Holbrook hopes his team can cut down on mistakes, improve offense
In the week leading up to South Carolina’s second series of the year, head coach Chad Holbrook has consistently preached one thing to his team. It has nothing to do with footwork or fastballs, but with having fun.
“I don’t think they were as carefree and relaxed as I wanted them to be last weekend,” Holbrook said. “I want us to relax, take a deep breath and play the way we’re capable of playing.”
The No. 7 Gamecocks will open up a three-game set against Albany (0-2) starting on Friday after taking two out of three games in their opening series last weekend.
In the first three games of the year, USC exhibited signs of rustiness from its returning starter-heavy defense, committing a total of eight errors throughout the weekend, two of which came from sophomore shortstop Joey Pankake.
“It was more nerves than anything,” Pankake said. “I just want to make the next play. I’ll tell the pitcher, ‘Just get another ground ball, we’ll get an out.’”
Pankake is batting .333 over the first three games of the season and echoed his coach’s call for a calmer team this weekend.
Holbrook will send out the same three starting pitchers as last week: sophomore Jordan Montgomery on Friday, senior Colby Holmes on Saturday and senior Nolan Belcher on Sunday. Last weekend, Montgomery picked up his first win in USC’s season opener, while Holmes left without a decision the day after. Belcher took a loss on Sunday despite a nine-strikeout performance.
South Carolina will also look to make strides on offense this weekend after a combined .210 batting average in the first series. Along with an uptight approach, Holbrook points to a lack of aggression at the plate as a reason for USC’s offensive struggles. Sophomore catcher Grayson Greiner, who started two of last weekend’s three games, batted a combined .200 and plans to take his coach at his word and employ a more aggressive style in the batter’s box.
“I think [Holbrook] saw that Liberty was being a little more aggressive at the plate and we were being a little bit more passive,” Greiner said. “This week our focus will kind of be a little bit more aggressive and get the hit out there and drive some balls.”
Greiner shared starts behind the plate with senior Dante Rosenberg, and Holbrook will look to rotate the two throughout the season, citing the depth at catcher as “a good problem to have.”
The injury bug hit USC last weekend when sophomore outfielder Tanner English broke his nose making a diving catch in center field. English has opted to postpone surgery until after the season, as doctors have told him he would miss at least the next seven games, including the Clemson series.
Albany enters the series with a slow start, having lost both of their previous games to Canisius by a combined score of 20-6. Despite their record, two Great Danes have begun the season batting over .400, with sophomore infielder Gordon Madej hitting .444 and sophomore outfielder Adam Mund batting .500. Albany finished second in the America East conference last season, the same conference that produced a Stony Brook team that advanced to the 2012 College World Series.
Holbrook continues to assert that his team will take the field on Friday with a much calmer demeanor, citing the team’s attitude as a key to not only the upcoming series, but the rest of the season.
“As the coach, I’ve got to make sure it’s a fun-loving group, a relaxed group and they play that way,” Holbrook said. “It’s been a great week of practice for us and I think you’ll see a much more relaxed, carefree team against Albany.”