Training the Best

For those of you that don't know, the North Carolina Tar Heel baseball team made it all the way to the championship series of the college world series and were even one game up in the three game series before letting it all slide.

Carolina baseball has never been a powerhouse, as long as I have been a student and alum we have been a good team that just didn't have what it takes to advance deep into the playoffs. So this was really a special year; the combination of the sport I love, the school I love and a possible national title for the Heels? It just doesn't get much better.

But there was foreshadowing of the outcome. We had one of the best starting pitching rotations in the country but our defense was suspect at the most inopportune times. Throughout the playoffs there were incidents where an infield grounder was bobbled, a throw went wild, or a poor decision was made that caused runs to be scored and opportunities to end innings missed. In the lower rounds it made for excitement but as we moved up through the bracket it made me more and more nervous.

We almost lost in the round of eight to Cal State Fullerton twice (once on their way down to the losers bracket, and once on their way back to try to make it back in). I was really glad to see those California punks get sent home finally. I hate when the announcers latch onto one team as a "comeback" team and won't stop talking about it. I know they have to come up with something to talk about, but give it a rest!

So even though we won the first game of the three game championship series with some good base running in the eight inning, I was not counting my chickens yet. Sure enough, we gave up the second game with a seven run fourth inning. We were winning the game 5-0 and with our pitching that should have been enough but they managed to get some good hits in and a home run that sealed our fate. We tried hard to get back into the game but it was not to be.

Our squadron softball team is in the playoffs right now so I didn't get to see the first seven innings of the deciding third game; I had to watch the game up in the base bowling alley. It was tied at 2 in the bottom of the seventh. I would have gone home, but there was still computer based training on base that I had to finish. So I watched the game for the last three innings in my flight suit at the bowling alley.

As I had feared, the Heels cracked under the pressure. We had the bases loaded with one out in the top of the eighth and somehow we let it slip away. All we needed was one fucking sacrifice fly and we would have had the lead. All was not lost though, we still had a tie.

Then the infamous Tarheel defense reared its ugly head. With two outs and runners on first and second, a soft grounder was hit to the second baseman. A routine throw to first would get us out of the jam and somehow the second baseman managed to throw it away and the first baseman failed to catch it. Made me think of Bill Buckner. A single run scored on the play and we managed to get out of that inning without any more damage but it was enough. We couldn't produce in the top of the ninth and the game was over.

I wanted to scream and yell and throw stuff but since I was in uniform and on base I had to contain my anger. It kills me to see them lose this opportunity. They could have been the first ACC team since 1955 to win the College World Series and it would have been the first ever for North Carolina. Two of our best three pitchers have been drafted to the majors and a lot of good things have to come together to make it to the championship game. I'm sure we'll be a powerful team for some time to come, but when will our next shot at the national championship be?

// posted by Josh @ 6/27/2006 08:20:00 PM