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Wingate University head baseball coach Allen Osborne believes attitude and fundamentals will be keys to success for the Bulldogs in 2008. “Our attitude is unbelievable,” Osborne said. “I would say attitude is the number one thing for us.”

“In the fall, we wanted to change the ways the players think about the game of baseball and the Wingate program,” Osborne notes. “We wanted to change the way we work, the way we dress and the way we eat. The players have been very receptive. They believe in themselves.”

Osborne knows how much attitude and hard work can produce results. He spent the 2007 season as an assistant coach at the University of Memphis with head coach Darren Schoenrock. In 2007, the Memphis Tigers made their first NCAA Regional appearance since 1994. Osborne has also spent a total of eight years as an assistant at East Carolina University and the University of Georgia.

“We want to be fundamentally sound,” Osborne acknowledges. “I want us to do the big three very well: hit, pitch and play defense. I want us to play to the best of our capabilities. If we are successful in two of these three areas (hitting, pitching and defense), we will have a chance to stay in the ball game early and win the ball game late.”

Osborne believes hard work is vital, but he knows there is a bigger picture. “We must dream dreams,” Osborne says. “Every day, we must talk about winning championships. We must keep dreaming and keep talking. If we do these things, the victories and the successes will follow.”

The Bulldogs have worked hard during fall sessions and pre-season workouts. “We must stay healthy and get stronger,” Osborne says. “We have used our time in the pre-season to get in good baseball shape.”

As a direct result of the team’s hard work, Osborne believes he will have tough decisions to make when filling out the Bulldog line-up card. “We have guys who can produce, who fit our picture,” Osborne notes. “These guys believe in our greater plan. We have players who can move the baseball successfully and with authority.”

“Defensively, I think we can be very good,” Osborne says. “We must stay healthy defensively.” Bulldog junior Alex Chapman (Morganton, N.C.) will anchor the infield at shortstop. A three-time All-Conference performer at Freedom High School, Chapman joins the Wingate club after two seasons at UNC Charlotte. Osborne notes other infield assignments will be predicated on pitching match-ups.

Junior infielder Aaron Knowles (Miami, Fla.) and sophomore infielders Spencer Robinson (Bessemer City, N.C.) and Logan Beasley (Staley, N.C.) will “find spots in the line-up,” Osborne says. Each player has experience, as the trio started a collective 106 games in 2007. 

Last season, Robinson started 48 contests. He hit .268 with two home runs and 25 RBI. Beasley started 38 games, batting .246 with three doubles and 16 RBI. Knowles got the starting nod in 20 games. He finished third on the team in defensive assists with 59.

At first base, sophomore Bryan Bialecki (Richlands, N.C.) and freshmen Heath Weatherford (Rockingham, N.C.) and Kevin Childs (Anderson, S.C.) will battle for playing time. Bialecki will also see time as a starting pitcher, while Childs will have an opportunity to contribute to Wingate’s pitching fortunes as well. Bulldog junior Thomas Gudzik (Smithtown, N.Y.) and freshmen Scott Kelly (Marston, N.C.) and Cameron Falcon (Durham, N.C.) give Wingate much-needed depth in the infield.

A former catcher at Marshall University, Osborne is pleased with Wingate’s personnel behind the dish. “We have three very good catchers,” Osborne notes. Junior Blair Troutman (Concord, N.C.) and redshirt junior Dustin Hurdle (Burlington, N.C.) both have starting experience for the Bulldogs.

An ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® candidate, Troutman hit .311 with two home runs and 25 RBI in 2007. He started 37 contests for the Bulldogs last season. Hurdle missed most of 2007 due to injury. He started 30 games in 2006. A newcomer will also contribute at the catcher position. Freshman catcher Matt Crump (Matthews, N.C.) “is doing a great job for us,” Osborne says.

In the outfield, senior Mark Letchworth (Greenville, N.C.) and junior Nick Siega-Riz (Clemmons, N.C.)  “will be mainstays in our order,” Osborne notes. The only senior on the Bulldog roster, Letchworth is a transfer from East Carolina. He helped lead Rose High School to two state championships. In addition, Letchworth has two years of experience at Louisburg College.

Siega-Riz has been a starter for the Bulldogs from day one. In two seasons, he has started 104 games. Last season, he .305 with 10 doubles, three triples, seven home runs and 30 RBI. Siega-Riz led the Bulldogs with 21 stolen bases in 2007.

Junior outfielder Jerome Henley (Carrboro, N.C.) and sophomore outfielder Grayson Tanner (Sumter, S.C.) also return with playing experience. Henley hit .286 for the Bulldogs in 2007, while Tanner hit .231. Tanner made 33 starts last season. Sophomore outfielder Tayler Middleton (Hickory, N.C.) joins the Bulldogs as a newcomer this year.

Sophomore right-hander Lee Oxendine (Laurinburg, N.C.) will lead the Bulldog pitching staff. “Lee had a great fall,” Osborne acknowledges. Oxendine is on track to get the nod for game one of Wingate’s weekend South Atlantic Conference series. Oxendine shared the team lead in starts (14) and strikeouts (56) as a true freshman.

Junior righty Richard Allred (Snow Camp, N.C.) shared the top spot on Wingate’s 2007 pitching charts with Oxendine, as he had 14 starts and 56 strikeouts as well. Bialecki, sophomore right-hander Dusty White (Charlotte, N.C.) and freshman left-hander Cale Rogers (Snow Camp, N.C.) will also make significant pitching contributions this season.

Bulldog junior right-hander Zak Laws (Lenoir, N.C.) will lead the Wingate bullpen. Another ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® candidate, Laws had a team-high eight saves in 2007. He also won two games for the Bulldogs.

Junior right-hander Garret Kloots (Canton, Ohio) and sophomore righty Tyler Almond (Oakboro, N.C.) “both have a chance to be very good (in our system),” Osborne notes. Both Kloots and Almond are recovering from off-season surgeries. Almond and redshirt junior Brian Karcewski (Downington, Pa.) shared the 2007 team lead with five victories each. Almond started 11 contests for the Bulldogs last season.

Depth will be important for the Bulldog pitching staff. Juniors Thomas Ayscue (Henderson, N.C.) and Matt Roldan (Monroe, N.C.) and sophomores Austin Sherron (Beaufort, N.C.) and Ryan McIntyre (Norwood, N.C.) have post-high school experience that will provide valuable for Wingate.

McIntyre made 15 appearances for the Bulldogs in 2007. Ayscue (Concord University), Roldan (Rockingham CC) and Sherron (Pitt CC) join the Wingate program as transfers. Roldan played his high school baseball at nearby Monroe High. Freshman righty Jace Bollinger (Matthews, N.C.) was a scholastic teammate of Matt Crump at Butler High. Freshman Tyler Chewning (Wadesboro, N.C.) can play both pitcher and catcher for the Bulldogs.

Osborne and his Bulldogs will play 11 games against teams ranked in the NCAA Division II top 40 pre-season poll: Nova Southeastern (36), Mount Olive (6), Francis Marion (25), USC Aiken (31) and SAC pre-season favorite Tusculum (7). In addition to the league slate, Wingate will play non-conference games against Erskine College, Alderson-Broaddus (W.Va.) College, Barton College and UNC Pembroke, among others.

Wingate opens the 2008 campaign at Nova Southeastern University Saturday, Feb. 2, testing the water against the Sharks with a 3 p.m. doubleheader. The two teams will play a single game Sunday, Feb. 3 at 1 p.m. The Bulldogs will open the home portion of their schedule on Wednesday, Feb. 13, entertaining Mount Olive College for a 1 p.m. twin bill.

“It will take us 1000 days to get to the spot where we want to be (as a program),” Osborne says. “For us to be the best, we must beat the best. I am excited to play our schedule. I am also looking forward to see where we stack up in the league. Our ultimate goal is to win the SAC championship.”