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| Justin Hall is Mars Hill's ace pitcher |
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Sunday, February 15, 2009
By CHASE YOUNG - Bulletin Sports Writer
Justin Hall recently received Pitcher of the Week honors from the South Atlantic Conference.
“It’s definitely a big deal,” said Hall, a pitcher for Mars Hill College. “I’ve pretty much wanted it since I’ve been at college. I think it’s nine teams in the conference, 20 pitchers per team, so it’s a big deal for me. I’ve always wanted that.”
Hall, who graduated from Bassett High School in 2006 — the same year he won the Piedmont District’s player of the year award — has utilized a love for the game, hard work and determination to improve his skills over the years.
Now, he’s starting to reap the benefits, according to BHS baseball coach Bill Parks.
“I’m ecstatic,” said Parks. “I knew he was capable of achieving, in my eyes, great things. I think he still has a lot to do with the game of baseball, provided he stays healthy. He’s doing well right now, but with Justin — knowing the passion and work ethic he has — talking from a biased standpoint, I think he has a lot of ball left to play. He’s definitely reaping the fruits of his labor.”
The son of Charles and Cathy Hall of Bassett, Justin Hall climbed the ranks of the pitching staff at Mars Hill College over the last three years and has become the school’s No.1 starter in last two seasons.
According to Mars Hill pitching coach Erin Rembert, Hall’s work ethic and desire to improve makes the pitcher stand out.
“It’s his work ethic,” said Rembert. “He’s always doing something. He’s always studying the game trying to get better, and he’s willing to listen to his coaches. He does what he’s asked and does more. He was our team leader in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched last year, and he was on pace to do that this year. If he stays healthy, he’ll probably own every pitching record there (MHC).”
Resting a mildly injured elbow at this point in the season, the 6-foot, 205-pound junior began the season without allowing an earned run through 12 innings and recently pitched six shutout innings against Salem International to help his team to a 10-6 win.
In MHC’s recent win at Belmont Abbey, Hall scattered four hits, allowed an unearned run, walked one and struck out nine.
Despite the impressive numbers, Hall felt he still had much to improve upon.
“A really big goal of mine this year is to try and get Pitcher of the Year,” he said.
“I think the main drive for me is knowing I want to proceed. That drives me to be the best that I can. In the offseason, I’m trying to get better and better, just one thing after another to try and improve it a little bit.”
According to Hall’s father, that drive to improve and love of the game has been apparent since youth, and as a pitcher himself, the elder Hall has enjoyed watching his son improve and reach for his goals.
“It makes me very proud, because I coached him through when he was playing little league, pony league and on up,” said Hall. “Just to see him develop like he has is really a big honor. He worked hard to get where he’s at. I told him the hard work is paying off for him.”
An avid Braves fan, Hall has dreamt of playing for Atlanta since he was a child, and while he recognizes such a goal is lofty, he intends, at the very least, to retain a close connection with the sport for the rest of his life.
“I would like to be around the game,” said Hall. “That’s one of the reasons I’m going and getting this degree. If I have time, I want to at least volunteer with the knowledge that I’ve got.”
As a physical education major with a concentration in coaching, Hall doesn’t envision himself being far from the field. Locally, he’s volunteered with the Henry County Parks and Recreation summer baseball programs at Jack Dalton Park over the past two years.
Still, he would like to keep playing for as long as he can.
“I want to go to the next level,” said Hall. “Pretty much as far as I can with baseball until my body doesn’t allow it. When I was a little kid, instead of being a firefighter or something I was thinking about playing for a pro team, and if I had to pick a team, it would definitely be for the Braves.”
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