Squads that lose nine of their first 10 games and suffer a seven-game losing skid in conference generally don’t advance to postseason play.
But TC also put together winning streaks of nine and eight games and won five of its last six in conference, and it qualified for the NJCAA Region V Tournament for the seventh consecutive season - a feat matched only by Grayson County in the Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference.
So here the Leopards are, still alive despite their topsy-turvy season and ready to make a run at their second trip to the Junior College World Series in three years.
“Our season’s been up and down, and there’s not been a lot of looking far ahead,” said Temple coach Craig McMurtry, whose Leopards (31-23) will play Clarendon (35-14) at 5 p.m. today in the first round of the eight-team, double-elimination Region V Tournament at Lubbock Christian. “Every series was important, even our last series against Vernon.
“You have to give our guys credit,” he added. “This really isn’t our best team and we haven’t been as good on the mound as we could be. But we still finished second in conference, so there are a lot of positives. Our big focus is on playing better baseball. We’ve been way too inconsistent.”
Sophomore left-hander Daniel Meadows, today’s starting pitcher for NTJCAC runner-up Temple, believes that all the things the Leopards have endured this season have prepared them for their latest regional test.
“We’re definitely right where we want to be,” said Meadows, a Texas Tech signee who has a 5-3 record and a 4.98 earned-run average. “We’re in the same position (seeded second out of the NTJCAC) as we were last year. We’ve played good ball lately and I think our pitching is getting better.”
Sophomore second baseman Nick Anders - batting .431 with a team-best seven home runs and 51 runs batted in - says the regional offers TC something of a fresh start.
“We’ve been up and down all year, but we made it back to regionals and now it all starts over at 0-0,” said Anders, a Texas A&M commitment. “There’s been a lot of pressure. Now we want to go out there and have fun and strive to do well."
New Mexico - which won the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and is ranked seventh in NJCAA Division I - has captured two of the last three Region V championships, plus the national title in 2005.
But no team has as many regional tournament wins in the last three years as Temple, which has 10. The Leopards recorded three victories in 2005 but lost twice to No. 1 New Mexico for a runner-up finish, won four straight games in 2006 for their first World Series berth, and posted three wins last year in finishing third.
Although McMurtry identifies New Mexico (39-9), WJCAC runner-up and fifth-ranked Howard (44-8) and NTJCAC champion Grayson (39-15) as the favorites, he knows that the Leopards possess enough experience and confidence to have a shot to win the title and the World Series berth.
“Going into the regional, you know it’s tough and there’s no slouches,” said McMurtry, whose program has won at least one regional game five straight years since getting swept in 2002 in its first trip. “It helps being there before.
“You can’t let the regional change your game. That’s the biggest thing - the game stays the same. We have to play our game, not think too much about the other team.”
Meadows has started the opening game of Temple’s four-game conference series, and he’ll get the ball today as the Leopards aim to win their Region V opener for the sixth straight season.
Because Meadows usually doesn’t go deeper than six innings, top reliever Hunter Scott (7-2, 4.04 ERA, four saves) likely will see action against WJCAC No. 3 seed Clarendon, which TC ousted last year in Lubbock.
Win or lose today, the Leopards’ starter Monday will be sophomore righty Tristan Gaines, a former Temple Wildcat who’s 7-3 with a 3.74 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 74 2/3 innings.
“Tristan’s been inconsistent as far as his command, but he probably has the best stuff and the highest ceiling of anyone on our staff,” McMurtry said. “He’s got a lot of upside. He’s capable of throwing a three- or four-hit shutout with seven or eight strikeouts, but in some games he couldn’t get out of the third or fourth inning.”
Sophomore righty Courtney Behrend (5-1) likely would be the starter if TC advances to a third game, with freshman righty and Holland product Paul Spinn (3-2) also available to start or relieve.
McMurtry’s ideal scenario is for Meadows and Gaines to pitch their best and get the Leopards off to a 2-0 start, which is crucial for a staff with a 5.06 ERA and lacking quality depth.
“We need to find a way for Daniel and Tristan to win,” said McMurtry, whose club will play New Mexico or NTJCAC No. 4 seed Weatherford (35-17) on Monday. “That’s the good thing about baseball - if you have two pitchers come out and throw well, it puts you in a good position.”
While veteran players such as Meadows, Gaines and Anders entered this year with regional experience, freshman shortstop Mike Lowery had to learn about TC’s expectations from them - and McMurtry.
“Yeah, he talked about it a little bit,” joked Lowery, a .432 hitter who played basketball but not baseball at Pearland before catching McMurtry’s attention at a TC tryout camp last May. “The goal is to win the regional tournament and get to Grand Junction (Colo.) and play in the World Series.
“The guys have said it’s such a different atmosphere and that it’s a lot of fun. We feel pretty good about it.”
McMurtry says he and assistant coach Frank Kellner tell their players early and often about the importance of reaching the regional and trying to win it.
“We talked about it a lot this spring - ‘We’ve been there six years in a row. Let’s keep it going and represent our school the way it should be. But it’s up to you guys,’” McMurtry said. “Our ultimate goal is to win the national championship, and they understand that."
gwille@temple-telegram.com
