Welcome to the 2019 Potomac State Baseball player diary homepage. This season, Sophomores Andrew Berry (Morgantown High School / Morgantown, WV), and Joel Spishock (Carmichaels High School / Carmichaels, PA) will take the lead on the Potomac State Baseball Player Diary. Note: Berry’s entry will be in BOLD font.
Welcome back dedicated Catamount fans to another addition to the Potomac State Baseball Player diary. If you’re reading this article right now, then congratulations on surviving last past weeks polar vortex. Here in Keyser, the weather wasn’t near as cold as it was in Chicago and places like that, but we definitely got our money’s worth of ice-cold temperatures and snow.
This was week, it was pretty much like we had our own mini spring break. All day this past Tuesday, all everyone was talking about was how cold it was supposed to get the next day, reaching way into the negatives with the wind-chill. I didn’t really believe it at the time, but I was proven wrong when I stepped outside of the dorms Tuesday night to go hit at our indoor hitting facility. When I got outside, I instantly froze and bolted to by car to get out of the cold. I may not be exact, but I believe at that time it was about negative 109 with the wind-chill, which led to no surprise when I got an email saying classes the next day were cancelled. I’m sure, a college student would say that having a day off from class would be a blessing, but we really hit the lottery. Because of the cold, we had Thursday off too! On Thursday, the snowfall began, and it dumped probably closed to 7 inches of snow through Thursday night and Friday morning. This led to another day of no classes! Having no class for three days was a great way to get caught up on sleep and homework. However, it does hurt from a baseball sense because that also meant we had to take a couple of days off for practice. But on the brightside, the off days gave all of us a chance to rest our bodies, which is sometimes needed after countless hours of practice.
To break our cabin fever from being cooped up in our dorms, my fellow diary writer, Andrew Berry, and I decided to make use of the heavy snowfall on Friday. We decided to call a couple of teammates together (Brandon Schamp, Colton Webb, Drew Leech, and Dylan Dunkley), and go over to the field for some sledding. If you have ever seen Golden Park, you know of the shale hill in right field and the gigantic hill to the right of it. This hill is lethal when it comes to Coach Little’s conditioning drills, but it was perfect to do some sledding on. But, our problem was that we didn’t have any sleds, so Berry and I headed to the local Doller General (one of the only stores open), to see what we could find. We couldn’t find any sleds, so we got some boxes, trash bags, and duct tape. After that, all it took was some redneck ingenuity, and BOOM … sleds. When you’re in Keyser where there isn’t much to do, sometimes you have to make your own fun, and sledding I’d say was a huge success and great way to spend our off day past Friday.
Once Friday was over, the weather decided to do a quick turn around and start warming up again. On Saturday it was in the 50’s, which was great because a lot of the snow melted. But just like that, we were back to work in the Lough Gym, putting in the work. This weekend, the pitchers started to increase their throwing again, throwing 3 innings each during our live at-bats in the gym. They are slowly working their arms up more and more for our upcoming games. Along with this, hitters got work more on seeing live pitching out of a pitcher’s hand.
Sunday morning at 10 AM, Coach Little send out a text that we’ve been waiting for all month. Sunday’s practice was going to be outside on the turf of Stayman Field, our soccer and lacrosse field. It was a beautiful sunny day, in the 60’s, and it really felt like spring. Coach Little stressed that we really needed to take advantage of that practice because with how unpredictable the weather is, it could be the last time we were outside until our first game on February 16th. All practice was spend doing defensive drills. We took a whole round of pregame infield- outfield, so that infielders could get used to fielding groundballs that aren’t off the gym floor, and outfielders can work their arms and be able to throw further than 100 ft. Also, we worked on many more defensive aspects and took more groundballs to make use of the nice day outside. I can’t say how nice it was to be outside the gym, it was such a relief, and I would say we made use of the nice day and had a very well-rounded and productive practice. After a majority of the defensive work was done, both outfielders and infielders went to hit in the rec center, and pitchers threw their bullpens on the turf, but not to live hitters this time. With weather that nice, I can only keep my fingers crossed that it will continue, but with how the weather is, you never really know.
On Monday, we had our regularly scheduled off day. But it didn’t really feel like it at all. Coach Little called the team over to the field to do some field work. He told us to wear old clothes and I’m glad that I did after what we went through. The goal to accomplish was to take our tarp off our infield dirt so it can start to air out. Making the job difficult was the fact that the field was a huge “quagmire”, as Coach said. The field was like walking on a wet marsh. It was extremely soft and if you stood still, you practically sank. But in the end, we could take the tarp off and roll it up to be put away. Once we took the tarp off the field looked like a pond with all the water on it. And if get cold again and freezes, you guys might be seeing an ice-skating video in next weeks diary. After we were all done, most of our clothes and shoes were soaked, but at least we got the job done
Today’s practice (Tuesday) we’re planning to go outside again on the turf to work on some more defensive aspects and try to prepare more for our first game which is now within two weeks!
When students live off-campus, they’re on their own to make food, if they don’t have a meal plan with the dining hall. Now, most student probably make ramen noodles or some other easy microwaveable food, but one of our players, sophomore Tobias Holmelund, takes food preparation to a whole new level. He’s known by the team for always making some crazy fancy meal from scratch at his off-campus apartment. So, for this week’s video, I decided to showcase Tobias’s cooking skill, and to try to show what dining is like as an off-campus student. Check out my “Cooking with Tobias” video below.
Thank you for tuning into this week’s player diary! Please join in next week for updates on the team, as well as some exclusive team videos. Also, for more coverage follow the teams twitter (@PotomacStateBB) and Instagram (@potomacstatebaseball). If you have any questions or suggestions on videos, please email me at jts0033@mix.wvu.edu.
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Welcome back Catamount faithful to this week’s edition of the Potomac State Baseball Player Diary. As promised, I constructed a video covering our Volt app and went through a typical workout. Check it out:
This past week, we were blessed with three days in a row of cancellation from our classes due to the polar vortex that came through and hit Keyser. A few of the players and I decided to spend some of our free time sledding on the hills by Golden Park. Here is our video of a snow day spent sledding:
For this week’s edition, I decided to sit down and interview our Team Manager and Student Coach, Dontae Johnson (Evanston, IL).
Dontae Johson, Team Manger and Student Coach
What made you decide to attend Potomac State College?
Dontae: Honestly, I wanted to attend West Virginia University out of high school. I had planned to attempt to become a student coach for the basketball team. Due to certain circumstances, that option fell through, so I attended Potomac State wishing to go to WVU after a year or two and attempt to become a coach again. I made multiple visits to Morgantown and Keyser and fell in love with the scenery. I wanted to see what this part of America was all about. Growing up in the city of Chicago, I had no rural experience, no mountains, and no adventuring. I thought this would be a great experience and wanted to see West Virginia in its truest form.
What interested you in being a part of the Potomac State Baseball team?
Dontae: When I first came to school, I lived across from a couple of players. We connected instantly. At first, they told me to try out, but I informed them that my playing days are over. Then, they asked me to be a manager for the team. Knowing I had nothing going on with my time but class, I thought it would be a great fit. After a little over one semester, I consider it one of the best decisions I have ever made. I believe that after my time here, I will stay in touch with many players and even be a part of their weddings. Along with that, many of them will be invited to mine.
What is your major and what do you want to do with your career?
Dontae: Right now, I am majoring in Business Administration, and I want to minor in political science. I would like to be in public service or become a member of a front office for a sports franchise. Those occupations are of much interest to me.
What do you like most about being a manager/coach, and do you want to pursue something like this in the future?
Dontae: I am a BIG sports guy. I love to help and serve people while also helping them get better. Nothing makes me happier than seeing friends that I helped in high school and now college move on to bigger and better things. I like to believe that I was an influence in their achievements. What better way is there to help people than help them achieve their goals. I also love to build relationships with them. I find lots of joy and comfort with that. I like to believe that is one of my strong suits. Being a voice inside and outside from a coach is very beneficial in my mind. Being a peer helps give them a view from a different perspective than a regular coach. My favorite part about it all is the impact I leave on people’s lives. In the future, I would love to be a coach. My dream job would be to coach at Michigan or my high school alma mater. Those are two things I would love to do some day. Being the president of the U.S.A. also interests me.
What has been your favorite experience with the team so far?
Dontae: My favorite part so far would have to be the debates we have at dinner. I love hanging out with the boys. Nothing is better than coming together to have a meal as a team, but also sharing our views and thoughts. I love getting to know each other’s moral, ideals, and perspectives on life.
How does being friends with a majority of the players help you be a better manager/coach?
Dontae: It makes life a lot easier. Knowing that I have their respect and trust, I can help them and share words of wisdom. I can also give advice to help the players see things from a different perspective. For instance, if one of the coaches say something and a player doesn’t agree or thinks differently, I can step in and show them both sides of the situation. This will help them realize where the coach is coming from. I can play the role as a mediator at sometimes to help the players realize why coaches do things at certain times.
Now for the rapid-fire segment:
What is the hardest part about going to school so far from home (Chicago, IL)?
I would say the hardest part is not being able to see my girlfriend and not having the support system of my family every day. Having to motivate myself is a new challenge but I enjoy it.
What is your favorite food?
Oysters and seafood.
Funniest player on the team?
Cole Miller
Who is the best dressed?
Colton Webb. His style is very interesting.
Who is the songbird of the squad?
Justin “Chops” Stone
If you could be anyone for a day who would it be?
Coach K of Duke Basketball
Favorite vacation spot?
Mercer Island
Dream Wife?
Alicia Keys
Instagram, Snapchat, or Twitter?
Snapchat
Favorite professional sport and sports team?
NBA and the Boston Celtics
If you had to get stuck on an elevator with a member of the team, who would you pick?
Austin Chavis. We would find a way to have a good time.
If you could be roommates with any player who would it be?
Dale Houser
Who is the brain of the team?
Brett Whiteman
What are you the most excited about for the upcoming season?
Gameday at Golden Park.
That’s all for this week’s edition. If you have anything you would like to see in the diaries or learn more about, you can contact me thru email (akb0019@mix.wvu.edu) or twitter (@andrewberry_15). I would also encourage you to follow the team on social media. Please subscribe to our YouTube account @PotomacStateBaseball to be notified when Joel or I upload a video. Thank you for reading, and until next week, Go Catamounts!