VALDOSTA —
For the second time in less than a week, a member of this year’s Lowndes varsity baseball team signed a letter of intent to play college baseball.
This week, it was designated hitter and infielder Seth Evans. The big-hitting Viking signed with Wallace Community College in Dothan, Ala.
“I just felt like it was a good fit for me,” Evans said. “They needed a third baseman, and third base is my primary position.”
A high-caliber player, Evans was slowed during his senior season with an arm injury when fluid was found near his throwing elbow. The injury prohibited him from playing third base. The lack of defensive play hurt his chances of earning a Division I or a Division II scholarship, said head coach Danny Redshaw.
“It hurt him,” Redshaw said. “He probably didn’t get the looks he was going to get because he DH’d a lot of the year with the arm problems. It certainly didn’t help.”
Regardless of the injury, Evans powered his way onto the All-Region 1-AAAAA first team in 2012 after hitting .405 with a team-high 20 runs batted in and 23 runs scored. He finished the season with two home runs and a team-leading 10 doubles.
“It was tough, but at least I could hit,” Evans said. “I’m aggressive (at the plate).”
With the opportunity to play at Wallace, Evans will once again get the opportunity to display his baseball talents to four-year universities. Wallace is one of the top junior college schools in the Southeast.
“That is a major reason to go there,” said Evans, who admitted his ultimate goal is to play for Florida State. “They are a feeder to Troy, Auburn, they’ve had some guys go to Florida State.”
In order to transfer to a Division I program, Evans will need to complete 60 credit hours by the end of his second year. NCAA rules prohibit junior college players from transferring to a Division I program if they don’t have 60 hours complete in the classroom. Those players who have not completed 60 hours are eligible to play at the Division II level. The rules put pressure on Evans to succeed in both the classroom and on the field.
“My mom is a teacher, so the academic pressure is always going to be there,” Evans said.
“I think Seth has a chance to get better and find his niche, position wise, and move on to the next level — a four-year school,” Redshaw added. “He certainly hits well, he runs well. He works his butt off. Nobody is going to outwork him. If things pan out for him over there at Wallace, I definitely think he has the ability to move on to the next level.”
Evans’ career at Lowndes was widely filled with success. He was named to the All-Region team twice and helped guide the Vikings to winning records in all four seasons.
“It was great playing at this program,” Evans said. “I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
This summer, Evans and teammate Luke Miller represented Team Georgia in a tournament in Oklahoma. During their time with Team Georgia, Evans and Miller were able to play against some of the nation’s top graduating high school seniors.
Local Sports
Related Photos
-
Seth Evans was a first-team All-Region selection in 2012. The Valdosta Daily Times
-
Lowndes’ Seth Evans signs a letter of intent to play baseball at Wallace Community College in Dothan, Ala. Seated: mother Melissa Evans, Seth Evans and father Keith Evans. Back row: sisters Kiersten and Brianna Evans, Jamey Shouppe, Lowndes head coach Danny Redshaw and LHS pitching coach Kip McLeod. Ed Hooper | The Valdosta Daily Times
Discussion
Lowndes’ Seth Evans signs with Wallace Community College
- Local Sports
-
-
VSU softball wins South Region, headed to nationals
For the third time in four years, and second in a row, Valdosta State’s softball team will play in the national championship tournament.
The Blazers won their third South Region championship Saturday, beating Alabama-Huntsville 8-3 in game three of the best-of-three series at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer Park. -
VSU baseball season comes to an end
Delta State scored seven unanswered runs to defeat Valdosta State 7-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at the UT Baseball Field Saturday afternoon.
-
Blazers take 1-0 series lead
Angela O’Connor launched a pinch-hit two-run home run over the left-field fence, tying the game against Alabama-Huntsville in the bottom of the sixth inning, and sparking the Blazers and their fans along the way.
-
Blazer baseball stays alive, beats Stillman
Valdosta State scored five runs in the first inning to defeat Stillman 6-2 in an elimination game of the NCAA South Region Tournament at UT Baseball Field Friday morning.
-
Lowndes’ Harwell, Wortham sign with Valdosta State
Lowndes’ Ty Harwell and David Wortham won’t have to go far to play college baseball.
-
Blazers host respected rival UAH in Super Regional
One would expect a matchup featuring two of the top softball programs in Division II to come in the national championship game.
Unfortunately for Valdosta State and Alabama-Huntsville, who have combined to appear in four straight national championship games, they won’t be meeting in title game on Memorial Day in Salem, Va. -
Pop Warner Football coming to Valdosta
Pop Warner Football is coming to Valdosta.
The nationally known organization that puts an emphasis on education and developing American youth has been established in the Valdosta area and will begin playing football this August. -
Blazers lose to Delta State, fall to loser’s bracket
If the Valdosta State baseball team is going to win the South Region Tournament, the Blazers going to have to do it from the loser’s bracket.
The Blazers (33-17) dropped their first game of the tournament Thursday, falling to Delta State 4-2 at UT Baseball Stadium.
VSU will face Stillman College, which lost to No. 1 seed and tournament host Tampa Thursday, Friday at 11 a.m. to advance to the weekend portion of the tournament. The loser will be eliminated. -
Lowndes’ Willis, Breit named Region 1 Coaches of the Year
The All-Region 1-AAAAAA soccer teams were announced Wednesday and Lowndes was well represented.
Lowndes coaches Chris Willis (girls) and Jordan Breit (boys) were named the Region Coaches of the Year, after leading the Lowndes teams to region championships and going undefeated in region play. -
Vikings commit 4 errors, fall to Roswell, 5-2
The small things matter in baseball, especially in a winner-take-all game three.
On Wednesday, Lowndes’ baseball team made too many mistakes on the little things. The Vikings committed four errors that led to five Roswell runs and were eliminated in the Class AAAAAA state playoffs with a 5-2 loss to the Hornets. - More Local Sports Headlines
-
