I Guess Umpires Can Be Fans After All
By Cheval John
The Fort Worth Regional is probably the most competitive out of the entire 64 regional fields of the NCAA Baseball Tournament.
It was proven yesterday when Sam Houston State and No.7 national seed host Texas Christian University (TCU) played a 22 inning game that lasted for 2 months in which the Horned Frogs “won” 3-2.
The Bearkats should feel good because they’ve been apart of the second longest game in tournament history.
They don’t because they have to turn around and try to win right now against Siena in the losers bracket in order to face the Horned Frogs again in the regional championship later that night and beat them to force a second game tomorrow night.
The truth of the matter is that Sam Houston should not have been in this position because to me the second base umpire Jeff Head gave the game to Texas Christian with two horrendous calls.
To add on to that, this game should not have gone to extra innings in the first place.
In the first inning, after the Bearkats tied it up at 1 and had the bases loaded when short stop Corey Toups hit a ground ball to short stop Keaton Jones, who flipped it to second baseman Garrett Crain for the second out, but Crain throw the ball away that seemingly allowed two runs to score.
However, Mr. Head called Burgess for the interference that resulted in the third out, which kept the game tied.
When TCU scored their second run in the top of the 6th inning to make it 2-1, the Bearkats answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the eighth inning to tie it up again at 2 that sent it into extras.
Sam Houston had a chance in the bottom of the 13th inning to end it, but catcher Anthony Azar was thrown out at home plate that kept it going.
The Bearkats seemed to had won it in the bottom of the 21st inning when with one out and the bases loaded, right fielder Travis Lee hit a grounder to Jones, who got the force out at second base, allowing Burgess to seemingly score the walk-off run after Jones couldn’t get it to first base for the third out.
However, Mr. Head called left fielder Luke Plucheck for the interference that resulted in the third out and scratch the run away.
In both those plays, there wasn’t an interference by either players, but somehow Mr. Head saw a phantom interference on both plays that extended the game.
Of course, Mr. Head probably knew that he made the mistake, but since he is the umpire, he has all the power and when both Plucheck and Sam Houston coach David Pierce argued with him, he ejected them both.
TCU saw their new chance and capitalized on it by scoring the game-winning run in the top of the 23rd and then reliever Riley Ferrell finished the depleted Kats to seal the win.
What this shows is that TCU couldn’t handled Sam Houston by themselves and they were on their way to a second loss against them (first loss came in the Houston College Classic).
But because of the bailout by Mr. Head, they are in the regional championship.
Though it was a history making game, Sam Houston will remember the way how Mr. Head cost them a possible chance to be a step closer towards a trip to the College World Series in Omaha.
Guess, Mr. Head is a TCU fan.
A Little Preparation Goes A Long Way
By Cheval John
Sam Houston State’s first NCAA Division I National Championship in the Athletic Department’s office
If someone sees the success of a person, organization and/or sports teams, one of the first things that come out of their mouths is that they were lucky.
What they don’t see is the years of blood, sweat and tears that the person, organization, and/or sport team went through in order to put themselves in position to succeed.
Here are two examples of how a little preparation went a long way for these guys and how you can apply the same mindset to your life:
Sam Houston State Bowling Team
The Sam Houston State (SHSU) Bowling Team won the NCAA Division I National Championship in the Cleveland suburb of Wickliffe, Ohio about two weeks ago after defeating defending champion, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 4-2 in the best of seven baker format.
The championship was the first ever for SHSU since moving up to the Division I level in 1986.
What is more impressive is that the bowling program is in it’s fourth year of existence and the team have made two previous appearances in the NCAA Championships prior to winning it all this year.
The team contributed their success to a second half surge in the 2013-14 season that allowed them to make their third trip to the championships.
However, I honestly believe that it was what head coach Brad Hagen did before the season even began: Held a pre-season exhibition with Texas Southern and Prarie View A&M at the Huntsville Lanes Center in Huntsville, Texas.
Even though, his team didn’t do well in the exhibition, it allowed them to see their weaknesses and correct the mistakes before the season began.
That little preparation by coach Hagen is what made the difference in helping the team secure the school’s first NCAA Division I National Title.
“Jane Doe”
Diane Gottsman, owner of the Protocol School of Texas, right.
Diane Gottsman, owner of The Protocol School of Texas, shared a story at the Etiquette Dinner recently held at SHSU about a young college student, who she didn’t identify, so that is why I call her Jane Doe.
Mrs. Gottsman said that Jane Doe came up to her after one of her dinners and wowed her after Ms. Doe explained to her in detail about her background, what she said in her blog, www.dianegottsman.com her appearances on television, you name it.
Mrs. Gottsman added that even though “Ms. Doe” will be graduating from college two years from now, she is willing to wait for her because of the “extra preparation” that she did before the dinner.
In effect, Ms. Doe don’t have to worry about finding a career after graduating because she has already secured her first with a nationally recognized etiquette expert in Mrs. Gottsman.
Conclusion:
So you see the two examples of how a little preparation has led to the success of the SHSU Bowling Team and “Jane Doe.”
You really don’t have an excuse anymore on why you can’t succeed in life.
If you go out, work hard and smart, and even put out the “extra preparation,” then you will achieve the success that you dream of.
Diving For Your Team
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