THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 7, 1995 TAG: 9505070194
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KEVIN DOEPP, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
When Jason Hatcher met Longwood baseball coach Buddy Bolding as a 3-year-old, little did he know that fate would bring them together 15 years later.
Hatcher, a freshman at Longwood and a graduate of Kempsville High School, lived near Farmville in Rice, Va., before moving to Virginia Beach when he was 4.
Hatcher's grandfather, Houston, was a friend of Bolding's and introduced the young boy to Bolding. After that the young Hatcher made a practice out of watching Bolding's teams play.
Now a much bigger, older Hatcher has donned a Lancer uniform and is Bolding's starting third baseman. He is batting .328 and has driven in 25 runs, with nine doubles, six triples and a slugging percentage of .500.
For his efforts Hatcher was named Longwood's freshman Male Athlete of the Year as voted by the entire Longwood coaching staff.
``I really didn't expect it,'' said Hatcher after receiving the award. ``It made me feel real good.''
Before committing to Longwood Hatcher did talk with a few Division I programs, including a chat with former Virginia Commonwealth and current ODU coach Tony Guzzo.
But Hatcher went with Longwood, where he says he is just another player to his coach.
``Coach doesn't treat me any differently,'' Hatcher said. ``If anything he is stricter with me, and I love it. It makes me work harder.''
Making an adjustment from high school to college takes time for some athletes, but Hatcher has defied that trend.
``After the fall season I got an idea of how I would do,'' Hatcher said. ``I had a real good fall and I thought that I would be able to have a good spring.''
Hatcher has helped lead the Lancers to a 29-11 record in Division II. An NCAA bid is possible.
Karla Roberson (Great Bridge) was named Longwood's freshman Female Athlete of the Year. The golfer's current stroke average is 81.1, third best on the team. Her best round this year was at the ECAC Championships in November where she shot 76-77-153.
MONARCH REPORT: Ericka Davidheiser and Pam Moyer of the Old Dominion lacrosse team were first-team All-CAA selections. Lori Hansford, Amy Duerr and Heather Walden made the second team from the ninth-ranked Lady Monarchs. . . . Freshmen Glen Kaplan and Amanda Quinn were named CAA rookies of the year in swimming and diving. . . . The Monarch sailing team has qualified for the ICYRA Team Race National Championships, May 30-June 1 and the Dinghy National Championships, June 2-4 at Alamitos Bay, Calif. . . . Pitcher Brett Wheeler is 14th in the nation in earned run average at 1.64. Old Dominion is 18th in the country in team earned run average (3.35) and 12th in scoring with 8.39 runs per game.
ODAC LACROSSE: Virginia Wesleyan placed three players on the first-team All-ODAC lacrosse team. Midfielder Tom McGurty, defenseman David Frank and goalie Mike Doherty. The top ODAC coach, Ray Rostan, and player, Ed Curry, of the year of the year are both from Hampden-Sydney.
ALUMNI REPORT: James Madison's Jennifer Jordan (Norfolk Academy) led the the Lady Dukes archery team to a sweep of the women's recurve at the Battle of Bull Run, scoring 970 points out of a possible 1,260 in her first-place finish. She was also named to the All-East Region team. by CNB