NEOSHO, Mo. — The Crowder College Roughriders baseball team left today for the first National Junior College Athletic Association World Series in the school's vaunted diamond history.
The team will open play on Sunday night at 7:30 against Iowa Western Community College.
Why is this of significance for Bryant?[more]
The Crowder team not only includes Bryant products Tyler Sawyer and David Guarno but it's the only team in the NCCAA Series that includes players from Arkansas, eleven of them all together, in fact.
The roster also includes Colby Roberts and Ashton Wilson from Benton; Adam Baker, Scott McFall, Mike Sisco and Cameron Walker from Fayetteville; Chance Cleveland from Watson Chapel; Brandon Taylor from Bergman; Dennis Fuller from Lake Hamilton and Sam Bates from Cabot.
Sawyer has worked his way into the 'Riders' starting rotation and figures to start one of the first two games at the double-elimination national tourney.
To keep up with the action, you can access live stats or listen live at: http://www.jucogj.org/
If Crowder wins Sunday's opener, it will play on Tuesday, June 1, at 7:30 p.m. A loss would place them in a losers bracket contest at 11 a.m. on Tuesday.
In another baseball note, right-hander Sam LeCure was promoted from the Louisville Bats AAA International League team to the parent Cincinnati Reds ballclub for a start on Friday night. Bryant's Travis Wood was in consideration for the assignment after two solid starts in a row for the Bats and a strong spring training for the Reds. But LeCure has been a hot pitcher, named the International Leauge Pitcher of the Week last week when he won two games including a one-hit shutout. He'll be stepping in for the injured Homer Bailey in the Reds' rotation.
Wood has been moved back to Sunday for his next start for the Bats.
