Sharks reflect on 2014 baseball season

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) --- We stopped by practice on Tuesday afternoon at Buck Hardee Field in order to get a state of the season update on the Wilmington Sharks. After all, this is the final week of the regular season in the Coastal Plain League. Our feature includes an interview with Steven Linkous, the league leader for stolen bases. Linkous is a North Brunswick High graduate. He's a rising junior at UNCW. His summer development with the Sharks should pay off big dividends next spring for UNC Wilmington.

Click the play video icon in order to see WWAY's state of the season report on the Wilmington Sharks.

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WILMINGTON, NC (SHARKS RELEASE) -- Riding a six game losing streak into Tuesday night’s matchup with the Peninsula Pilots, the team in the Coastal Plain League with the most victories, the Wilmington Sharks were able to pick up a 2-1 victory behind stellar pitching performances from the Sharks staff.

The Pilots had amassed 37 wins on the season behind one of the most powerful offenses in the CPL. Entering play, their 290 runs scored were the most in the CPL, and their .269 team batting average is in the top 5. Peninsula was also leading the RBI category with 247, and triples with 18 – but nobody told Joe O’Donnell. At a point in the season where the bullpen has been depleted, O’Donnell had to bridge the gap between the starting pitching and the closing arms. O’Donnell had to fight through taking a hard hit ball off the right ankle in the fourth inning in order to go seven strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits, striking out seven Pilots batters on the night.

Peninsula’s sole run came in the second inning following two hits to leadoff the away half of the frame. Will Shepherd doubled to left center, and was knocked home by Brandon Stephens.

Tyler Best’s leadoff walk in the bottom of the sixth would come around to haunt Peninsula. Best would truck around to third on a Cam McRae single to put Sharks on the corners for Sam Foy. Foy would pick up RBI number 12 on a screamer to left center, easily scoring Best. The ball would sneak under the glove of Peninsula’s left fielder, allowing McRae to carousel around to score from first.

Will Shepley would relieve O’Donnell on the bump in the eighth inning, and pick up two strikes out after walking Shepherd on four pitchers. Shepley now has 29 strikeouts in 21 innings of work – he’s surpassed only by teammate Kyler Stout.

Stout would work in the ninth, as is tradition. Stout took the mound with an impressive 0.40 ERA, amassing 40 strikeouts in just under 24 innings pitched. Stout would get Orrison to fly out before Andres Nelo would single and steal second base. Stout would go down in the count 2-0 to Conner Myers before getting him to ground out. Essentially, Stout was just taking his time to get to strikeout number 41, dealt to Garrett Brooks to close the door on the Pilots comeback.

Wilmington will host Wilson Wednesday night, for the first time out of three in the next five games. The Wilson Tobs sit above the Sharks in the CPL East.

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LELAND, NC (CPGA) -- Jerry Haas captured the 2014 Carolinas PGA Senior Championships presented by Leland Tourism & Development Authority and supported by Mercedes-Benz. The tournament finished play today at Cape Fear National Golf Club in Leland, NC.

Haas, a PGA Professional and Men's Golf Coach at Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, NC, fired a phenomenal final round score of 64 to win the championship by three shots with a total score of 9-under par 71-64=135. What's even more impressive is that Haas carded eight birdies, with three straight to begin his round, and no bogeys. This was Haas' first Carolinas PGA senior tournament, having turned 50 years of age back in September of 2013.

Approximately 55 senior PGA Professionals from North & South Carolina were competing for the title of CPGA Senior Section Champion during the 36-hole competition. Simultaneously, 43 of those Professionals were competing for a spot in the 26th Senior PGA Professional National Championship, Presented by Mercedes-Benz. Seven (7) qualifying spots and three (3) alternate positions were availble this week into the National Championship.

With the title of CPGA Senior Section Champion, Haas grabbed the first of those seven qualifying spots. The other six spots went to the following PGA Professionals: Gus Ulrich, PGA, Mike Lawrence, PGA, Rick Lewallen, PGA, Clem King, PGA, Mitch Adams, PGA, and Chris Tucker, PGA. The three alternate positions went to Joe Kreuser, PGA with the first alternate position, Don Sweeting, PGA with the second alternate position, and Todd Smith, PGA with the third alternate position.

The 26th Senior PGA Professional National Championship, presented by Mercedes-Benz, will be contested at PGA Golf Club (Wanamaker & Ryder Courses) in Port St. Lucie, Florida from November 13-16, 2014. It brings together a field of 264 contestants representing The PGA of America’s 41 nationwide Sections, and features a total purse of $285,000 on both courses over the first two rounds. The top 35 finishers in the National Championship earn a berth in the 76th Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid, which will be conducted in May 2015, at the Pete Dye Course at French Lick in French Lick, Indiana. The top five finishers earn an exemption into the final stage of the 2014 Champions Tour National Finals. Since its debut, many participants in the Senior PGA Professional National Championship have used their success in the event as a springboard to a Champions Tour career.

The Carolinas PGA Senior Championships also have three divisions open to amateur golfers, with some of the area's top amateurs vying for a crown of their own. With a score of 74-69=143, amateur Keith Waters of Raleigh, NC won the Champions Division (amateurs only, age 50+ from approx. 6,500 yards). The Super Seniors Division (amateurs or professionals, age 63+ from approx. 5,900 yards) was won by reigning CPGA Super Senior Associate Player of the Year Larry Boswell out of Jamestown, NC with a four-under par total of 72-68=140. In the Legends Division (amateurs or professionals, age 70+ from approx. 5,600 yards), there was a tie between amateurs John Green of Wallace, NC and Brodie Baker of Advance, NC. A USGA-recommended scorecard playoff method was used to break the tie, giving Brodie Baker the Legends Division Championship with scores of 73-71=144. Each of these three divisions are divided up into respective age groups. Amateurs are not able to qualify for the National Championship.

Most of the amateurs in the field belong to the CPGA Senior Associate Program, which gives amateurs a chance to join the Carolinas PGA and compete against other amateurs as well as senior PGA Professionals. The program’s tournament schedule features many of the top golf courses in the Carolinas. Most of the tournaments are two-day, 36-hole stroke play competitions with players of all skill levels participating. There are no handicap requirements to enter the program.

The CPGA Senior Championships are presented by Leland Tourism & Development Authority, and supported by Mercedes-Benz and the PGA Tour.

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Results for contest PGA Professionals:
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1 Jerry Haas Winston Salem, NC 71-64--135 -9 $1,560.00
2 Gus Ulrich Whispering Pines, NC 70-68--138 -6 $1,150.00
3 Mike Lawrence Anderson, SC 72-68--140 -4 $900.00
T4 Rick Lewallen Kannapolis, NC 70-71--141 -3 $700.00
T4 Clem King Columbia, SC 70-71--141 -3 $700.00
T6 Mitch Adams Troy, NC 71-72--143 -1 $580.00
T6 Chris Tucker Fort Mill, SC 70-73--143 -1 $580.00
T8 Larry George Wallace, NC 72-72--144 E $452.50
T8 Don Sweeting Norwood, NC 71-73--144 E $452.50
T8 Joe Kreuser Morehead City, NC 69-75--144 E $452.50
T8 Todd Smith Whitsett, NC 70-74--144 E $452.50
T12 Brian Crum Bluffton, SC 75-70--145 +1 $332.50
T12 Walter Hall Advance, NC 74-71--145 +1 $332.50
T12 Rick Morton Jacksonville, NC 74-71--145 +1 $332.50
T12 Bryan Sullivan Kitty Hawk, NC 71-74--145 +1 $332.50
T16 George Bryan Chapin, SC 75-71--146 +2 $290.00
T16 Mark Ernst Seneca, SC 74-72--146 +2 $290.00
T16 Ed Sabo Pinehurst, NC 69-77--146 +2 $290.00
T19 Robert Wilson Jr. Fayetteville, NC 75-72--147 +3 $135.00
T19 Robert Linville Charlotte, NC 72-75--147 +3 $135.00
21 Jim Fellner Little River, SC 72-76--148 +4
T22 Jimmy Hamilton Knightdale, NC 75-74--149 +5
T22 Reid Schronce Wilmington, NC 76-73--149 +5
T22 Jonathan York Sophia, NC 72-77--149 +5