Above: Senior outfielder Kenny Bellavance is the most senior member of the squad and will be relied upon at the plate where he boasts a .329 career batting average in 157 career games at North Georgia.
putouts and 161 assists. As a redshirt freshman, Spivey was handed the keys to the defense last year as the starting catcher in 51 games. With that first year under his belt, Spivey will look to lead the 2013 defense and provide the Saints with a solid backstop. Behind those two, the next most experienced player is Travis Naraine who served mostly as the designated hitter in 41 games a season ago with a batting average of .279. The other three positions will surely be an open competition as the beginning of the season draws near. Outfield In the outfield, North Georgia will have eight players competing for the three positions, but two of those should already be locked up
by returners Kenny Bellavance and Andrew Gordon who have played 202 combined collegiate games. Bellavance is the most senior member of the squad as he is the only player to have three years at North Georgia under his belt. Last season, he played mostly in center field where he recorded 111 putouts and he was also one of North Georgia’s leaders at the plate as he batted .333 in 200 at-bats. Cantrell and staff will continue to look to the Stone Mountain, Ga. native this season for that same leadership. As a redshirt freshman last year, Gordon started 45 games in right field for the Saints where he recorded 107 putouts and seven assists. At the plate, he batted .265 and is second amongst the returners with 26 runs batted in. Pitchers On the mound, North Georgia will return a core group of five that, along with three junior transfers, will lead the pitching corps in 2013. Returning starters Jacob Beauchamp and Taylor Keinat saw the most significant innings of work a season ago. Beauchamp returns with the best earned run average of the group with a 3.96 in 72.2 innings of work. Last season, he went 5-2 with one save and fanned 45 batters while Keinat went 4-5 with two saves in 68.2 innings, including one complete game. As for relievers, sophomores Phillip Taylor, Chip Fleming and Nick Bader will provide the backup. Taylor struck out 22 batters a season ago and recorded one save in 36.1 innings. Cantrell also brought in juniors Christian Turnipseed, Clint Spratlin and Trace McDaniel to help add experience to his pitching staff. McDaniel and Spratlin played
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together at Chattahoochee Valley Community College the past two years while Turnipseed comes over from Georgia Perimeter College. “We are looking for competitors,” Cantrell said of his entire team. “We are looking for guys that will, day and day out, give us a chance to win and leave it all out on the field.” The young squad will need to bring its “A Game” each and every week in 2013 as the Saints will embark on a grueling 50-game schedule that includes six ranked opponents according to the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper preseason poll. The Saints start things off against No. 28 Lynn University in the Valdosta State Tournament on Friday, Feb. 1 and will continue on with a full slate of Peach Belt Conference games along with a tough out of conference slate.
Above: Sophomore left handed pitcher Jacob Beauchamp was one of the most consistent members of the Saints’ pitching staff in 2012 as a true freshman. Finished the year with a 3.96 ERA in 72.2 innings of work.
NORTH GEORGIA BASEBALL