Bryan Hill Eclipses 200 Coastal Plain League Wins
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Bryan Hill eclipses 200 Coastal Plain League wins Wilson Tobs head coach Bryan Hill laughs off the idea of personal praise. “I’ve heard a couple people talk about 200 wins. You’re either old or a really good coach,” Hill joked. The skipper in Wilson tallied his 200th Coastal Plain League win on July 18, 2019 as the Tobs defeated the Martinsville Mustangs 10-3. “I feel honored to have been able to be around enough to make it to 200 wins,” he said. Hill has been in the Coastal Plain League for seven seasons, dating back to 2012. He began the 2012 season in Wilson as a pitching coach before getting promoted to head coach halfway through the year. He spent 2013 through 2016 with the Edenton Steamers before returning to the Tobs in 2018. Thursday night’s win ended unceremoniously. A contest in which Wilson had exploded for four runs in the fourth and six runs in the fifth before lightening halted and eventually ended the game finished with no streamers or celebratory cake, even though it marked the teams sixth straight win. “[We] didn't really realize it until after the game that it was 200 but that's still cool,” assistant coach Harry Markotay remembered. Markotay played under Hill at Chowan University where he batted .405 his senior year before stepping into a coaching roll in 2019. He also joined the Tobs as a coach, right by Hill’s side in 2019. “I'm very happy to be coaching under him. I was happy to play under him. He’s a great coach and can do great things from here on out.” “[He] probably taught me that the biggest thing in life is hard work,” Tobs utility player Nick Rose explained. “Coming into Choawn I wasn't the biggest in school. I didn't like school, but he taught me how to work hard and put my head into things and it's gotten me here.” Rose played under Hill at Chowan University and mentioned it was big factor in his decision to play with Wilson during the 2019 summer. Summer collegiate ball is unlike a typical collegiate season. A team is given the opportunity to focus essentially just on improving their game, which also presents a unique opportunity for a coach to become even more of a guiding figure in a ballplayer’s life. Tobs’ outfielder Marquise Lanier also played collegiately under Hill for three seasons at Chowan. When the opportunity to play independent professional baseball didn’t work out for Lanier, Hill was there for him and gave him the opportunity to play with Wilson for a second stint. “It meant a lot. You know, he always told me keep my head up no matter what. And just to keep going and just keep grinding,” Lanier reminisced as he was clearly humbled and thankful. “Any way I can shape and form futures of younger players, that's kind of what I'm into,” Hill explains. “Be a better person every day on and off the field. You know, baseball and the game of life are pretty synonymous when you think about the ups and downs and different things happen. And each day is a new day just like a new at-bats a new at-bat, each pitch is a different pitch… and not really dwelling on the past but learning from it so you don't do it again. You can go on and on and on how it kind of works together with daily life.” WILSON TOBS POST GAME REPORT EDENTON STEAMERS 9 WILSON TOBS 13 (Edenton, N.C.) – The Wilson Tobs rallied for five runs in the ninth for a 13-9 win over the Edenton Steamers on Wednesday night. It was Wilson’s second and final win at Hicks field this season. The first lead of the night belonged to Edenton. Ian Walters singled home the game’s first run. The next batter reached on an error to give the Steamers a 2-0 margin in the first. The Tobs tied the game in the top of the second inning with a Chris Meyers solo home run. De’Andre Pitts later doubled home Nick Rose. Wilson grabbed a lead in the third inning as Christian Avant scored on a groundout and Kevin Jordan came across on an error. Wilson’s 4-2 lead didn’t last long. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Rob Weissheier sent a two-run home run to left field to knot the game at four apiece. The Steamers exploded for four runs in their half of the fourth. Ian Walters plated a pair with a double. Justin Drpich drove in two himself with a single to double up the Tobs with an 8-4 Edenton advantage. The Tobs touched up for a lone run in the sixth inning. Jared Carr drove in his 27th run of the season with a sacrifice fly to plate Avant. Wilson got back within two after Michael Calamari extended his hit streak to nine with an RBI single to left. The ball popped out of the glove of a diving Dane Simon as Wilson’s deficit sat at 8-6. With a run scored and a hit in the game, Avant came to the plate with a runner on third and two outs in the eighth. Avant sent a no doubt home run to left field for his fifth of the year. It was his fourth against Edenton and third at Hicks field to tie the game at eight. The Steamers took the lead on a close play at the plate in the bottom of the inning. Walters slowly tapped a ball back to Tobs reliver Josh Arnold who attempted a glove flip to the plate but was unsuccessful as Edenton grabbed a 9-8 advantage. Heading to the ninth, Wilson’s offense erupted for five straight hits. Meyers and Rose singled to begin the inning. With both standing in scoring position, Michael Calamari ripped a double just inside the first base foul line to plate the runners to give Wilson a 10-9 lead. Hunter Gore doubled home Calamari to run reliever John Dowless out of the game. The inning was capped with a Coleman Sawyer two run home run for his first long ball of the season. The Tobs began the inning with five straights and five straight runs to take a 13-9 lead. A double play ended the bottom of the inning as Wilson took the game at Hicks Field 13-9. CJ Gonzales (2-5) got the final four outs for the win. Dowless (3-2) suffered his second loss of the season. Over the course of the two-game series, the Tobs and Steamers played seven hours and thirty minutes exactly, sharing 47 runs, 52 hits, ten errors and 40 runners left on base. The two teams split the final two matchups of the season 1-1. Wilson returns home on Thursday night for the final Thirsty Thursday of the season. It’s also 90’s night at the ballpark with special 90’s themed promotions and music throughout the night. Dress in your favorite 90’s attire! Tickets and details are available at WilsonTobs.com. TO: All Media FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FROM: Steve Granado Broadcasting and Media Relations Assistant RE: Brown tabbed as SAL Player of the Week Garrett Brown honored by South Atlantic League Power outfielder becomes first West Virginia player to be recognized for weekly award in 2017 CHARLESTON, WV (July 24, 2017) – West Virginia Power outfielder Garrett Brown has been named as the South Atlantic League Player-of-the-Week for the week of July 17-23, 2017. League president Eric Krupa gave Brown the honor as the first Power player this season to win the award. The last West Virginia player to win such an award was Mitchell Tollman who was handed the accord for the week of June 27- July 3, 2016. During the illustrious week, Brown batted .455 (10-22) during six games with a double, two triples, and eight runs batted in. He struck out just one time in those 22 at bats. The 24 year-old from North Carolina was a key component in an eleven-inning victory against the Kannapolis Intimidators on July 19 when he tripled home a pair of runs in the top of the eleventh to break a 4-4 tie. The Power went on to win that Wednesday night 7-4. Pittsburgh selected Brown in the 23rd round of the 2016 First Year Player Draft out of Western Carolina. He played five games with the West Virginia Black Bears before being promoted to the Power on June 26 of this year. Brown appeared in 54 games for the Bristol Pirates in 2016. West Virginia finishes a four game homestand on Tuesday night with the Lexington Legends at 7:05 P.M. Tickets and information can be found at wvpower.com, the Power Box Office or by calling 304-344-BATS. 2019 WILSON TOBS GAME NOTES Wilson Tobs Summer Collegiate Wood Bat Baseball | Coastal Plain League | Flemming Stadium: 300 Stadium St SW, Wilson, NC 27893 Wilson Tobs (29-21, 1-0) @ Morehead City Marlins (37-14, 1-0) Playoff Game 2 | Tuesday, August 6, 2019 | Big Rock Stadium | Morehead City, NC Radio: wilsontobs.com | Tobs Radio Airtime: 7:20 P.M. First Pitch: 7:30 PM PITCHING MATCHUP RHP Connor Schulz (1-1, 2.94) vs LHP Chandler Coates (3-2, 5.40) SCHULZ: 2.1 IP, 2 H, ER, 0 BB, 4 K in no decision vs Sharks 7/29 (4-1 L) COATES: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, 4 K, earned win vs Pilots 8/01 (9-5 W) FIRST THINGS FIRST: The Wilson Tobs return to Big Rock Stadium and face the Morehead City Marlins for the RESULTS/SCHEDULE Regional Round of the 2019 Petitt Cup Playoffs.