Coastal baseball opens 2018, hosting tournament
CONWAY – On Friday (Feb. 16), the 2018 NCAA Division I collegiate baseball begins across the country and the Coastal Carolina will host the 19th annual Brittain Resorts Baseball at the Beach. Games will be played Friday through Monday (Feb. 16-19) at both Springs Brooks Stadium on CCU’s campus as well as TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ball Park in Myrtle Beach.
Each spring, Coastal Carolina baseball hosts several tournaments that bring in some of the best teams and players from across the country to the Grand Strand. This season is no exception as the Brittain Resorts Baseball at the Beach field includes host Coastal Carolina, Indiana, Oklahoma, South Alabama, Kansas State and Virginia Tech.
For games at Coastal Carolina, fans that do not have a parking pass should park in the free lot off Highway 544 and utilize the free shuttles that will runs throughout the day and all weekend.
Parking is free at Pelicans Ballpark and fans are encouraged to park in the large lot off Bob Grissom Parkway. The only entrance into the stadium is the gate nearest the ticket booth closest to the right field corner.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
FRIDAY
Noon Indiana vs. Oklahoma (Myrtle Beach)
4 pm South Alabama vs. Kansas State (Myrtle Beach)
4 pm VIRGINIA TECH AT COASTAL (Conway)
SATURDAY
11 am Oklahoma vs. South Alabama (Conway)
Noon Kansas State vs. Indiana (Myrtle Beach)
3 pm OKLAHOMA AT COASTAL (Conway)
4 pm South Alabama vs. Virginia Tech (Myrtle Beach)
SUNDAY
10:30 am South Alabama vs. Indiana (Conway)
2 pm Oklahoma vs. Virginia Tech (Myrtle Beach)
2 pm KANSAS STATE AT COASTAL (Conway)
MONDAY
11 am INDIANA AT COASTAL (Conway)
Noon Virginia Tech vs. Kansas State (Myrtle Beach)
Five of the six team in this year’s field were on D1Baseball’s top 100 NCAA baseball programs, including Coastal Carolina (17th), Indiana (31st), Oklahoma (35th), South Alabama (50th) and Kansas State (97th). South Alabama is ranked as high as 20th in D1Baseball while Indiana and Oklahoma are ranked as high as 17th and 18th, respectively, by PerfectGame.org.
Among the individual talent on display this weekend will be:
· Coastal Carolina preseason All-American Kevin Woodall Jr.
· Coastal Carolina pitcher Jason Bilous, rated the 57th-best pro prospect in the nation by D1Baseball.
· South Alabama’s Travis Swaggerty, who is on the Golden Spikes Award watch list and rated the ninth-best pro prospect in the nation by D1Baseball.com.
· Oklahoma’s Steele Walker, who is on the Golden Spikes Award watch list and rated the 21st-best pro prospect in the nation by D1Baseball.com.
· Oklahoma’s Jake Irvin, rated the 81st-best pro prospect in the nation by D1Baseball.com.
· Virginia Tech’s preseason All-American Sam Fragale.
Baseball at the Beach History
•This is the 19th Annual Baseball at the Beach, now sponsored by Brittain Resorts. For the first 15 installments of the event, the games were played solely in Myrtle Beach at the home of the Pelicans, a facility that was opened just one year earlier (1999). After the completion of Springs Brooks Stadium for the 2015 season, Coastal moved its games as part of the event on campus, while other marquee games are still played in Myrtle Beach.
• The first installment was just a doubleheader between Coastal Carolina and Georgia Southern on Mar. 18, 2000. CCU won both games, 10-3 and 3-1. Since then, Baseball at the Beach has evolved into one of the premier events in college baseball, featuring some of nation’s top teams and talent.
• For example, the 2013 Baseball at the Beach had future top 15 MLB picks Kris Bryant (San Diego, #2 overall pick by Chicago Cubs), Carlos Rodon (NC State, #3 overall pick by Chicago White Sox) and Trae Turner (NC State, #13 overall pick by San Diego Padres). In 2015, #6 overall pick Tyler Jay from Illinois helped the Illini defeat Coastal with his pitching performance.
• Other Power 5 teams to play at Baseball at the Beach includes South Carolina, Clemson, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, TCU, Michigan State, Ohio State, West Virginia, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Kansas State, Iowa, Virginia Tech, Indiana and Illinois.
Coastal’s Early-Season Tournaments
• In addition to hosting the Baseball at the Beach each year, Coastal Carolina hosts three-to-four events early in the year and all bring some of the nation’s top talent not to mention the stars the Chanticleers have produced.
• Since 2010, 29 MLB top 100 draft picks were with teams that played in at least one of Coastal Carolina’s early-season tournaments and 11 have reached or are in Major League Baseball.
• That list does not include five Coastal Carolina players — Tommy La Stella, Taylor Motter, Rico Noel, Keith Hessler and Jacob May — that have reached the big leagues. Nor does it include six Chants selected within the first five rounds of the MLB Draft since 2010.
NAME
Kris Bryant, 3B #2 overall pick 2013 2013 with San Diego MLB
Carlos Rodon, LHP #3 overall pick 2014 2012 & 2013 with NC State MLB
Kyle Schwarber, C #4 overall pick 2014 2013 with Indiana
Tyler Jay, LHP #6 overall pick 2015 2015 with Illinois
Trea Turner, SS #13 overall pick 2014 2012 & 2013 with NC State MLB
Matt Thaiss, C #16 overall pick 2016 2016 with Virginia
Casey Gillaspie, 1B #20 overall pick 2014 2014 with Wichita State
Kolbrin Vitek, 2B #20 overall pick 2010 2010 with Ball State
Alex Meyer, LHP #23 overall pick 2011 2010 with Kentucky
Eric Lauer, LHP #25 overall pick 2016 2016 with Kent State
Eric Jagielo, 3B #26 overall pick 2013 2011 with Notre Dame
Aaron Blair, RHP #36 overall pick 2013 2011 with Marshall
AJ Reed, 1B #42 overall pick 2014 2013 with Kentucky
Andrew Chafin, LHP #43 overall pick 2011 2011 with Kent State MLB
J.B. Woodman, OF #57 overall pick 2016 2016 with Ole Miss
Jedd Gyorko, 2B #59 overall pick 2010 2010 with West Virginia MLB
Ronnie Dawson, OF #61 overall pick 2016 2016 with Ohio State
Branden Kline, RHP #65 overall pick 2012 2012 with Virginia
Sam Travis, 1B #67 overall pick 2014 2013 with Indiana
Connor Jones, RHP #70 overall pick 2016 2016 with Virginia
Chad Pinder, SS #71 overall pick 2013 2012 with Virginia Tech MLB
Cory Mazzoni, RHP #71 overall pick 2011 2011 with NC State MLB
Perci Garner, RHP #77 overall pick 2010 2010 with Ball State
Austin Cousino, OF #80 overall pick 2014 2013 with Kentucky
Erik Johnson, RHP #80 overall pick 2011 2011 with California
Alex Call, OF #86 overall pick 2016 2016 with Ball State
Brandon Lowe, 2B #87 overall pick 2015 2015 with Maryland
Austin Wates, OF #90 overall pick 2010 2010 with Virginia Tech
Anderson Miller, CF #98 overall pick 2015 2015 with Western Kentucky
VIDEO COURTESY: WPDE
