LAURINBURG — Depth is one of the St. Andrews University baseball team’s biggest strengths this year.
“I’ve told several people, I don’t know if this is the most talented team I’ve ever had, but it’s the deepest team I’ve ever had,” head coach Andy Fox said. “At several spots on our team we’re at least two or three guys deep, and some of the positions even four deep, that I wouldn’t be scared to put out there at any time.”
The Knights have several key returners on their roster, including ace Davis O’Brien and several seasoned contributors on offense and defense.
St. Andrews also brought in six freshmen from locations as close as Purnell Swett High and as far away as Japan.
“Our freshman class looks really good,” Fox said. “We’ve got a chance for some of those guys to get some playing time.
“We also got in some junior college guys that are going to help us,” he added. “We brought in four guys at Christmas break. A couple of those guys have a chance to push for some significant playing time.”
The Knights logged a 21-28 record last season. They struggled in Appalachian Athletic Conference play (6-21) as well as in road games (4-13), but they were 17-15 at home.
All of St. Andrews’ top three batting average leaders are returning this year. Senior shortstop Noah Lawson had the team’s highest batting average (.329) last season, along with 37 RBIs and five home runs. Senior infielder J.R. Polak led the team in RBIs and home runs last season with 38 and six, respectively. He also had the second-highest batting average (.291). Senior infielder Dean Pulley complimented his .284 average with 12 RBIs.
After leading the team in stolen bases (16) and extra-base hits (20) as a freshman, Kris Allen is back patrolling center field for the Knights.
“The biggest thing for me is going to be putting pressure on the other team from an offensive standpoint by using motion, however that is — whether it’s stealing bases, a hit-and-run, whatever. We’re definitely going to be just as athletic as anyone we play, maybe not as talented.
“We’re going to use smart aggressiveness and just apply pressure to the other team offensively. We’ve got some guys that can hit home runs and do all that, but for the most part we need to focus on putting the ball in play.”
O’Brien, a senior left-hander from Kernersville, will headline the Knights’ starting pitching rotation. O’Brien finished last season with a 7-4 record and a 3.89 ERA in 14 appearances, including 13 starts. Another senior southpaw, Jonathan Crowe, will join O’Brien in the rotation.
“Both of those guys did well for us last year,” Fox said.
Junior college transfer Brent Kline, a junior right hander, will also be a part of the starting rotation. The group’s fourth spot — which is usually only needed in non-conference play — has not yet been filled.
The Knights are working on solidifying their bullpen, which struggled to close out several games last year. Part of that plan involves putting sophomore Nate Moretz and senior Matt Strickland at the back-end of the bullpen. Moretz was a starter last year, but he was a closer in high school. Strickland was the Knights’ closer last season.
“If we’ve got both of those options in our bullpen, I think that can solidify it,” Fox said.
The Knights will begin their season next weekend with a three-game series at home against Ohio Christian. The first game will be on Friday, Jan. 31, at 2 p.m. The teams will then play a doubleheader on Saturday, beginning at noon.
