BLACKSBURG – Days away from the start of the season, Virginia Tech baseball head coach John Szefc accompanied his crew of 2023 Preseason All-Americans behind the microphone on Monday as the Hokies addressed members of the media before their team practice.
Scroll through the best soundbites from Monday's media availability as Tech turns its attention towards Friday's Opening Day action at College of Charleston.
JOHN SZEFC
Head coach, sixth season
≫ On how to cross the threshold between NCAA Super Regional and College World Series play …
"I think the one thing that will separate us this year from last is the experience factor in the postseason. We have a lot of guys returning from last year's team that had never played in the postseason [before 2022], they had never played in an NCAA Regional and some had never played in the ACC tournament. I think having that experience factor hopefully puts our guys in a better place to get there this year."
≫ On the trajectory of the program since Szefc arrived at Virginia Tech and how much it has grown …
"It's what you hope to have as a coach. I think in this society, there's not a lot of patience with anything. We had to be patient while building a roster through COVID and through a lot of injuries in 2021. There's a lot of stuff that went into the success we had last year. Once you have it, the challenge becomes trying to stay consistent in maintaining it. But, it's nice to see the results that you hope to have. For me personally, it's nice to see it for our coaching staff because of all the time they put into it. And, for our players."
≫ On which new Virginia Tech player he is most excited to watch this season …
"I can't really say one guy, but Anthony Arguelles might be one of them because you're talking about a weekend starting pitcher who is a pretty big part of your success. But, I think when you're looking at guys like David Bryant, Chris Cannizzaro, Eddie Eisert – [those are] three transfers who have played at a really high level. We have some really good freshmen – Brody Donay, Garrett Michel and Clay Grady – who have had as good a preseason I've ever seen. A couple high-level arms – Ryan Kennedy, Andrew Sentlinger, Griffin Stieg – should really factor into our success, even though they're in their first year."
CARSON DEMARTINI
Sophomore infielder & 2023 Preseason All-American
≫ On finding his motivation for the 2022 season …
"It's the guys around the clubhouse. We just want to go out there and kick butt. I don't think it's really anything more than that. Whether we are [ranked] 1,000th in the country, or we are ranked first in the country, we are competing with each other."
≫ On the biggest thing he looks forward to every year …
"I get a chance to play in Omaha – I guess [that's] my answer. I grew up a baseball fan. And if you're a baseball fan, you watch the College World Series. That's where you want to get to and we always talked about winning a championship here; whether that's an ACC championship, winning a Regional or a Super Regional, or winning in Omaha, but we want to win a championship. For me, that's going to Omaha and sealing the deal during the whole thing. But, obviously that's a long way down the road. But, it starts now."
DRUE HACKENBERG
Sophomore starting pitcher & 2023 Preseason All-American
≫ On his 2022 takeaways from ACC play and applying them week to week in 2023 …
"Obviously, the surprise factor of being a freshman isn't going to be there this year, [especially] having the year I had. But, I'd say just going out there and doing what I was doing. I trusted my stuff, sticking to what I got, going out there attacking those hitters as well as I can. Obviously, I am more experienced now. Understanding those lineups a little better as well is a big thing, coming into the offseason. You know, [I believe] really just sticking with attacking those guys at all times."
≫ On his takeaways from meeting Chipper Jones at 2023 Baseball Night in Blacksburg …
"That was an amazing experience – just getting to hear from him, hear his experiences, hear his stories. He actually brought up how he was overrated against Billy Wagner (Hackenberg's head coach at The Miller School of Albemarle) and how in Atlanta, he had trouble getting on his fastball. So, it was funny to hear that, too. But, the one key takeaway I took was how college guys and pro guys train. Pro guys train to never get it wrong. So, that was a big thing there that I took away. That should be [my] mindset."
JACK HURLEY
Junior outfielder & consensus 2023 Preseason All-American
≫ On how Virginia Tech is building upon its success from the 2022 season …
"I think it starts with the first weekend and getting out to a hot start. Last year took a little bit [for us] to get that start, but I think this coming weekend, we have a chance to do something special and get a couple wins. I think to build consistency, we need to start off consistent."
≫ On what he learned from Virginia Tech's 2022 MLB Draft picks …
"It's fun watching those guys because they're professionals now. I've taken away how to act like a professional and how to be a professional from those guys. Also, the day-to-day process of being consistent, a good teammate and a strong competitor."
≫ On what he learned from the 2022 season to stay successful in the ACC …
"I think the biggest thing that we learned as a team last year was that every weekend is super competitive. I think our most competitive weekend last year was probably [at] Boston College; they weren't necessarily the best team in the ACC last year, but each game was a [competitive] game. So, going into every weekend knowing it's going to be a dogfight, knowing it's going to be super tough, is something that our team needs to learn pretty quick this year."
