THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 21, 1995 TAG: 9505190225
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 24 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
EIGHT MEMBERS of the Nansemond River baseball team are hitting over .300, and as a group, the Warriors are batting a robust .303.
So why is coach Phil Braswell worried about his hitting?''
``I'm concerned because of the lack of overall pitching we've seen,'' Braswell said on the eve of the Bay Rivers District tournament. ``Pitching is down in the district. I'd say it's the weakest I've seen since I've been here.''
The dearth of quality pitching could hurt the Warriors in the Region I tournament. But it bodes well for the district's regular-season champions this week, as they look to win their second league tournament title in the past three years. The district tournament gets underway Tuesday at York, with Nansemond River playing the fourth seed at 5 p.m. and second-seeded Southampton taking on the third seed at 7 p.m.
At press time, the bottom half of the playoff picture remained unsettled. Franklin, York and Southampton all finished the regular season with 8-6 district marks.
Prior to each season, the league pre-determines an order of finish to break some ties. In this case, the order would be Franklin followed by York and Poquoson. There was some sentiment to use that criteria, which would have eliminated the Islanders.
But after two days of intense discussion, the league's coaches opted to break the tie on the field. Thursday, York was scheduled to play Poquoson, with the loser to play Franklin. The winners of both games advance to the tournament. The pre-season tiebreaker would then go into effect, meaning Franklin can only be a third seed and Poquoson can do no better than a fourth seed.
This format has proven to be controversial, as some feel Braswell, as chairman of the baseball tournament, rammed it down everyone's throat. But Braswell pointed out that, with a regional berth already locked up, the Warriors hardly have any incentive to try and stack the district event.
``Everybody's thinking we're worried about who we're playing in the district tournament,'' Braswell said. ``I'm only worried about my own team.''
Braswell said he's particularly worried about the status of Grayson Craun, the left-handed ace who's been suffering from a pulled muscle in his throwing shoulder. Craun, who went 7-0 with a 0.98 ERA, didn't throw for eight days, then threw 25 pitches on the side Wednesday. Craun said he felt no pain, but Braswell remains leery of rushing him back.
So in Tuesday's district tournament opener, look for Jason Taylor to get the nod. Taylor is a proven commodity: 4-0 record, 1.02 ERA. And he should be helped by working at pitcher-friendly York field.
``It's about 380 feet in the power alleys, which for high school is a big park,'' Braswell said. ``Come to think of it, in the five years I've been here, I've never seen a home run hit there.''
WARRIOR NOTES: Should Taylor struggle, Braswell won't hesitate to call on Cody Flowers, one of the league's best stoppers with four saves, an 0.43 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 16 innings. . . Donald Turner leads the Warriors with 18 stolen bases, one more than J.C. Caperton. Caperton has also been a fielding whiz at shortstop, committing only one error in 61 chances. . . Braswell has been pleasantly surprised by the production of catcher Lee Parks, who's developed into an ideal No. 2 hitter. Parks takes pitches (15 walks), makes contact (his .451 average leads regulars) and has some pop (second on the club with 17 RBI). ``Plus he's really anchored things behind the plate,'' Braswell said. . . The district tournament final will be played Thursday at 7 p.m. at York. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Jason Taylor, whose record is 4-0, is expected to start for
Nansemond River Tuesday in the first round of the Bay Rivers
District tournament.
by CNB