‘Linking up’ the Wins:UNCG’s Caleb Webster(Randleman HS) has been “smokin’ hot”(Isaiah Saint-Hilaire speaking on the Spartans)

‘Linking up’ the Wins
UNCG Spartans’ Baseball
Courtesy of Isaiah Saint-Hilaire
Staff Writer for The Carolinian, the UNCG student Newspaper

Head coach of the UNCG baseball team, Link Jarrett, was very pleased with Sunday’s outcome for the baseball team.
(from Sunday April 9)……

The UNCG team won the series between the Furman Paladins as they moved on to improve their record of 21-10 on the season overall with a 7-2 Southern Conference record. As for the final game in the series on Sunday, UNCG put up nine runs, allowing only three runs. There were three triples hit from freshman third baseman Caleb Webster(Randleman High School), Senior first baseman Michael Goss and Senior Right Fielder Ryne Sigmon. Hitting those triples were a huge boost for the UNCG Spartans and Coach Jarrett was very pleased by his squad that afternoon.

Coach Jarrett mentioned the win as being “really good” all weekend and specifically on Sunday afternoon. Coach Jarrett went onto speak about his closer Andrew Wantz in being “very proficient in closing the game out for us.” Coach Jarrett also spoke about the team scoring runs.

“When you’re able to hit doubles and triples such as what we did today, it allows you to score in bunches.”

Scoring in bunches is exactly what the Spartans successfully did as they scored four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, as well as another four runs in the bottom of the sixth. Coach Jarrett was pleased to see his group compete at such a high level of play. He spoke about Furman being a very good team as they have been in plenty of games this season such as the game they played against UNCG on Saturday April 8. Coach Jarrett spoke highly of his team and was very proud of the young men who swept a series against a team for the first time since April 24 of the 2016 season.

Caleb Webster is a freshman who has helped the UNCG baseball club this season being one of those players that had a triple and helped UNCG extend their lead. Coach Jarrett had nothing but positive things to say about Webster when asked about his opinion on the young star.

“He has really good work ethics, he shows up every day ready to put in work and it shows throughout the ballgame”, Coach Jarrett said.

He is correct as Caleb Webster won SoCon player of the month with his sensational play along the infield as well as batting. Webster has been getting hot here now heading towards the bottom half of the season and it is at the right time, as he has shown day in and day out that he is prepared for whatever team UNCG faces. Coach Jarrett also went onto say,

“Every time you look at that batting cage, you’ll see Caleb there, he made the transition from shortstop to third basemen and has really improved his game as a player as the season has carried on.”

Webster, initially playing shortstop in high school, made the transition due to great play by UNCG’s Trip Shelton(West Forsyth HS) who was responsible for a solo home run in Sunday’s 9-3 win over the Furman Paladins. The good work ethic that Webster has had made him the solid player that coach Jarrett searches for each year in freshmen. Caleb Webster continues to impress his teammates as well as his coaches and it has shown here in this 2017 baseball season.

Coach Jarrett was excited to talk about the three-game series they had clinched against Furman on Sunday afternoon.

“It doesn’t get better than that, as we played our hearts out and it showed giving us this series win.”

The dedication and the determination showed with all players as Michael Goss, Ryne Sigmon and Caleb Webster all started the scoring for UNCG jumping out to a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth. UNCG never looked backed as they didn’t trail after that initial lead they had over the Paladins. The series clinch helps UNCG improve to a 21-10 record now overall for the season, as they will be looking to improve and establish more young leaders such as Caleb Webster during the season.

The wins have been falling into place for UNCG who now have a five game winning streak thanks in great part to the series sweep against Furman. This win helps UNCG stay in that second place spot and inch closer to Mercer as the number one team in the Southern Conference standings. It also helps them find their identity as a team with establishing young leaders such as Caleb Webster and Austin Embler who both are still underclassmen with both only being in college for a year or less now. With series wins like these, it doesn’t matter what ranking a team has, series wins can take a lot out of a team.

“We like how everybody put to win and it showed as we closed out the series” Jarrett said. It did show, as the Spartans can look ahead to what’s coming with a group of young men who are ready and willing to win.