrap Up Play In Summer Leagues
8/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Aug. 13, 2009
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Four members of the USC Upstate baseball family helped their summer wood bat teams to league titles in their respective leagues in the past two weeks. Rising senior Brian Dempsey (Montverde, Fla./East Ridge) was the first to take title, as his Waikiki Surfers won the Hawaii Collegiate Baseball League on July 29 and senior Matt Branham (Columbia, S.C./Spring Valley) was the next, helping the Newport Gulls of the New England Collegiate Baseball League to the title on Aug. 10. Former volunteer assistant coach Ryan Fecteau and 2009 graduate Phillip Myers (Louisville, Ky./Seminole C.C.) then coached seventh-seeded Haymarket of the Valley League to the team's title in a stunning upset, winning the best-of-five championship series with a 6-1 win over Covington on Tuesday night.
Dempsey's Surfers finished the regular season in third place with a 17-18 record, but the team won five of six games in the three-day playoffs to take the title. For the summer, Dempsey, who also won a title in the Florida Collegiate League in 2008, appeared in 17 games, posting nine runs, six hits, eight RBI and notching three extra-base hits. He also pitched 10 innings, striking out nine.
Branham, who was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 47th round of the MLB draft in June, also won his second straight summer league title after helping Brockport to the New York Collegiate League title in 2008. In 2009, Branham anchored the Gulls' bullpen, appearing in 15 games and posting a 1-0 record with a team-high six saves. In 23 innings, he allowed just two earned runs (0.78 ERA), striking out 25 and walking 10. In the playoffs, Branham also added another save.
Fecteau, serving as head coach of the Haymarket Senators, and Myers, the team's pitching staff, led the Senators to a 22-22 regular-season record before the playoffs. The Senators stormed through the playoffs, though, sweeping second-seeded Staunton before posting another sweep of sixth-seeded New Market. After losing the first game of the best-of-five championship series to Covington, the Senators bats combined for 19 runs in the next three games while the pitching staff allowed just seven to give the Senators their first championship in franchise history.
Several other Spartans also finished their summers in the past few weeks.
Senior Jimmy Tanner (Fayetteville, Ga./Starr's Mill), who earned a spot in the Northwoods League's All-Star Game with the South Division All-Stars, helped the Battle Creek Bombers to a 37-30 overall record. He hit .260 in 50 games for the Bombers, scoring 20 runs and driving in 25 to go with 11 doubles. As usual, Tanner's patience at the plate was rewarded, posting 22 walks and a .348 on-base percentage.
Rising sophomore Adam Waters (Hopewell, N.C./Denver) continued to develop with the Lake Norman Copperheads of the Southern Collegiate Baseball League, helping the Copperheads to the championship game. In 16 games in the field, he posted eight hits, three doubles and six RBI. On the hill, he notched a 1-1 record in four games. He tossed 13 innings, striking out 12.
Rising junior Blake Green (Rock Hill, S.C./Northwestern) also played well in the SCBL for the Carolina Stingers, appearing in 15 games and hitting .310 with eight runs, 13 hits and five RBI. He also stole two bases.
Rising sophomore Austin Moyer (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) played in 37 games for the Asheboro Copperheads of the Coastal Plain League, posting 11 runs, five homers and 19 RBI. He also had a healthy .353 on-base percentage thanks to 25 walks. On the mound, Moyer finished 1-2 with a 3.75 innings. In 24 innings, he struck out 17 and walked eight.
Rising sophomore Ryan Fern (Oviedo, Fla./Winter Park) tossed 26 innings for the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs of the Florida Collegiate Summer League. Although he was 0-3, he struck out 18.
Two other Spartans are wrapping up play in their pro baseball seasons. Teddy Fallon, who is a pitcher with the State College Spikes in the Short-Season Class A New York-Penn League has posted a 1-1 record with a save. In 11 appearances, Fallon has pitched 10.1 innings, compiling a 3.48 ERA, striking out 11 and walking 10.
Chris Nowak, who began the year in AAA Durham for the Tampa Bay organization, is hitting .307 with five doubles, two homers and 25 RBI since moving down to AA Montgomery. The third baseman has also scored 17 runs for the Biscuits.
The Spartans finished their second year of Division I play with an overall record of 17-37 and added a mark of 7-23 in the Atlantic Sun Conference under 12th-year head coach Matt Fincher.
