The Gulf Coast sophomore right-handed pitcher was shut down last week. He was attempting to come back from shoulder surgery during the summer, but GC coach Mike Kandler, his staff and Garcia decided it was wise to apply for a medical hardship waiver to save a year of his eligibility.

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound Garcia signed with Florida International University and will be able to play up to three seasons for the Golden Panthers if he is successful in receiving the medical redshirt.

Kandler believes Garcia will have no trouble earning the medical hardship since he has met the requirements, which include not playing in more than 20 percent of the team’s games before the injury occurred or was aggravated. Garcia also couldn’t throw a single pitch in the last half of the season to qualify.

“We tried to accelerate the timetable for his return, but we knew this was best for Bryam,” Kandler said. “He’s too good of a guy to just throw out there and waste a season.”

Garcia appeared in one game this season. He started against Shelton State Feb. 17 and tossed one inning with a walk, a hit batsmen and a wild pitch. He was 6-1 with a 2.86 ERA, 53 strikeouts and 21 walks in 66 innings as a freshman.

Brothers on the mend

GC right-hander Scott Brothers was schedule to have an MRI on Tuesday to determine damage in his elbow. Initial examinations pointed to possible bone chips, but nothing was conclusive, Kandler said.

Brothers, 6-2, 203, is 5-0 with a 2.88 ERA, 31 strikeouts and only six walks in 34 1/3 innings. He will not pitch until the MRI results are back and a course of action is determined.

Up next

GC baseball returns to Panhandle Conference in a home-and-home series against Chipola College in Marianna at 5 p.m. on Friday and in Panama City at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
GC softball opened the conference doubleheader slate at home with a sweep of Okaloosa-Walton Tuesday. The Lady Commodores are at North Florida at 1 p.m. on Friday.

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Painter all but finished recruiting for next season with only six incoming commitments due to the possibility of having as many as 16 returners from this year’s team. She said last week there is a chance to sign a seventh player, which likely could be a transfer in the summer.

Area athletes, pitcher/infielder Crystal Thompson of Holmes County and outfielder Tiffany Adkison of Vernon, join pitcher/infielder Kaitlin Ellingsworth (Temple City, Calif.), pitcher Heather Hughes (Havana), pitcher/infielder Jordan McAllister (Dothan, Ala.) and shortstop Samantha Posey (Leesburg, Ga.) as commitments for the 2009 season.

Ellingsworth is the sister of former Lady Commodores Lindsay and Ryann.

Posey is the sister of current Florida State University baseball players Buster and Jack.

Seeking consistency

GC baseball coach Mike Kandler may have raised a few eyebrows when he said his then 17-6 team wasn’t playing well enough to contend for a Panhandle Conference title. But last weekend supported his concerns.

The Commodores won all three of their games, but they worked through much adversity in a pair against Lincoln Trail on Friday and Saturday. GC committed 10 errors in the two games and needed a late rally after its bullpen blew a five-run lead on Saturday. GC made only 25 errors in its previous 23 games heading into last weekend.

Kandler was pleased with Sunday’s 7-0 shutout of Vincennes University, in which Will Smith allowed two hits in improving to 3-3. Smith’s pitching effort in conference games, along with several other freshmen, likely will tell the story on where the Commodores finish.

Nearing milestones

Kandler entered Monday needing eight wins for his 100th victory while at GC. He’ll soon become the fourth GC baseball coach to hit the century mark, and is currently ranked fourth in career wins at the school, 38 behind Bob McAlpine.

Painter is four wins shy of her 650th career win at GC. The Lady Commodores are currently 14-3, giving Painter a 646-195 career mark with the program.

Up next

GC softball plays Indian River and Chattanooga (Tenn.) State at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Thursday at Joe Tom King Field before playing in the NFCA Junior College Leadoff Classic at Frank Brown Park over the weekend. The non-tournament games Thursday provide another measuring stick for the Lady Commodores, who have battled Indian River for state supremacy in the past.

GC baseball hosts Danville at 5:30 p.m. today, Iowa Central at 4 p.m. on Friday and John Wood at 4 p.m. on Saturday in games included in the annual GC Spring Classic.

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Mosley’s Taye Larry, an infielder/outfielder and Wakulla’s Cameron Graves, a first baseman/outfielder, are the only Florida recruits.

The other seven who will become Commodores are outfielder Mike Love (Opelika, Ala.), outfielder/left-handed pitcher Cameron Greathouse (Columbus, Ga.), catcher Whitt Dorsey (Auburn, Ala.), outfielder Will Howard (Columbus, Ga.), third baseman/outfielder Jeremy Boyte (Russell County, Ala.), right-handed pitcher Bryce Lane (Russell County) and catcher Seth Adkins (Brookwood, Ga.).

There likely will be a 10th recruit, but no official word was made as of Monday. The incoming freshmen will join up to 11 returning sophomores next season.

First-timers

Jake Sullivan hit his first career home run for GC in a 7-6 loss to Shelton State Feb. 16. The solo blast off the scoreboard at Bill Frazier Field capped a four-run seventh inning. Sullivan went 135 at-bats without a home run as a freshman, and while not noted for his speed had two triples over the course of 58 games before hitting his first homer.

Bryam Garcia also achieved a first this season, as in a first start after missing time with a shoulder injury. Garcia started and tossed one inning against Shelton State Feb. 17. He allowed no runs or hits, but did encounter some trouble. He walked a batter and hit another. He also had a wild pitch, but was helped out in the inning when right fielder Drew Benton (Rutherford) caught a fly ball and threw a baserunner out at the plate for a double play.

Time to regroup

GC’s softball team finished 1-3 in its Beach Classic, with another win coming against Chattanooga (Tenn.) State in a non-tournament game. GC coach Susan Painter said her team needs to move on from the disappointing weekend, especially after the Lady Commodores lost two games on Sunday.

GC has time to regroup with only two road doubleheaders between now and the NFCA Leadoff Classic tournament March 7-9, which will feature 24 of the top junior college programs in the country. The Lady Commodores travel to Enterprise, Ala., on Wednesday (first game at 1 p.m.) and Lake City on Saturday (11 a.m. CST first game) before playing state opponent Indian River and Chattanooga State in NFCA pre-tournament games March 6.

Quick hits

Entering Monday, GC baseball had won 10 of its last 13 games and it was tied with Pensacola with the most nonconference wins at 16. … GC softball gave up 14 runs in a loss against Lake Land on Sunday. The figure was five runs more than it gave up in its first eight games of the season. … The annual GC Baseball Spring Classic kicks off this week, as the Commodores host Lincoln Trail on Friday and Saturday.

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The Gulf Coast softball team hands out trinkets to opposing teams before the first game of each doubleheader. The gifts, minimal in cost but great in significance, have been a variety of softball keychains in the first three twinbills.

Word is this gesture will be made prior to each home game. They will do this the rest of the season, from what I understand, and even for heated rival Chipola.

This is the latest change made this season by Painter, who knew she needed a different approach with her youngest team. She has made a considerable effort to stress to me that she is teaching the knowledge of the game, which often can be lost on a younger player.

She understands that she had to temper her expectations because she truly didn’t know what she had. She knew she had talent, but a young team can go one of two ways quickly. Fortunately the first six games, all wins, have gone well with only two errors and some smart defensive play from catcher Nicole Walker, shortstop Whitney McCarson and outfielder Karri Bisbee, just to name a few.

Painter, in her 14th season, told me before the season that she is learning to be more patient. I think this young group is really recharging Painter, who is one of the best softball coaches in the state and in the nation. And perhaps she’s more excited for this season than others in the past simply because of the still untapped potential.

GC has played its six games over the course of 10 days. The true test comes Feb. 23-24 when it hosts its fourth annual Beach Classic. The Lady Commodores will play six games in three days (barring rainouts), including two pre-tourney games against Chattanooga State and St. Petersburg.

The large amount of games in few days will show Painter how her team can react to a compressed schedule. It’s the same schedule that will come in the state and national tournaments, so they have to be prepared.

Another big tournament comes March 7-9 when some of the top juco teams in the nation play at Frank Brown Park for the NFCA Leadoff Classic. GC plays Indian River, a top team in the state, the Thursday before the event. That will be a heckuva matchup.

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