Gaston College baseball returnees eager to improve on 2023 success as fall drills begin for 2024 season
After setting all sorts of history highlighted by a National Junior College World Series appearance in its first season of eligibility, coach Shohn Doty's Gaston College baseball is back at work preparing for the 2024 season.
And two of the Rhinos' 11 returnees are confident the team can improve upon its 2023 success.
"We've definitely got a lot of talent out here and a lot of new faces," said sophomore catcher-infielder Seth Christmas, who hit .323 with one home run and 17 RBIs in 38 games last season. "We're definitely going to be good, we've definitely a lot of talent than last year and our goal is to go even deeper than last season."
Added Landon Carr, who was 2-1 with one save and a 3.05 ERA in 19 relief appearances: "We're coming in and wanting to go (to the World Series) again and do better and win more games. I think this year we have just as good of a team."
That would be quite the encore for the Rhinos after going 50-13 with a 5th-place finish in the NJCAA World Series last season. Competing in NJCAA postseason play for the first time in school history, the Rhinos won the Region 10 postseason tournament title and the East District tournament title the school hosted at Gastonia's Sims Legion Park. The region title extending what is believed to be a national record as Gaston College has now won its conference regular season or tournament title in six straight seasons; The school won four straight North Carolina Community College titles from 1969 to 1972 before discontinuing athletics and has won a Region 10 regular season title in 2022 and Region 10 postseason championship in 2023.
Additionally, the 50 wins made Gaston College only the eighth team in Region 10 history that milestone in a single season - and first since 2009. Previous Region 10 teams to reach victories are Louisburg (51-11) and Spartanburg Methodist (51-10) in 2002, Spartanburg Methodist (50-16) in 2003, Spartanburg Methodist (54-15) in 2007, Lenoir Community College (54-12) in 2008 and Spartanburg Methodist (55-9) and USC Sumter (52-11) in 2009.
Christmas and Carr are two of eight returning players who got valuable experience during that historic run and three others were on the roster a year ago.
Christmas chose to play at Gaston College out of Hopewell High School in nearby Huntersville even as he had offers from four-year schools.
"Coming out of high school, it was really an eye-opener to see what has been done here as a young program," said Christmas, who played in all 15 Rhinos' postseason games highlighted by four multi-hit games. "We want to go to the Juco World Series every year if we can."
He hasn't yet established visits with four-year schools but is confident he'll have opportunities this fall and in the spring to do so.
Carr is from Cuthbertson High School in nearby Waxhaw and has NCAA Division I and II schools interested in him and hasn't decided on whether he'll make a commitment later this fall or in the spring.
What he does know is that being on a team with 19 eventual four-year college signees, among them pitchers J.D. Everett (UNC Wilmington), Darrell Johnson (Memphis), Evan Lewis (Delaware), Jaxson Mangum (Lenoir-Rhyne), Tyler Parks (Lenoir-Rhyne), David Sande (Radford), Hunter Shew (Lynn, Fla.), Nolan Straniero (Elon) and Derek Vartanian (Campbell).
"Coming in last year and talking to those guys, I knew I was going to learn a ton," Carr said of Gaston College's deep and talented 2023 pitching staff. "And I learned more than I've ever known and I'm grateful for that. They were great pitchers and great people."
Other returning players are catcher Elijah Jordan (.250 average in 9 games), infielder-outfielder Andrew Muraco (.298 average, 8 home runs, 25 RBIs in 48 games), infielder-outfielder Freddie Oliver (.294 average, 4 home runs, 18 RBIs in 25 games), outfielder Korbin Pettigrew (.235 average in 25 games), pitcher Sawyer Sutton (2-1 record with 1 save, 4.74 ERA in 18 appearances), first baseman Nathan Williams (.600 average in 7 games) and redshirt pitchers J.J. Devos, Gabe Hernandez and Shane Thorson.
Christmas says his role this season has changed a bit.
"There's a lot of lead by example and trying to show the younger guys how coach Doty works and what he expects," Christmas said. "But it's awesome to have high expectations. But we definitely want to do even better this year. We want to go back to (Grand Junction) Colorado and go farther" in the World Series.