Baseball Announces Ten Signees To 2007 Class
November 22, 2005 | Baseball
Nov. 22, 2005
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- Six high school seniors and four junior college players have signed early national letters-of-intent to play baseball at East Carolina in 2007, head baseball coach Billy Godwin announced today.
Michael Anderson, Bobby Fowler, Devin Harris, Joe O'Malley, Kyle Roller and Zach Woods are the six high school players that have signed to play baseball at ECU in 2007. The junior college transfers include Trent Ashcraft, Bailey Daniels, Corey Kemp and Mark Letchworth.
"We (coaching staff) believe this recruiting class is an outstanding match to our returning players," said Godwin. "It gives us a great blend of junior college and high school talent. Each of these players has the ability to step in and compete at the highest level and help us reach our goal of reaching the College World Series in Omaha."
Anderson, a right-handed pitcher, won 14 games in three years at Walter Panas HS. He boasts a 1.75 career ERA and has accumulated 223 strikeouts in 140 innings of work. He was named League MVP and a first-team All-Star by the New York Journal News and the North County News. After his junior season, he was invited to the 2005 East Coast Professional Showcase in Wilmington, N.C. Anderson was named Top Prospect by Perfect Game at the 2005 Northeast Top Prospect Showcase.
Ashcraft, a left-handed hitting outfielder, hit .340 with two homeruns, 35 runs scored and swiped 15 stolen bases in 24 games for Young Harris as a freshman before missing the rest of the season with an injury. As a senior at Brentwood HS, he hit .393 and was 15-for-15 in stolen base attempts. Ashcraft was named all-district, all-county, and all Mid-State at the conclusion of his senior campaign and was selected in the 42 round by the Pittsburgh Pirates during the 2004 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.
Daniels, a right-handed pitcher, posted a 6-3 record with four saves at Louisburg College. During his freshman campaign he struck out 64 batters, walked 11, allowed 17 earned runs with a 2.61 ERA in 59 innings pitched. As a senior at Manteo HS, Bailey was 9-0 on the mound with 115 strikeouts in 70 innings with a 1.00 ERA and was named the 2004 Northeastern Coastal Conference Player-of-the-Year. During the 2004 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft he was selected in the 47th round by the Baltimore Orioles.
Fowler, an athletic catcher, batted .452 with two homeruns, 24 RBI and 22 runs scores as a junior. He stole a team-best 16 bases, led Middle Creek HS in batting, RBI and runs scored and was named the teams "best hitter" in 2005. As a junior was nominated for the Wendy's High School Heisman Award. Rated as the 35th best prospect and 22nd best positional player by Impact Baseball, Fowler earned Tri-Seven 4-A All-Conference and Academic All-Conference honors as a sophomore and junior.
Harris, a three-sport athlete at Ashbrook HS, batted .340 with three homeruns and eight stolen bases while playing the outfield. As a sophomore, the two-time Big South All-Conference performer belted seven homeruns, hit .410 with 28 RBI. Harris, who was a preseason North Carolina All-State selection as a wide receiver, was selected to the Charlotte Observer and Gaston Gazette all-star teams in football, basketball and baseball. He is rated the 19th best prospect and the 13th best positional player in North Carolina by Impact Baseball.
Kemp, an offensive catcher, batted .286 with six homeruns, 25 RBI and had a .421 on base percentage as a freshman at Tennessee Tech University, before transferring to Young Harris College for the 2005-06 year. At Centennial HS, he smacked nine homeruns, drove in 39 runs while hitting at a .447 clip as a senior. Kemp was named Region Catcher-of-the-Year, County Offensive Player-of-the-Year and County Player-of-the-Year after his senior campaign. He was a 45th round pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2004 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.
Letchworth, a native of Greenville, N.C., batted .295, with 13 homeruns, 10 doubles, 27 runs, while swiping 10 bases as a freshman at Louisburg College. As a senior at Rose High School, he batted .406 with 10 homeruns and 48 RBI on his way to being named Daily Reflector Player-of-the-Year. The all-state and all-region 4A outfielder was drafted in the 47th round by the San Diego Padres in the 2005 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.
O'Malley, a right-handed pitcher from Moorestown HS, went undefeated (8-0) on the mound for the Tri-State Arsenal during the summer. During the 2005 AAU National Championships in Louisville, Ky., he was credited with the win and was named to the AAU National All-Tournament Team. O'Malley's garnered 2005 Carpenter Cup High School all-star honors and New Jersey "Super 17" all-star teams honors after hitting .435. He was also selected to participate in the Perfect Game USA/ Aflac Classic. As a junior he was named Conference Player-of-the-Year and led Moorestown HS in batting since his freshman season. In 2005, O'Malley was named one of the top-300 players in the country by Baseball America.
Roller, a left-handed power hitter, collected a team-high .463 average with three home runs and 14 doubles as a junior. The Richmond Senior HS first baseman also belted six homeruns during his sophomore campaign. He was named to the Mid-Southeastern All-Conference team as a sophomore and junior and was rated as the ninth-best prospect and sixth-best positional player in North Carolina by Impact Baseball.
Woods, a right-handed pitcher from Princess Anne HS, picked up wins in the regional, State semi-final and State Championship games during the 2005 Virginia 3-A state playoffs. He posted a 9-2 record with an ERA of 1.30 on his way to earning first-team All-Virginia Beach honors and second-team all-region honors. At the plate, Woods smashed six homeruns and batted .290. He was rated one of the best 400 high school players in the country by Baseball America.
2006 Signing Class
Pos - Name - Hometown (Previous School)
RHP - Michael Anderson - Cortland Manor, NY (Walter Panas HS)
OF - Trent Ashcraft - Brentwood, Tenn. (Young Harris College)
RHP - Bailey Daniels - Wanchese, N.C. (Louisburg College)
C/ INF - Bobby Fowler - Holly Springs, NC (Middle Creek HS)
OF - Devin Harris - Gastonia, NC (Ashbrook HS)
C/ INF - Corey Kemp - Franklin, Tenn. (Young Harris College)
OF - Mark Letchworth - Greenville, NC (Louisburg College)
RHP - Joe O'Malley - Moorestown. N.J. (Moorestown HS)
1B - Kyle Roller - Rockingham, NC (Richmond Senior HS)
RHP - Zach Woods - Virginia Beach, Va. (Princess Anne HS)
