The Official Blog of OC Athletics
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Hey baseball fans,
Overall, it was a fairly routine week. We worked a lot on hitting this week because they were doing some renovations to the Edmond Santa Fe field that we are renting for practice until our field is ready.
Speaking of our new field, we drilled the holes for the backstop poles and concreted them in on Friday. We also concreted our left-field foul pole and was going to concrete the right-field pole when I discovered that my geometry was off by about 12 inches. I am going to have a friend come back and re-drill the hole. We cannot have bad placement on our right field foul pole; it would bug me to the point I would not be able to sleep at night! We are only going to have one chance to build this field right so we must do a quality job.
Our new sod has really jumped in the last few days. We had to mow the infield and outfield twice this past week. It is wonderful to see green on the field. The man that I hired to laser-grade the field will be in tomorrow to laser the new infield material and also top-dress the new sod to smooth it out. I hope to break ground on the dugouts and the fencing in the very near future.
I had a surprise visit from former OC All-American Clint Vaughn on Friday. Clint was driving through town with his family and stopped in to check out our progress on the field; it was great to see him.
Thanks for checking in on us and please keep coming back for more updates. Have a great week and God bless.
Chuck White
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
On the heels of a successful ITA regional tournament that saw Oklahoma Christian win three of the four championships, this week’s podcast features an interview with OC tennis coach Lisa Johnson.
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Monday, September 24, 2007
Hey Baseball Fans,
Friday was a big day for OC; baseball came alive and we performed well in our first scrimmage. It was a marathon; we started at 4:00 pm and played 21 innings straight.
We divided the 21 innings into three seven-inning groups and fared pretty well with such a young group. We lost the first seven 4-2, won the second seven 6-4 and tied the third seven 3-3.
As coaches, we saw a lot that we have to work on, but we were very encouraged by what we observed. Our pitchers all did well overall. We need to eliminate walks and stay ahead in the count. Coach Smith has done a good job with them and was encouraged by the results from his staff.
Offensively, we hit the ball well. We were aggressive at the plate for the most part and hit line drives and sharp ground balls. We hit two long balls on the day; Josh Balch hit a laser for our first tater and Tyler Gipson hit a towering two-run shot in the second seven innings. We missed far too many signals, but I am not worried; that will take care of itself with time.
Defensively, we booted the ball in a few crucial situations, but with practice that will improve also. Our players just need to understand how much quicker the game is at the collegiate level and adapt their play to speed of the game.
All things considered, our coaching staff was pleased with what we saw, but by no means are we satisfied. We have two more weeks of practice before our next scrimmage and I expect significant progress in our next competition.
Probably the biggest encouragement I experienced with our team on Friday was the camaraderie they have already developed in the short time we have been together. As the team spirit and camaraderie grows, I believe good things will happen. We have a group of outstanding young men and I have really enjoyed being around them.
The field is coming along nicely. I mowed the infield and dugout wings for the first time on Sunday afternoon and it looked good. It is still bumpy as all new sod is. It will just take some time to top dress the grass and get the dirt surface where we want it, but it is beginning to take shape.
I called a pipe company on Monday and shared what we needed with the yard manager. He was kind enough not only to donate some pipe for our backstop, but also to deliver the pipe for free. God is good; He does provide.
Thanks for checking in with us this week and I hope that you will continue to our website each week as I update my baseball blog. Please keep the coaches in your prayers as we lead these young men and also remember our players as they work hard in the classroom and mature as quality young men and baseball players.
God’s richest blessings to all,
Chuck White
Head Baseball Coach
Oklahoma Christian University
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
This week’s podcast features head baseball coach Chuck White in advance of Friday’s scrimmage at Northern Oklahoma-Enid, which marks the “unofficial” debut of the revived baseball program.
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Former OC basketball player John Nottley is playing professionally for the Guildford Heat in his home country of England.
Click here to go to John’s profile page on Guildford’s website.
Former OC All-America honorable mention basketball player Keith Harris is in his first season playing professional basketball with the Schwelmer Baskets of Dusseldorf, Germany. He has a weekly blog on the website www.allballers.com (free registration required).
Click the links below to see photos of Keith in action for Schwelmer.
Keith Harris/Schwelmer Baskets 1
Keith Harris/Schwelmer Baskets 2
Keith Harris/Schwelmer Baskets 3
Keith Harris/Schwelmer Baskets 4
Monday, September 17, 2007
Mike Thomas, an OC student who interns in the athletic marketing and communications office, recently produced a video package about OC’s new baseball team. Click the icon below to watch the video.
Friday, September 14, 2007
CASSIE TYLER, Women’s Soccer
Hello and welcome to an inside look into the women’s soccer team. This week is brought to you from the lovely city of San Diego. We arrived on Wednesday afternoon and will stay for five action-packed days. Our trip thus far has consisted of some fabulous food (the main concern of every college athlete), watching the sunset over the ocean, and today’s activity - Sea World.
Last year, our coach initiated a tradition of taking a big trip every season to get in a week packed with fun, bonding and good soccer. Last year, we traveled to St. Louis. We are currently in the midst of this year’s amazing trip during which we will play Point Loma and Vanguard, two very competitive teams in the NAIA. Unfortunately, our game against Vanguard last night didn’t turn out as desired, but we were able to gain some experience and see where improvements need to be made. Tomorrow, we are scheduled to play Point Loma, a top-five team, where we will again be tested and have the ability to assess our goals for the remainder of the season.
CHUCK WHITE, Baseball
It has been a long time coming, but the time has arrived; baseball is back on campus at Oklahoma Christian. We have recruited 35 players and we have been working out for two full weeks. We had our first team intersquad scrimmage on Thursday. It feels good to be back on the field after a three-year leave of absence from coaching. I have to admit, though, that my legs and voice are not quite back in coaching shape. I find my legs are dead and my voice raspy after a long workout, but I am thankful for the opportunity the Lord has provided me. Many thanks to so many who have played a part in the resurrection of this tradition-rich program.
As for the squad, I do not think you could ask for a finer bunch of young men to be around. They are pleasant, courteous, attentive and willing to give all they have in our workouts. We have a lot to do as you would imagine when starting a program from scratch. You can take nothing for granted or assume that players know what you are thinking or talking about. As a new program, we are like a blank sheet of paper and we have to fill that paper with an outline and philosophy of the program we desire.
Good communication is the key. If we do not communicate well as coaches and players, we only limit what we will be able to accomplish. One of the many challenges is that all of these players come from different programs that have different baseball methods, philosophies and terminologies; we must do a lot of first-time communicating about simple basic issues because we have no returning players or previous point of reference of a season from which to begin.
Our coaching staff consists of myself and three other Christian men that I have recruited to assist me. They are young and enthusiastic and I have really enjoyed the time that we have spent together to this point. I am fortunate to have my youngest son Aaron to work alongside me as he assists with the defense working with the outfielders, instructing our hitters and coaching first base. Aaron graduated from Midwest City and was an outfield starter for two years at Rose State College. He finished up his career playing the outfield at East Central University in Ada.
Our pitching coach is Jared Smith. Jared graduated from Edmond Memorial and was a member of the OC team his freshman year when the program was suspended. Jared went on the play one year at the junior college level, then finished out his collegiate career at Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva. The final member of our staff is Brian Madden. Brian graduated from Putnam City West, then played four years at Southern Nazarene University as a catcher and designated hitter. Brian is in charge of our strength and conditioning program; he also works with our catchers and instructs our hitters. I feel very blessed to have these three fine men on our staff; their youthfulness energizes me and encourages me at the same time.
As for our new baseball facility, we are more than 60 days behind schedule because of the record rainfall that we had in the late spring and early summer. I have had to re-trench some irrigation ditch lines three times due to the frequent heavy rains, but I am happy to report that we have persevered. As of Wednesday, September 12, we have a full field of new sod. I have never been so glad to see green grass in my life; I thought we would never get our irrigation system completed. I am happy to report that we have had a few minor leaks and breaks, but the irrigation is up and fully operational. I am sure that if you have been one of the many who have driven by our new facility, you have wondered, “What are those guys doing out there? It doesn’t appear there’s been any progress.” I assure you myself that I have thought the very same thing.
This fall, as allowed by the NAIA, we will have two scrimmages. Our first will be on September 21; we’ll travel to Enid to play Northern Oklahoma College. The second scrimmage is against Oklahoma Wesleyan in Bartlesville. As much as we have to do to prepare ourselves to compete, I am looking forward to getting back on the field in a live game situation. As an athlete and a coach, that mental and physical high you feel in live competition gets in your blood. After you have been away from it for a period of time, you find yourself craving the thrill of competition once more.
We will be a young squad with only 10 transfers and the rest being freshmen, but I believe we can be competitive. It will be a challenge to compete against the mature quality programs found in the Sooner Athletic Conference, but that is the type of competition that will only make you better. I assure you ... we would not want to be in any other conference; the SAC is a great baseball conference.
My plan is to give weekly updates on the Eagle Eye Blog page (www.oceagles.com/eagleeye) so we hope you will check in regularly to see what is new in our program. As things progress, I will give you some inside perspective on our practices, and scrimmages, and also about the development of our young men both in the classroom and on the field.
We have had so much encouragement and support since announcing the return of baseball and our hope and desire is that you will make plans now to become actively involved in supporting this program with your attendance next spring. You can find our schedule on the athletic website and we will post current stats so you can follow our progress throughout the season. If you want to communicate directly with me, you can email me at chuck.white@oc.edu. I would enjoy hearing from our fans, developing new friends and rekindling old relationships. I will sign off for now, but I hope you will check back in a week to see what’s new. Until then, may the Lord bless you and your family richly.
God’s blessings,
Chuck White
Head Baseball Coach
Oklahoma Christian University
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
This week’s podcast features new cross country coach Wayne Strohman and tennis star Jennifer Le, who recently received the Arthur Ashe Award for Leadership and Sportsmanship at a U.S. Open event in New York City. Click the icon below to listen to the podcast.
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