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 Matt Cook starts play at the NCAA East Regional Championship Thursday. |
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May 17, 2006
Cullowhee, N.C. - The Southern Conference announced today that sophomore pitcher Greg Holland was named its TIAA/CREF Student-Athlete of the Week for the second consecutive week. The Catamount baseball team (30-23, 13-11 Southern Conference) will host Furman (30-20, 14-11 SoCon) for three games this weekend. Game one is set for Friday at 7 pm, while games two and three will be played as part of a Saturday doubleheader starting at 2 pm. In addition to the baseball team, fellow Catamount sophomore Matt Cook will be playing in the NCAA East Regional on Thursday (1:23 pm tee time), Friday and Saturday.
Holland (Marion, N.C.) is a natural resources management major with a 3.458 cumulative GPA who posted a 1-0 record with two saves in four appearances last week. With his two saves, he now has nine for the season to rank second on the WCU single-season list. In six innings, Holland allowed two walks with seven strikeouts and four hits in 21 at bats as opponents only batted .190 off the sophomore. In the only game he did not get a decision, he pitched a scoreless inning at Tennessee. Over the weekend, Holland factored in all three wins over Kennesaw State, going 1-0 with two saves. In game one, he worked a perfect ninth with a strikeout to get a save. In game two, he pitched the ninth and got the win. In the finale, he gave up his first run in nine appearances, but still got the save, pitching the final three innings and striking out five.
This weekend will mark the final regular-season games for both Western Carolina and Furman. Western currently stands in fifth place with a 13-11 record, along with The Citadel, while Furman and Georgia Southern are tied for third, each with a 14-10 scoresheet, and one game in front of the Catamounts and Bulldogs. There will be a lot of jockeying for position for next week's Southern Conference Championship (played in Charleston, S.C., at Riley Park) as the top six seeds will have a first round bye. Currently, only two games separate third from seventh place. Elon and the College of Charleston are currently tied for first in the SoCon with identical 19-5 records. Elon will play at UNC Greensboro, who is currently seventh with a 12-12 record, this weekend. Charleston will host cross-town rival The Citadel. Other games this weekend include Georgia Southern playing at Wofford (4-20) and Davidson (5-19) at Appalachian State (7-17). (See PDF below for compete standings, schedule and tournament bracket.)
Current SoCon Baseball Standings, Weekend Schedule and Championship Bracket in PDF Format
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Cook (Murphy, N.C.) will be starting his trek towards earning at berth in the NCAA Championships by playing three rounds at the NCAA East Regional, which starts Thursday. The NCAA East Regional is being played at Orlando's Lake Nona Golf & Country Club (Lake Nona Golf Course) and hosted by the University of Central Florida. Ten teams and the top two remaining individuals will advance to the NCAA Championships (played at the Crosswater Club in Sunriver, Ore. May 31-June 3). To follow Cook's rounds, click the link below:
