Fourth year head coach Monte Lee and the Clemson baseball team are making preparations to begin the 2019 season as practice started on Friday.
The Tigers are heading into the season ranked No. 15 in the country by Collegiate Baseball, and while they lost players like Seth Beer, Ryley Gilliam and Chris Williams who were a part of the Tigers’ run to 47 wins and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament last year, Lee says the returning guys have led the team well.

“We’ve got great leadership. It’s the first year where I feel like, it’s a player driven leadership. Guys like Logan Davidson and Carson Spiers and Jacob Hennessy, Kyle Wilkie, some of the older guys, Grayson Byrd, Jordan Greene. They’ve really done just a unbelievable job of policing the team and setting the expectations,” Lee said.

While the leadership has been great from some of the older guys, there was one player that everyone kept mentioning, that based on the meeting with the media, you’ll want to keep an eye on this year.

David Sharpe.

Sharpe is a 6’3”, 210-pound freshman from Dacula, Ga., who has gotten rave reviews from his teammates.

Kier Meredith says Sharpe is a guy that walks around and knows he’s good.

“He’s very confident in himself. He’s very humble, a hard worker and he’s just honestly gifted. Just the way he walks up to the plate, there’s no fear on the mound. He’s on the mound with a big presence. You wouldn’t think he’s a freshman as he’s out there pitching. He’s got some really good pitches,” Meredith said of Sharpe.

Everyone remembers how the season ended for Clemson baseball last year as they fell 19-6 to Vanderbilt, and the feeling of last season’s heartbreak plays into the mentality of the Tigers heading into 2019, according to Kyle Wilkie.

“It gives us a lot of motivation just to say, that’s not who we are, that’s not what we want to be identified as so it definitely just pushes us in everything we do, just to work harder in the weight room, on the field, off the field because we don’t want to feel that again,” Wilkie said.

Clemson will get a chance to take the first step towards Omaha when the 2019 season begins with a 3-game series against South Alabama beginning on Friday, Feb. 15 at 4 p.m. at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

Women’s basketball having success under new coach Amanda Butler

Clemson women’s basketball is having one of the best seasons in a while under first year coach Amanda Butler. The Tigers are currently 14-6 overall with a 5-2 record in ACC play. The Tigers kept it close in their last game against No. 8 N.C. State, but fell 54-51.

What’s next? The next two games will be tough for Butler’s squad as they will face No. 1 Notre Dame on Thursday at 7 p.m. before facing No. 4 Louisville on Saturday at 2 p.m. Both games will be at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Men’s basketball drops games against FSU and N.C. State

Clemson led N.C. State by six points in the closing seconds on Saturday, but some critical free throw misses gave the Wolfpack a chance and Braxton Beverly hit a buzzer beater to break Clemson’s heart and win 69-67.

The Tigers also dropped a game in Tallahassee with a 77-68 loss on Tuesday against FSU. Brad Brownell’s group sits at 11-8 overall and 1-5 in ACC play.

What’s next? Clemson will look to end their two-game skid with two games in Littlejohn this week. The first will be against Pittsburgh on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. before a visit from Wake Forest on Sunday at noon. Both games will be televised by ESPNU. 

Other scores/news of interest

• Men’s tennis defeated Appalachian State and Coastal Carolina 4-0 on Saturday.

• Women’s tennis fell to No. 15 Florida State 4-0 on Saturday.

• Clemson volleyball has announced their 2019 spring schedule: The Tigers will face four opponents beginning with Georgia on Saturday, March 9 at 11 a.m. in Jervey.

Do you have any intramural sports scores to report? Do you have a story idea that you’d like to be featured in next week’s sports notebook? Email senior sports writer Brandon Stockdale at [email protected]