LAURINBURG — Scotland High School senior Daly Marcano quickly signed his letter of intent to play college baseball on Wednesday before changing into his uniform for the Fighting Scots first scrimmage.

Just over a week before the start of his final season of high school baseball, Daly made the decision to head 45 minutes up I-74 to to Southeastern Community College in Whiteville to play Division II baseball.

Southeastern is part of the National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association and plays in Division II Region 10 along with Guilford Tech Community College, Brunswick Community College, Catawba Valley Community College and Wake Technical Community College.

The Rams welcomed new coach Daniel Britt, former pitching coach at UNC-Pembroke, last season as they team finished the 2017 season 11-31 overall and 6-17 in their conference.

So far this season, Southeastern is 2-1 overall with two wins over USC Lancaster and a loss to Florence-Darlington Tech.

Daly said when he visited Southeastern’s campus and met the coaching staff he felt like it was the right fit for him.

“It was a great baseball atmosphere, I really liked the campus and it looked like a great place to study,” he said. “The team is fairly new and they have a bunch of new recruits coming in so I was excited.”

The Scots senior is undecided on what he wants to major in, but would like to remain around baseball and said he is considering pursuing a career in coaching.

Despite not knowing what he wants to study, Daly admitted he’s nervous about the demands of being a college student and a Division II athlete.

“I have to study, practice, work out and stay on the ball so I’m nervous about balancing all that,” he said.

During his junior year, Daly was one of the Scots pitchers finishing the season with a 5-3 record and a 2.71 ERA. Daly tallied 28 strikeouts in his 51.2 inning pitched — second best on the team behind fellow senior Matthew Hyatt.

When he wasn’t on the mound, Daly served as the Scots second baseman and had a .945 fielding percentage. In the box, Daly had a .274 batting average with 17 hits and eight RBIs.

Fighting Scots head coach Chad Hill said that the pressure might feel like it’s off but Daly’s now a marked man — on the mound and in the box.

“This is a great opportunity for him to further his career and myself and the rest of the coaching staff are really excited for him,” Hill said. “Everyone is gunning for both of our conference starters on the mound (Daly and Matt Hyatt) because they are both going to play college baseball. Every time he steps in the box that pitcher is trying to make a name for himself by striking out a college signee out.”

Daly said his parents, Sal and Christa Marcano, are extremely proud of him and plan to attend as many games as they can.

“They are happy that they don’t have to pay for school, which would have been an added expense on them,” he said.

The Scots starting second baseman said ever since he started playing baseball as a kid he wanted to play in college — but wasn’t sure if it was going to happen.

“It was always the dream — I always wanted to play at the next level,” he said.

Amber Hatten-Staley can be reached at 910-506-3170 or [email protected].

Amber Hatten-Staley | Laurinburg Exchange Scotland High School senior Daly Marcano, middle, signed his letter of intent to play college baseball at Southeastern Community College in the fall. Marcano was joined by his parents, younger brother and Fighting Scots coaches Michael Sellers, Chad Hill and Greg Wrape.
https://www.laurinburgexchange.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_IMG_1652.jpgAmber Hatten-Staley | Laurinburg Exchange Scotland High School senior Daly Marcano, middle, signed his letter of intent to play college baseball at Southeastern Community College in the fall. Marcano was joined by his parents, younger brother and Fighting Scots coaches Michael Sellers, Chad Hill and Greg Wrape.
Scots pitcher continues baseball career

By Amber Hatten-Staley

Sports editor