An Update From AD Jon Gilbert

Pirate Nation:

As the story goes, two gentleman named Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilver wrote the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." Norworth, an aspiring songwriter, got the thought for the song as he was riding a subway in 1908 and saw a sign that said, "Baseball Today – polo grounds." The song inspired him to write the lyrics for the song that was first sung at a high school baseball game in 1934, and later that year, it appeared during the World Series.

The song would later receive accolades as one of the 365 top "Songs of the Century" by the National Endowment of the Arts. Since that time, millions and millions of fans have sung the lyrics, and it might be considered the anthem for baseball in the United States. In turn, it has earned its own special place, being traditionally sung during the middle of the seventh inning – the seventh inning stretch.

In 2022, I've had the opportunity to sing that song with Les Garner more than 30 times at our Pirate baseball games at Clark-LeClair Stadium.

No one does traditions like East Carolina, yes, East Carolina in Greenville, N.C.

Let's talk about some of our traditions.

Pulling into Mike Aman Family Lot off Charles Boulevard, it's impossible not to notice the droves of people outside the left field fence.

The Jungle is synonymous with ECU Baseball and the action starts well before the first pitch and sometimes last well after the final out. The finest outdoor chefs in the country reside in the Jungle, cooking and sharing with all of Pirate Nation. You enter the Jungle and the left field megaphones are actively encouraging opposing team outfielders and saluting the Pirates for all nine innings or more.

We have our Safety Dance performed in the fifth inning and my personal favorite, a loud Purple-Gold chant when the Pirates are rolling that goes from the stands to the Jungle. In 2022, we have added the Narco song at the start of the ninth inning to make sure the Pirate faithful are ready to stand and cheer.

There's nothing that beats a day at the park with fellow Pirates. It's truly a family that is passionate about the Pirates and baseball.

We are living in an era of rarefied air with the program head coach Cliff Godwin has built. We will host our fourth-straight NCAA Regional. This season has been an unbelievable ride and it continues Friday at 1 p.m. against Coppin State.

As we head into the weekend, l would like to share a few names of our baseball staff with you that might not get the attention but play a major role.

Assistant coaches - Jeff Palumbo, Austin Knight, Colby Bortles
Staff members – Blake Hardegree, Heath Blackmon, Zac Womack, Dennis Wilson, Rebecca Wade, Malcolm Gray, Joey Perry, J.J. McLamb, Allen Schley, Alex Marlowe
Managers – Daniel Wilkerson, Brady Austin, Cayman Crisp, Easton Dally and William Helms

I thank all the individuals for their hard work and sacrifice for ECU Baseball and our athletics department.

Let's just look at a few numbers from the 2022 season:

First and foremost – our STUDENT-Athletes are winning in the classroom, as they have carried a 3.47 G.P.A. for the year.
The Pirates earned a No. 8 National Seed in this year's NCAA Baseball Championships, the second time (2001) in school history the Pirates received a top eight national seed.
The Pirates are Regular Season and AAC Tournament Champions, the first time this has ever happened in the history of the American Athletic Conference.
ECU will make its 32nd postseason appearance and sixth in the last seven years. The Pirates have been the top seed in a regional nine times including four consecutive seasons.

Let's not forget the accolades that have come with the success in 2022:

Cliff Godwin, who led the Pirates to their third consecutive AAC regular season title with a 20-4 record, was named the AAC Coach-of-the-Year for the fourth time in his career.
10 players earned first or second-team conference honors.Yes, that is not a misprint. 10 Pirates!
Carter Spivey was named The American's Pitcher-of-the-Year after leading the league in ERA (2.31). It marks the third consecutive year a Pirate won the conference's Pitcher-of-the-Year award. Sophomore Zach Agnos (SS), junior Ryder Giles (Utility) and junior Lane Hoover (OF) earned first-team All-AAC honors.
Six additional Pirates in Cam Clonch (DH), Alec Makarewicz (3B), C.J. Mayhue (P), Garrett Saylor (P), Jacob Starling (2B) and Bryson Worrell (OF) garnered second-team honors.
The Pirates have been represented with 26 different first-team selections since joining The American in 2015.

The Pirates will open play at 1 p.m. on Friday against Coppin State. Tickets are currently on sale via ECUPirates.com through the ECU Athletics Ticket Office for Pirate Club members and season-ticket holders only. Beginning at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, sales will be open for the general public.

Hope to see you there! I'll be singing the song – with you!

Take me out to the ballgame! Take me to THE JUNGLE!

Sommer Knight Continues To Write Legacy
Senior Sommer Knight continues to establish herself as one of the best to ever compete for the Pirates' track and field team. Sommer qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a season-best 4.31 meters in the pole vault last week at the NCAA Regionals in Bloomington, Ind. Her performance tied her for the regional championship and earned her a spot at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon from June 8-11.

Sommer has been an amazing representative of ECU Athletics on and off the track. She earned her bachelor's degree and nursing certificate last month while also interning with the Pirate Club. Sommer continues to write her legacy for the Pirates and let's make sure we all get behind her as she takes the national stage in two weeks.

Thank you for your continued support.

See you at Clark-LeClair this weekend!

GO PIRATES –

JON

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