Feb. 17, 2011
WASHINGTON - The Georgetown University baseball team departed the Nation's Capital on Thursday for North Carolina, where the Hoyas open the 2011 season on Friday, Feb. 18, playing Davidson College. First pitch is slated for 5:30 p.m.
The Hoyas left campus at noon and practiced in Richmond, Va. on Thursday afternoon, before hopping back on the bus for the remaining four hour drive.
"It's been a beautiful day and we were just excited being about on the field," Head Coach Pete Wilk said. "I think these guys are ready to go. I know we're ready to go, even though Mother Nature has challenged us this spring. We have a good bunch of kids and a great bunch of families. The thing that speaks volumes to me is that we had 100 percent of our kids pass the first conditioning tests. To be, that speaks volumes about their work ethic."
The Hoyas will play three games this season, the first two against Davidson, with games on Friday, Feb. 18 and Saturday, Feb. 19 (10 a.m.), before closing out the weekend with a game against Army on Sunday, Feb. 20 (2 p.m.).
Georgetown is coming off a 2010 season in which the team finished with a 24-31 overall record and a 5-22 mark in BIG EAST, including 12 games decided by two runs or fewer.
Led by senior catcher Erick Fernandez (Hialeah, Fla./Hiahleah), a Preseason All-BIG EAST selection, the Hoyas return four starters from last year's team, including the team's top four hitters. Fernandez finished fourth on the team in batting last season with a .317 average, hit 13 doubles, five home runs and drove in 29 runs.
Three of the team's remaining open starting positions - second base, center field and left field - should be filled by players who saw extensive playing time during the 2010 season.
"We're just more talented," Wilk said. "I thought last year's team had a great attitude and was a good team, but I think we've got a little bit more of both this year. I think we can back it up a little bit better than we did last year."
The infield will feature two of the experienced players on the team at the corner positions, with senior first baseman Dan Capeless (Centreville, Mass./Boston College H.S.), and senior third baseman Sean Lamont (Houston, Texas/Bellaire). Capeless hit .317 last year with 15 doubles, eight home runs and a team-best 38 RBI, while Lamont finished the season with a .286 average, hit 17 doubles, seven home runs and drove in 36 runs.
Junior Andy Lentz (Farmington Hills, Mich./Brother Rice), who appeared in 32 games last year and started 26 times, is expected to get the starting nod at second base. Lentz hit .241 with three doubles and nine RBI last year. Joining him in the middle of the infield is redshirt sophomore Mike Garza (San Antonio, Texas/Douglas MacArthur), a transfer from Stanford who was named to the All-Star team while playing for the Woodstock (Va.) River Bandits of the Valley Baseball League.
The lone returning outfielder is junior right fielder Rand Ravnaas (Fort Worth, Texas/All Saints' Episcopal), who led the team with a .347 average and hit a team-high 11 home runs, along with 16 doubles and drove in 35 runs.
Sophomores Justin Leeson (Exton, Pa./West Chester) and Corbin Blakey (Alpharetta, Ga./Centennial) are expected to start in center field and left field, respectively. Leeson saw time in 29 games last year, starting nine games, while Blakey appeared in 23 games, starting four times.
The starting rotation this weekend will include redshirt senior Alex Meyer (Pompton Plains, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) and senior Tommy Isaacs (Ponte Vedre Beach, Fla./Bolles).
"We'll see a couple of good arms at Davidson," Wilk said. "They never beat themselves and Army is a solid team as well. This will be a good start for us."
