Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 3, 1990 TAG: 9006030035
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
"With the statistics I had and the kind of season we had, I guess it would sound kind of stupid to say I had a bad year," said the senior shortstop.
Williams' fourth and final varsity season was fabulous by any standards. For that reason, he was chosen as Timesland's player of the year.
Alleghany, on the other hand, may have done a little better than expected when it staged a postseason charge to win the Blue Ridge District tournament and then advanced through the rugged Region III tournament to the state Group AA quarterfinals. On the strength of that performance, the Mountaineers' Gary Rice is coach of the year.
"This has definitely been a surprising team," Rice said.
"Pitching was a big question mark this year. We were fortunate to play consistent baseball toward the end of the season, and that carried over into the district tournament and the regional."
Rice was one of several coaches who did a fine job this season. Among the others were Ed Goodson of Grayson County and Richard McElwee of Bath County, who each had a Group A semifinalist team; Chuck Pound of Lord Botetourt, whose team surprised many by winning the Blue Ridge District regular-season title, and Giles' Bruce Frazier, who guided the Spartans to a second-place finish in the New River District after they were picked for last.
Williams heads an All-Timesland team that has two players each from Bath County, Grayson County and Chatham.
Joining Williams was Chargers teammate Keswick Phillips, a pitcher/infielder who made the squad as a designated hitter. Catcher Mack Cassell and outfielder Devin Floyd represent Grayson County, and infielder Lee Burton and outfielder Chris Nesselroade are the Chatham players.
The other All-Timesland selections are infielders Dee Dalton of Cave Spring and Eddie Sloss of Blacksburg, outfielder Reed Cooper of Jefferson Forest and pitchers Kevin Gabbert of Patrick Henry and Darren Graham of Christiansburg.
Williams led Timesland with a .571 batting average and 38 runs batted in during the regular season. He also tied for third in homers (six) and was fifth in steals (31).
An All-Timesland selection last year and a second-team choice as a sophomore, Williams led Timesland with 12 home runs a year ago. He said that one of his disappointments was that he did not match or exceed that number.
"But with the kind of year we had as a team, I can't complain," he said.
It has been a marvelous sporting year at tiny Bath County (200 students in grades 10-12), and Williams has been a central figure. He and younger brother Timmy were Timesland co-offensive players of the year in football after leading the Chargers to the Group A Division 1 semifinals.
\ HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL 1990 ALL-TIMESLAND TEAM\ Lee Burton: Chatham, senior infielder. Hit .475 with two home runs and 22 RBI for a team that dominated the tough Piedmont District.
Mack Cassell: Grayson County, senior catcher. Said he had an off year, yet batted .446 (21-for-47) with six homers, 27 RBI and 20 walks to help lead the Blue Devils into the Group A semifinals. An All-Timesland selection as a designated hitter last year, Cassell stood out among an exceptionally strong collection of catchers. He threw out 13 would-be base stealers, including Bath County's Timmy Williams (44 regular-season steals) twice in one game.
Reed Cooper: Jefferson Forest, senior outfielder. Returned unexpectedly from major knee surgery last fall and played every game. He hit .474 (27-for-57) with two homers, six doubles and 16 RBI. He also walked 15 times.
Dee Dalton: Cave Spring, junior infielder. Batted .458 (27-for-58) with 26 RBI and was named the Roanoke Valley District's player of the year. A three-year starter, he helped lead the Knights to the district championship and a berth in the Northwestern Region playoffs.
Devin Floyd: Grayson County, outfielder/pitcher. Hit .553 (31 of 56) with six homers, 12 doubles and 26 RBI. He also had a 4-2 record with a 0.90 ERA as a pitcher.
Kevin Gabbert: Patrick Henry, junior left-handed pitcher. Went 7-2 with a 1.69 ERA and a Timesland-leading 93 strikeouts in 62 innings. Was perhaps the strongest and most durable pitcher around. During the Roanoke Valley District tournament, he worked two games in one day, making close to 200 pitches. He came back two days later to pitch in a tough 3-1 loss to Heritage in the Northwestern Region tournament.
Darren Graham: Christiansburg, senior right-handed pitcher. Went from the bullpen to the starting rotation for the first time in his varsity career and had excellent results. Before a season-ending loss on one day's rest in a Region IV semifinal, he had gone 8-0 with a 1.51 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 59 innings. He hit well as an outfielder.
Chris Nesselroade: Chatham, outfielder. The Piedmont District's player of the year hit .433 with three homers and 21 RBI. He also went 5-0 with a 2.05 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 39 innings as a pitcher.
Keswick Phillips: Bath County, designated hitter. Batted .493 (36-for-73) with 10 doubles, 14 homers and 42 RBI while going 19-for-19 on stolen-base attempts. As a right-handed pitcher, he was 12-0 with a 2.96 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 66 innings.
Eddie Sloss: Blacksburg, senior infielder. Hit .500 (20-for-40) with five homers and 18 RBI. Also pitched well, but received little offensive support.
Chris Williams: Bath County, senior infielder. Timesland's player of the year hit .527 (39-for-74) with 44 runs, 48 RBI, seven doubles, three triples and seven homers. He also was 35-of-36 in steals. Named All-Timesland for the second-straight year and was on the second team as a sophomore. Had 143 hits in his career.
Gary Rice: Alleghany, Timesland's coach of the year. A four-year string of Blue Ridge District regular season titles was snapped when the Mountaineers finished second, but they bounced back to win the tournament and advanced through the rugged Region III playoffs to the state tournament.
Second team: Pitchers-Tommy East, Magna Vista; Mark Hazelwood, Cave Spring. Catcher-Ted Lamar, Patrick Henry. Designated hitter-Chris Guth, Alleghany. Infielders-Tom Nelson, Cave Spring; David Groseclose, Alleghany; Jeff Freeman, Fort Chiswell; John Hunt, Giles. Outfield-Mike Royal, Christiansburg; Timmy Williams, Bath County; Chuck Livengood, Lord Botetourt.
by CNB