Snow Snarls AACC Baseball Season

Calling it a “good workout,” Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) Athletic Director Duane Herr chipped and shoveled snow and ice for three consecutive days to clear just half of the school’s turf field so spring athletic teams could have a place to practice.

“The first day, our Coordinator of Athletics, Tyler Richardson, and I maneuvered through the foot of snow and ice, and I finally just slid down the bleachers,” Herr said. “It was the only way to get to the field and chisel open the gates. We used a sledgehammer and shovels and made some progress every day.”

Being an athletic director at a community college has a myriad of unwritten duties like shoveling snow off of a turf field because any type of snow-removal machine may damage the turf. However, being a community college athlete also has those untold tasks as well.

“We had the lacrosse team, women’s basketball team and baseball team all shoveling the field during that last week in January so we could have space for the baseball team to throw and lacrosse team to have conditioning drills and play catch,” Herr said.

College baseball teams start their season in early February because they need to play a certain number of games to qualify for the regional tournaments, which begin in early May.

“At the end of the regular season, the league will examine all the teams’ records and create the tournament bracket based on wins and losses and how many games played,” Herr explained. “You’re allowed to have 56 regular-season games in addition to your postseason games.”

Last year, AACC went 35-26 and fell one game short of qualifying to go to the National Junior College (JUCO) World Series. It was the first time since 2011 that the Riverhawks advanced to the Region 20 championship round.

For this year’s team to achieve their goal of playing in the JUCO World Series, it was imperative to start practice in late January, but Mother Nature threw them a curveball.

“Some things are out of our control,” said AACC baseball head coach Nick Hoffner. “We’re fortunate to have some indoor batting cages and indoor pitching mounds that we set up in the gym. Also, with the help of many staff members and athletes, we were able to use half of our turf field for infield practice and throwing.”

The Riverhawks are off to a 8-3 start as of March 6, having traveled out of state and used the turf field at Joe Cannon Stadium in Hanover. They have had to postpone or cancel 11 games so far.

For this year’s team, the Riverhawks return many players who were instrumental in their success last year including Severna Park’s Matt Dove. The first baseman/designated hitter bats fifth or sixth in the lineup and started this season on a ferocious pace by going 3-for-3 with two walks in a recent doubleheader against Virginia Peninsula Community College.

“Matt can swing the bat,” Hoffner said. “He’s a good hitter and can drive the ball over the fence. He’s off to a hot start.”

Dove chose AACC for its academics and being rated one of the best community colleges in the nation.

“It’s a perfect school for me as I like the environment of a small school, it’s close to home, and the chemistry on the team is amazing,” Dove shared. “It’s a great group of guys.”

Another standout who will be a key part of the pitching staff is Arnold resident Chase Hannon. The southpaw made second-team All-County last year and had a 7-1 record with a microscopic 0.92 earned run average (ERA) for Broadneck.

Calling AACC a great school, Hannon chose to become a Riverhawk for the college’s proximity to home and academics.

“Going to AACC gave me the best opportunity to play and hopefully get noticed by four-year schools so I can keep pitching as I get my four-year degree,” he said.

Hoffner said, “Chase is going to be a big part of our season. He looked very good in our fall season.”

To keep opposing batters off balance, Hannon uses a variety of pitches including a two-seam fastball, slider and changeup.

The Riverhawks have seen a steady ascension of their baseball program in the last few years with Hoffner recruiting talented players from across the region.

In addition to players from Anne Arundel County, Hoffner has recruited players from Howard, Carroll, Montgomery and Baltimore counties as well as the Eastern Shore.

The Riverhawks play community colleges in Virginia, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and throughout Maryland. AACC hopes that playing a strenuous schedule will provide them with an edge in the regional tournament and going to Oklahoma for the JUCO World Series this year.