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February 2, 2010

Baseball America Web Site

MESA, Ariz. - Junior Greg Van Sickler has been tabbed as the pre-season Division III Player of the Year in selections announced Tuesday by Baseball America.

Van Sickler, who earned NABC All-America status last season after leading Shenandoah to a 38-10 record and a South Region championship, was selected as a "Player to Watch", the pre-season Player of the Year and as the top NCAA Division III draftable prospect by Baseball America.

Van Sickler hit .411 with seven home runs, 66 RBI and a school record 20 doubles last spring while also winning nine of 11 decisions on the mound with a 2.69 ERA.

In addition to his NABC honors, Van Sickler was selected All-USA South Conference, to the USA South, Salisbury and NCAA Division III Championships All-Tournament teams and as a Valley League All-Star during the summer.

Shenandoah is scheduled to open its 2010 season on February 13 with a pair of games at the ODAC/USA South Conference Challenge.
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The Massey ratings have the USA South Conference listed as the number 1 Division III Conference in the Country. With players like CNU's Kenny Moreland and Shenandoah's Van Sickler, who have played & are currently playing, makes sense.

Moreland of course has graduated and is now a top prospect in the Orioles organization.

Just shows how respected Division III baseball is in Virginia. I think VA has two JUCO programs and just two D-II programs remaining.

Kenny Moreland CNU

CV
Last edited by cvsting
bbfan - The players are the one's who deserve the recognition. Coaches can help by instructing, reaching out to college coaches and putting the players in front of these coaches, but it all comes down to how the player performs.

That being said, everyone is entitled to their own opinion on things. IMO it doesn't matter how one goes about achieving their goal (no matter what that is). If someone reached their dream of playing college baseball through Babe Ruth great, American Legion great, Showcase great. It doesn't matter as long as the guys are playing and having fun on the field!

Hopefully this puts a rest to why I said something. If you'd like to talk about it more, PM me and we can talk about it there.
Last edited by Mid-Atlantic Mustangs
quote:
Originally posted by Coach Milburn:
This just might end of being a perfect example of choosing a different avenue while ending up at the same destination.

The MLB Draft


The odds, though, of that different avenue reaching the same destination are stacked against the DIII player. Perfect Game's recent article, "NCAA Division III Preview," contained an interesting statistic about the 2009 baseball draft: "[O]nly 19 Division III players were even selected in the 2009 baseball draft – just one in the first 13 rounds. The highest such pick was . . . chosen in the eighth round . . ."
quote:
Originally posted by bbfan11:
...Mr. VanSickler has succeeded because of skill and
hard work, not hype with a certain team he's associated with.


I have a few thoughts...

1) I am happy for him. Truly happy.

2) My concern is that he was possibly short changed because of the route he took. He might have been in Omaha last year had he taken a different route.

3) VanSickler is the exception rather than the rule. Only 18 D3's were taken in last year's draft.

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