Saint Leo University’s baseball team is off to a 21-5 start.
While the Lions have had strong records the last two years under coach Sean O’ Connor, his third season at the helm has produced the best results so far. They won 17 out of their first 18 games, and currently lead the nation in both hits and runs in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II play. They’re ranked 15th in the D2 Baseball News poll, and 16th in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
O’ Connor admits he is surprised by the team’s performance — he actually thought it would be better.
“I’m shocked we have five losses at this point,” he said. “We haven’t played our best baseball, to be honest with you.”
Still, to be 21-5 is an impressive start, and to build on consecutive 30-plus win seasons is no easy feat. O’ Connor attributes the team’s success this year to having a lot of returning players. The team’s starting lineup this year is about the same as last year, and playing underclassmen in the past is paying off now.
The Lions also benefit from a focus on depth during the recruiting process. O’ Connor wanted to avoid tying their fortunes to one or two star players, where an injury or slump could derail the entire season. Instead the team has depth, with players on the bench that could start for other schools. While they might not get as much playing time as the starters, those athletes can take over when necessary without a big drop-off in talent or production.
“We’ve tried to build this team so that when something does go wrong, we’re fully prepared for it and somebody else will step in and do the job that’s more than capable of doing so,” O’Connor said.
That method seems to be working, with double-digit run production in more than half of their games. But even with the strong start, O’Connor warns that there’s no guarantee of post-season success just yet. They weren’t selected for the regional tournament the past two years, and with most of the conference schedule ahead of them, they have to win when it matters most to make the tournament.
“The real test is the conference,” O’Connor said. “It’s nice that we’re 21-5, but if we don’t finish in the top two or three spots in the conference, it doesn’t mean a thing.”
The Sunshine State Conference provides a pretty tough test for its teams. All eight schools have a winning record, and five of them have 19 wins or more. With a 2-4 conference record, the Lions will have to win many of those upcoming conference games to keep up with the other talented teams and enter the regional tournament.
If they get there, they’ll do it with passion and emotion. While some coaches (and their teams) are stoic and don’t display much passion, O’ Connor said that Saint Leo plays with a lot of emotion. Being vocal and staying invested in the moment is part of the team’s personality, and he wants the team to remain that way.
And if that passion gets them to the first regional tournament of his tenure as coach, he thinks they can keep it going from there.
The talent level is so high in the Sunshine State Conference, O’ Connor thinks the teams that escape it have an advantage over teams that don’t face that level of competition on a regular basis.
“If you get out of the conference, you’ve got a good shot at going to the World Series,” he said.
Saint Leo is also proving that they can bounce back after losses as well. After being swept by Nova Southeastern earlier this month, they followed it up by winning four of their next five, including two of three against Florida Tech, ranked 10th at the time.
While there’s still a lot of baseball left to play before the season ends in early May, O’ Connor believes he has the kind of team that can get over the hump and make a run in the regional tournament and World Series.
“This is certainly the best team we’ve had in the three years I’ve been here,” he said.
Published March 25, 2015