George Washington University Athletics
Balanced Colonials Look For Breakthrough Season
12/13/2001 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Dec. 13, 2001
Coming off of another record breaking season in which they ranked 18th in the nation with a .325 batting average and 34th in team ERA (4.07), head coach Tom Walter and the rest of the George Washington baseball program expect this to be the season that they breakthrough for their first Atlantic 10 Conference Championship in 10 years.
The Colonials return seven of nine starters and 16 of 24 lettermen from a team that was 38-23 last season and came within one game of reaching the NCAA Tournament.
THE LINEUP
Seniors Matt Krimmel and Mike Bassett, along with sophomore Jeff Fertitta and junior Chris Barry, will form the nucleus of a potent offensive attack for the Colonials. Krimmel, a second team Atlantic 10 All-Conference selection in 2001, will see the majority of the time at third base and bat third in the lineup. Bassett, a first team Atlantic 10 All-Conference performer in 2001, led the team in home runs and doubles last season and is poised to break several all-time offensive records at GW. Fertitta will look to build on his performance at the 2001 Verizon Atlantic 10 Championships as he sees time at first base and behind the plate. Barry will be the starter at second base and has the ability to "hit between 15 to 18 home runs," according to Coach Walter. Barry will play alongside junior shortstop Jake Wald. Wald is coming off of a sophomore season in which he saw his batting average jump 120 points to .351. Wald was a big reason why the Colonials finished among the top two defensive teams in the Conference for the second consecutive season last year, committing only 10 errors in over 250 chances. Wald's improved bat, combined with his impressive defensive skills, made him a second-team All-Atlantic 10 selection last season and will make him one of the best shortstops in the region this season. Freshman Joe Michalski will see the majority of the time behind the plate. He is a "great catch and throw guy," according to Walter, with good size and power. Centerfielder Tony Brown returns this season and will again cover a lot of ground in the outfield with his tremendous speed. Redshirt junior Travis Crowder will hit leadoff and be the everyday designated hitter. Walter expects big things from Crowder, who had "one of the best fall's of anyone we have had at GW in a long, long time." Junior Tony Dokoupil, who has hit above .330 in each of his first two seasons, will hit second and play left field. Senior Nick Iovacchini will battle for a starting spot and also provides valuable depth at three infield positions.
On the mound, the Colonials return their top two starting pitchers in junior Greg Conden and senior Jason Baker. Conden and Baker are both power pitchers who throw in the high 80s to low 90s and will form one of the top 1-2 combinations in the Atlantic 10. Walter called the tandem "one of the best one, two punches we have ever had at GW," and feels the two can match up with anyone on GW's schedule. Senior Chris Worth along with junior Glen Skutnik, sophomore Dennis Gramolini and freshman Avi Rasowsky will battle for the third conference starter spot. The bullpen will be led by senior lefthander Mike O'Connor. O'Connor will be the primary set-up man and be asked to close at times this season. Freshman Justin Orenduff throws in the high 80s to low 90s with a power slider and also will be given the opportunity to close.
SCHEDULE
The Colonials will be tested early with non-conference matchups against Norfolk State, UNC-Greensboro, James Madison, Tulane (a 2001 College World Series participant) and Maryland to start the season.
The month of March opens up with a trip to Lancaster, CA, as the Colonials compete in the "Clash of the Conferences" Tournament along with Nevada-Las Vegas, Cal-State Northridge and Purdue.
The Atlantic 10 Conference will have a new look this year as the University of Richmond Spiders begin their first season of play in the conference. With the addition of the Spiders, the conference has returned to a divisional format with GW and Richmond being joined by Duquesne, a much improved Xavier squad, La Salle and Dayton in the West. Massachusetts, Saint Joseph's, Rhode Island, St. Bonaventure, Fordham and Temple form the East Division.
The top three teams from each division will head to Norwich, CT, for the 2002 Verizon Atlantic 10 Tournament beginning on May 16. The two teams that survive the first weekend will then play a three-game series beginning on May 23 at the campus of the highest remaining seed with the Atlantic 10 Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament at stake.
