After 42 straight losses, the difference between a first win and the NCAA record books of ignominy was one bad inning.
The Coppin State baseball team ? which finished its season Sunday at 0-44, the worst record in Division I history ? came close to snapping a 42-game losing streak in the second game of a Saturday double-header. The Eagles carried a 3-1 lead into the fifth inning at North Carolina A&T, but the Aggies scored four times in the bottom of the fifth to claim a 5-3 win. Coppin State lost Sunday?s season finale, 9-4.
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“We got two guys on base that would have tied the score up. I felt if we had just tied it, we would have gone ahead because the momentum was shifting,” said Eagles coach Harvey Lee, who refused to let emotions get the best of him Saturday. “When you?ve been spanked so much on the same side, you don?t feel it anymore. Not one time did I get all hyped up. I?ve seen L?s come after L?s.”
A research department with the NCAA dug deep into Division I baseball archives only to find that no team to participate in a complete schedule had ever gone winless. The 1999 Northern Illinois team came close, compiling a 4-51-1 record.
With only an 11-man roster, the Eagles were shut out 18 times in 44 games.
“It?s been a tough year, but we really didn?t have the kind of players that other teams had,” sophomore shortstop Teon Richburg said. “We didn?t really have as much experience as other teams. Losing as much as we did, it?s a growing experience.”
Despite the 0-44 record, including an 0-18 mark against conference opponents, Lee is confident that most of his players will return for the 2008 season. He hopes to have another 15 to 20 players on the team next fall to help turn things around.
“I?m hoping every one of these guys comes back,” Lee said. “I feel I?m going to win the conference next year, and each one of these guys deserves a ring for being on the team with me because of what they?ve gone through this year.”
EAGLES? 0-44 RIDE
» Coppin State batted .161 as a team, with three home runs and 45 RBI in 44 games. Freshman Harry Williams led the team in each category, batting .339 with two home runs and 15 RBI.
» On a team devoid of true pitchers, Coppin State?s hurlers carried a 16.67 ERA, but did throw five complete games.
