NPC 2009

let us know, we will go with you!!!!

 

It is true. Hayden Untz is now enrolled at west rowan and was at baseball practice today so west added another star to the team.

West rowan will win the NPC in 2009. noone has brought up the fact that east rowan's returning players are in different roles this year. They are missing the big three and its going to force the other role players from last year to step into a starring role which no1 has brought up yet. Not only that but the 2 transfers, the ijames brothers played in a extremely weak 2A division and won't resemble anything they were at salisbury. Also west rowans transfers are all star players and have played and had tremendous success in the conference already with their former teams being the only star. It will help each player and expect them to have even greater seasons this year than any before because of the talent now surrounding west rowan.

 

I believe that Bret Hoffman will be playing first base. I also look for crucitti to play the outfield probably center field. This is the position he played for Moors legion last year, he can really go get it. Horton can and may play 3rd base.

 

we will see on the 10th.

 

projected lineup WR

1st-brett huffman
2nd-hayden untz
ss-philip miclat
3rd-brantley horton
left-dylan andrews
center-jon crucitti
right-carlos bautista
catcher-hernan bautista
DH-shepherd

 

npc

Im new on here so Im still learning how all this works.

On the topic of Untz. NW lost a very talented player but i wouldnt count them out of the mix just yet. Yes they lost 9 seniors last season, they are very young but have talent that is overlooked. One kid that I think will have a great season is Walker Smith. Not many know of him. Hes a righty, throws in mid-80's and occasionally can probably hit 87 or 88 with a pretty decent change and curve. He definitley dosent look the part of pitcher though, hes about 6'1 235. stocky. Im a South fan but it doesnt look like a promising season. Not much pitching for South at all. NPC again is one of the top conferences this year. Should be exciting.

 

wow..imagine that, West is already practicing...When does WR's baseball season start? Most high school teams start mid Feb.? Also, what do the current players think of all of the transfers? Who's spot did they take?

 

Anyone who has seen the Ijames brothers play, especially recently, at a showcase perhaps, can tell you that both are very legit. They obviously played in a weaker 2A conference last year, but their case reminds me a lot of Dustin Ackley who plays for UNC right now. Ackley played a 1A South Stokes for 3 years in high school leading them to 2 state titles, but wasn't being recruited heavily by anyone. His senior year he transferred to North Forsyth where he enjoyed a good season, but still not a lot of attention especially for someone who had the potential to become a career .400 hitter in college. Mike Fox kept recruiting him and now all he has done is become a career .400 college hitter and a potential 1st round choice in the upcoming draft. The Ijames always lived in the East Rowan district and have not jumped county or school lines. They transferred to East to increase their exposure. I'm not certain of the story of why they weren't there before. Both are legitimate DI prospects.

West Rowan and East Rowan are both going to be very good this year. Lake Norman and Moorsville are both very good, as well. I wouldn't give East any bulletin board material by calling Zach Smith, Corbin Shive, Austin Shull, Noah Holmes, role players who aren't ready to fill the shoes left by Roland, Jarrett, and Trey Holmes. Shive and Noah Holmes proved all they needed to on the summer and fall circuits with the SC Panthers. Smith was great on his fall team as well. All of East players have been there. That means a lot.

All this being said, there are going to be some dynamite games in the NPC this spring.

 

Ok, I'll bite. Couple things, first while its WAYYYY too early to speculate on any lineups, any player worth his weight has long been working out way before the first day of official practice. The Ijames brothers are for real. And as for the transfers, I guess I look at it like this,,,, whenever a student transfers for ROTC, an academic program, music or anything else, nothing is ever said. But you let someone say they are moving to play sports somewhere else, and some people think thats a sin. They have rules for transferring because people do it all the time, and as long as folks follow the rules, there shouldn't be any problem.

The truth is people never complain when that star athlete transfers IN to your school, they only complain when that star goes somewhere else. Lastly I would suggest being very careful using the R-word if you don't know what your talking about, and we just need to get this topic back on baseball.

 

Recruiting

I'm not sure how much "recruiting" went into the transfers to West. I know why Randy Shepherd moved and it wasn't because he was "recruited". I don't know about Crucitti and of course the Untz situation looks very suspicious considering it happened in the middle of the year. There is so much publicity in the Rowan County area generated by the local media and the fan support there is so great, I don't think a coach would openly "recruit" players as has been stated earlier in the forum. It would eventually get out.

David Wright is a good coach and from what I have been told an upstanding guy. I don't think anything out of the ordinary happened. If Untz had a friend on the team and approached someone about the desire to transfer, what should the coach say, "No"? If the rules are followed, then it is legit. The folks in Rowan County are very lucky to have great coaches at every high school.

Can someone shed some light on the pitching situation at West? I know of Shepherd and Simpson, but who else do they have?

East has a stable of guys that can throw....Shive(Charlotte), Basinger, Laws, Litaker (Brevard), Troutman, Gobble, Johnson, and even Ijames.

TJ's point about kids transferring for other reason besides athletics, raises an interesting point. I guess the difference, besides school pride, is that ROTC and academics rarely raise money for the school or other groups that have vested interest.