Student-athletes want to make a good impression on a prospective college coach. Sometimes, anxiety takes over during that first in-person meeting, and the student works too hard to impress the coach. During the first meeting, students need to step out of themselves and become a strong observer and listener. For example, if a student is in the coach's office, they should be mindful of the surroundings. The coach may have photos of his/her family, awards, diplomas, etc. Ask probing questions about things observed. Coaches have larger egos that student-athletes. Allow the coach to brag about the program and his/her accomplishments. Questions should be open-ended. Try to draw a connection when the opportunity presents itself. Maybe the coach has fishing photos on the wall. Look for a way to relate personally. Focus on establishing a relationship instead of trying to sell yourself. Do not waste the coach's time by asking questions that you can find out on your own. Do not ask the coach if he/she plays freshmen. I know high school coaches and club coaches who tell their players to ask the coach this question. It's a terrible idea. You can find that information very easily on your own. Every college baseball team has its own web site with stat data. If the roster demonstrates that not one freshman got an at-bat, then your question is answered. If the coach asks you about your strengths and weaknesses, focus on your strengths first. Make sure you talk about more strengths than weaknesses. Choose a few strengths and just pick one weakness that you are working. Turn the weakness into a goal opportunity. Talk to the coach about that goal and what key results you plan to achieve to accomplish your overall objective. 

Coach Mike VanderBunt

Some high school pitchers believe that they must have three pitches in their arsenal to throw at the college level. Although, it certainly helps to have three effective pitches, it does not help to have an ineffective pitch.  Pitchers need objective information from coaches to decide if a pitch is helping the pitcher or hurting the pitcher. Preferably, high school pitchers want this information from a high school or club coach, not from a college coach making a visit to perform a player evaluation. Pitchers have options. They can gravitate toward the pitches that are performing well, or they can spend time working on the pitch or pitches that are ineffective. Sometimes it's best to just move on from a particular pitch rather than beat yourself up over it. Determining whether to keep a pitch or toss it should be data-driven. This information should include how often balls and strikes are thrown in a game. It should include velocity and opponent's batting average per pitch. If a pitcher is not able to throw a pitch at 100 percent intensity, then it may not be an appropriate pitch to have in the arsenal. If a pitcher has a couple really effective pitches, such as a 2-seam fastball and a curveball, it may pay to focus on improving or perfecting quality of those particular pitches. Whatever a pitcher chooses to do, evaluation should be part of the process. Take feedback constructively and focus on the positives rather than the negatives. 

Coach Mike VanderBunt 

The Rhinelander Hodags High School baseball team advanced to the second round of regional play, defeating the Amery Warriors by a score of 6-0 at Stafford Field in Rhinelander last night. Rhinelander was the 7-seed, and Amery was the 10-seed. Rhinelander advanced to take on the 2-seed St. Croix Falls Saints on June 3rd in St. Croix Falls. Rhinelander finished last year with a 1 and 20 record. The team's only win came on the road at Northern Pines. This year, Rhinelander has found a way to turn things around, finishing 2nd in the Great Northern Conference, one game behind Mosinee. After winning the first round of regionals, Rhinelander improved to 12 and 10 on the season. Their pitching staff, led by Connor Rappley, Dylan VanderBunt, and Jackson Waydick, went into the post-season with a combined 2.24 earned run average. Rappley pitched a perfect game against rival Medford last week and only gave up two hits in 6 2/3 innings pitched last night against Amery. VanderBunt led the conference with a 0.72 earned run average in 20 innings of relief pitching. Rhinelander has leaned on pitching and defense to win games all year and hopes to continue its success next week on the road. Congrats to the Hodags on an incredible turnaround. 

Coach Mike VanderBunt

In his first year as the head skipper for the Lake Region State College Royals baseball team, head coach Steve Anderson set the program's new benchmark for conference wins. The Royals finished 11-13 in the Mon-Dak Athletic Conference, tying Bismark State College for 3rd place and finishing one win behind Dawson Community College (12-12). Lake Region was only 4-22 in conference play last year before Anderson stepped in to lead the team. Anderson, from Eagle River, WI, attributes culture as the number one factor for the team's drastic turnaround. Anderson is a transformational coach who focuses on relationship-building. He believes in teaching a positive mindset and growth mentality. Congrats to Lake Regional State College and Coach Anderson. It would be wise for the Mon-Dak Athletic Conference teams to keep LRSC on the radar next year. If you're interested in playing college baseball and you think the junior college route might be the right fit for you, check out Lake Region. Right in the heart of Devils Lake, ND, it's a beautiful place to live and surely a baseball program on the rise. 

To read more about LRSC breaking its conference wins record, check out the detailed story in the Devils Lake Journal. Lake Region Breaks Conference Wins Record

Coach Mike VanderBunt