By Harry Minium
It was a clever question from an ESPN+ reporter and got right to the heart of just how well Chris Finwood has coached his Old Dominion University baseball team this season.
"You've been here in Louisiana so long, I'm sure you're registered to vote, right? he asked Finwood after the Monarchs dispatched Middle Tennessee, 10-6, in Thursday's second round of the Conference USA tournament.
Finwood smiled and said the Monarchs had begun to pay Louisiana taxes.
All in good fun.
But seriously, scheduling is a difficult task and excuse the pun, Finwood hit a home run when filling in the dots in late May.
The Monarchs take on Florida Atlantic, which defeated Middle Tennessee 14-8 Friday night in an elimination game, Saturday at 10 a.m. (MoneyTalk 1310 AM, Rejoice 100.9 FM, ESPN+).
A victory there propels the Monarchs into Sunday's 2 p.m. championship game, which will be broadcast nationally by the CBS Sports Network.
By then, ODU will have been in Ruston, Louisiana for 12 days.
ODU boarded a bus on Tuesday, May 18, for Ruston. After spending the night in suburban Atlanta, the Monarchs then finished the 1,095-mile ride to Ruston, where LA Tech is hosting the tournament at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park.
Locals call it the "Love Shack," and I'm not sure I want to know why, but the brand new stadium, rebuilt as a tornado destroyed the previous stadium, has become ODU's second home.
An aside here: Finwood calls it the best stadium in Conference USA.
The Monarchs beat Louisiana Tech last Thursday and Friday in the final two regular games of the season, and then spent the next four days working out at the stadium and seeing the sights.
Outfielder Kyle Battle said by the time the first tournament game rolled around, "we felt like this was our home stadium. We are so comfortable there."
It was smart scheduling by Finwood, who gave his team an advantage that no one else had -- familiarity with the field and some time to acclimate to the hot Louisiana weather.
He scheduled the games with a gentleman's agreement with LA Tech coach Lane Burroughs that the games would be canceled if either team didn't make the tournament.
The win over Middle Tennessee, combined with an 11-2 victory in Wednesday's first round over FAU, left the Monarchs in good shape to win their first Conference USA title. ODU hasn't won a league title since 1996, before most of its players were born, when the Monarchs claimed the last of three consecutive Colonial Athletic Association championships.
Tommy Bell avoids a running sliding into second
ODU took Friday off, as did Southern Miss, which defeated LA Tech Thursday night. ODU and Southern Miss are both 2-0.
If ODU loses on Saturday, the Monarchs must then win a loser's bracket game against FAU Saturday afternoon at 5:30 p.m.
Southern Miss meets Louisiana Tech or Western Kentucky at 1:30 p.m. in Saturday's second game. If both Southern Miss and ODU win then they will play for the championship.
The Monarchs will come into Saturday's game well rested. Temperatures soared to nearly 115 degrees on the stadium Astroturf on Thursday and Finwood said his players needed the a day off to recuperate.
They spent Friday morning practicing at LA Tech and then took in the games in the afternoon and just relaxed.
"Winning the first two games is the key to winning this tournament," he said. "Our guys were tired after the game. I mean, it was a hot day.
"And having been here more than a week, we're pretty comfortable here."
Finwood finally acknowledged the obvious Friday – the Monarchs are in the NCAA tournament regardless of what happens the rest of the tournament. He's a superstitious guy, so when he says his team is going, it's going.
ODU is projected as a No. 1 seed and for good reason. The Monarchs are 40-14, and have won more games than any ODU team since 1994, when that ODU team also finished 40-14.
Ranked 12th in the NCAA RPI and in the top 25 in every major poll, they have won five in a row and eight of their last nine.
And that, my friends, is how you punctuate a season.
Matt Coutney with the putout
"When you're a mid-major, you don't want to give the committee anything to hold against you," he said.
"We found that out the hard way in 2017."
ODU expected to go to the NCAA tournament in 2017 and was among the last teams not to make the field.
"We were in the forties in the RPI which usually gets you in, but we went 1-2 in the conference tournament," he said.
No. 1 seed Charlotte lost its first two games this week and was eliminated. But I still expect Charlotte to be among four C-USA teams to make the field, along with LA Tech, Southern Miss and ODU.
The Monarchs have so far played with poise and confidence and with a relaxed attitude, and yet with the focus and enthusiasm needed during the postseason.
ODU exploded for seven runs in the seventh inning in the win over FAU. Freshman Carter Trice knocked in three runs with three hits and Tommy Bell was 3-for-4. Ryne Moore (8-1) struck out five and Jason Hartline got his third save.
Brock Gagliardi hit a home run against Middle Tennessee
On Thursday, Hunter Gregory (8-1) coasted, allowing just three hits and striking out six in seven innings. Bell blasted a grand slam home run far over the left field fence during a 7-run rally in the fifth, which broke open what had been a 1-1 game. Bell and Kenny Levari each went 3-for-4, and Lincoln Ransom and Battle both had two hits.
"The great thing about Hunter Gregory is that when we got the lead, he stepped things up," Finwood said. "That's what veteran guys do.
"This group has been really resilient. They hang in there and keep grinding in the batter's box and usually find a way to come out on top."
And like Battle said, they feel at home in Ruston. During ODU's 7-run rally on Thursday, the Monarchs could be heard on ESPN+ clapping and cheering over the crowd noise.
"I think they cheered the loudest when the guy refilled the Gatorade tank," Finwood said.
"You know, I'm so proud of our guys. We didn't want to just defend our season (to the NCAA committee), we wanted to come here and put some checks next to our name."
And so far, they've checked all the right boxes.
Minium worked 39 years at The Virginian-Pilot, where he was twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and won 27 state and national writing awards. He writes news stories, features and commentaries for odusports.com and odu.edu Follow him on Twitter @Harry_MiniumODU, Instagram @hbminium1 or email hminium@odu.edu
Minium: With Two Days Left in C-USA Tourney, ODU Baseball Playing With Poise and Confidence
