By: James Barkley, staff writer
Spring is starting to creep into the air, and with that comes the start of baseball. All January the Terriers took the field for spring practice to get ready and now the season is finally here. Finishing the 2017 season with an overall record of 28-30, including going 13-11 in conference play, Wofford will look to show improvement on what was a shaky season.
Wofford starts the 2018 season being picked to finish sixth and seventh in the Southern Conference preseason polls, but entering his eleventh season as head coach, Todd Interdonato has learned to ignore these early predictions.
“That stuff used to bother me, it doesn’t anymore. Really if you want to do your preseason rankings, you need to do it a few games into the season. It is what it is.”
Wofford hosted Kentucky for their first game on Feb. 16. The last time Wofford faced Kentucky was the opener of the 2016 season, where the Terriers won 5-4. This season, the Terriers fell 1-6.
This year’s squad consists of 20 returning players, which include nine seniors, and 13 new players. Among these players are outfielder McClain Bradley, who was selected to the Preseason All-Southern Conference first team, and second baseman Reed Massey, who was named to the second team. Both players are seen as key aspects of the team.
“Those guys are valuable because they are good on both sides of the ball…they just impact you in every phase,” says Interdonato.
Bradley, a senior from Atlanta, Ga., and Massey, a junior from Marietta, Ga., will look to play a solid impact for the Terriers this season. Wofford also enters the season with a dynamic infield that will look to step up and lead the rest of the defense.
“With how good our infield defense is, if guys around them play well, I feel like we will defend at a high level,” Interdonato says.
One new addition to this year’s team to keep an eye on is freshman catcher Lawson Hill. Earning All-Region and All-State honors during his senior year of high school, Hill shows some serious potential entering his collegiate career. As Interdonato noted, “He is a very good player, and a very dynamic player. We are very excited about him.” Although splitting time with senior Cody Miller, Hill will have opportunities to prove himself this season.
Looking toward the future, Interdonato recently announced the 2018 signing class. When asked about this group, Coach Interdonato had nothing but good things to say and even compared them to the current sophomore players. “This class that we just put together reminds us of the [2020 class] not only because of the talent, but of how close they already are.” The group includes a total of 11 student-athletes, consisting of four pitchers, six position players, and a two-way player, coming from six different states.
