THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 4, 1995 TAG: 9506020230
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 22 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, CURRENTS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Long : 119 lines
DAVID BAILEY RECEIVED a tough break a year ago - a broken ankle - and missed out when All-Southeastern District baseball honors were passed out.
This year, the breaks went Bailey's way and the coaches of the eight teams chose the Indian River senior as the most valuable player on the 1995 all-district squad.
In sparking Indian River to the district co-championship and a playoff victory over Western Branch that gave the Braves No. 1 seeding from the Southeastern into the Eastern Region playoffs, Bailey posted a 7-2 pitching record with a 1.69 earned run average.
He allowed only 37 hits in 70 1/3 innings on the mound. He batted clean-up for the Braves and played first base when he wasn't pitching.
``I knew it (MVP) was between me and Nick Ardagna,'' Bailey said. Ardagna, a senior at Western Branch, earned first-team selection at catcher. ``I thought it would come down to whoever won that last game. Fortunately, we did.''
The 13-player all-district squad includes only players from the four teams that qualified for the district tournament. Western Branch and Churchland grabbed four spots each, Great Bridge landed three and Indian River placed two.
Five players are repeaters from the 1994 team - Great Bridge's Mike Cuddyer and Zach Younce, Western Branch's Dre Bly and Ardagna, and Churchland's Aaron Bailey.
Indian River's Keith Reynolds moved up from last year's second unit.
The other first-team members are Churchland pitcher Robert Jones, Western Branch first baseman Doug Brennan, Churchland second baseman Gary Denette, Western Branch third baseman Cory Bauswell, Churchland outfielder Otis Jones and Great Bridge's Mike Oliphant, chosen as the utility player.
Four players carried .400 batting averages. The team leader is Denette at clip.
Jones, a junior, grabbed the other pitching slot with a 4-3 record but a sparkling 0.73 earned run average. The 83-mph fastballer yielded only 24 hits in 48 innings.
``He has great work ethics and will only get better,'' said Churchland coach Carl Rhodes.
In addition to brilliant behind-the-plate work, Ardagna drove in 24 runs for Western Branch. He also scored 25 runs. Ardagna, a senior, has a partial baseball grant to Old Dominion University.
``He should do well at the college level,'' said Western Branch coach Jim Stanko. ``Some day I think he will make a heck of a coach.''
Brennan plated 20 runs for the Bruins and was regarded by Stanko as one of the most unsung standouts in the district. ``He's not a flashy player and is basically very quiet. But he does his job and he does it well,'' said the coach.
Denette, who was the most valuable player on the All-Portsmouth squad, had a team-leading 25 hits for the Truckers and batted in 16 runs. ``A very dependable player who never stops hustling and always plays hard,'' said Rhodes.
Bauswell, batting .348, had a team-leading 25 RBIs for the Bruins. He scored 22 runs. ``He's only a sophomore and an up-and-coming star,'' said Stanko. ``He has great power for a small person.''
Cuddyer, chosen as a pitcher last year, edged Deep Creek's Luis Medina for the shortstop position. Cuddyer, the only freshman on last year's team, is one of just two sophomores on this year's squad. Cuddyer batted .364, scored 15 runs and batted in 14.
``His bat carried us all year,'' said Great Bridge coach Martin Oliver. ``He was our most consistent player. And his best years are still ahead of him.''
All the outfielders were solid hitters. In addition to Reynolds' .407 average, Jones batted .372, Bailey hit .361 and Bly batted .329.
The fleet Bly also had 15 stolen bases and scored 21 runs. He will attend the University of North Carolina on a football grant but has been told he will be allowed to play baseball for the Tar Heels, too.
``I hope he plays baseball at Carolina,'' said Stanko. ``I really think he has the potential to be a professional baseball player.''
Jones stole 10 bases and scored 19 runs for the Truckers. ``Bailey and Jones were two quality outfielders,'' said Rhodes. ``Both ran the bases well.''
``I felt like I was on whenever I was hitting,'' Reynolds said. ``I had a good season at the plate.''
Oliphant gained the utility position with a .354 batting average. He registered 27 runs in leading off for the Wildcats. He carried a remarkable 4.1608 classroom average and is headed to the University of Virginia.
``I feel he was our most confident batter,'' said Oliver. ``We had no outfielders returning this year, and Mike stepped in there and provided us with real senior leadership.''
The DH spot went to Younce, who was chosen as an infielder last year. An arm injury necessitated his move to designated hitter. Younce batted only .298 but had 17 hits and drove in 10 runs.
The second team includes three players from Norcom and Western Branch, two from Deep Creek, Wilson and Oscar Smith, and one from Great Bridge. It has eight seniors, two juniors and three sophomores.
Indian River's Steve West was picked as the district's coach of the year. ILLUSTRATION: ALL-SOUTHEASTERN DISTRICT BASEBALL
Keith Reynolds, Indian River
Mike Oliphant, Great Bridge
Zach Younce, Great Bridge
Mike Cuddyer, Great Bridge
Dre Bly, Western Branch
Nick Ardagna, Western Branch
Doug Brennan, Western Branch
Cory Bauswell, Western Branch
Aaron Bailey, Churchland
Robert Jones, Churchland
Otis Jones, Churchland
Gary Denette, Churchland
David Bailey, Indian River
Most Valuable Player
ALL-STAR TEAM
[For a copy of the roster, see microfilm for this date.]
by CNB