University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols' 2002 Class Ranked No. 21 by Collegiate Baseball
September 29, 2001 | Baseball
Sept. 29, 2001
Tennessee's 2002 baseball recruiting class was ranked No. 21 by Collegiate Baseball. It marked the second straight year and the 10th time in the last 12 years that a Tennessee recruiting class was rated in the top 30. Last year's class was 20th and reached the College World Series for the third time in school history.
The class consisted of 11 recruits, including six freshmen, four junior college transfers and one four-year transfer.
"We filled our needs, especially at shortstop, second base and on the mound," said head coach Rod Delmonico. "We went after a more athletic class with players that can fill a couple of roles. I think we signed five pitchers that can come in and be impact players. We also lost two extraordinary players to the draft in Michael Garciaparra (1st round) and Mandy Navarro (Cubs 2000 draftee). Of course, we did get a player like Justin Reed who turned down a predraft offer from both St. Louis and the Mets. Joey Andrews and Nick Crowe are probably the top freshmen in the class along with Jay Sadlowe. Crowe was on the Team USA Junior National Team and will play immediately. Overall this could be one of the strongest classes we've had, that are strong at each individual position."
Among the class are three players that were previously drafted. They are RHP Jay Sadlowe (Knoxville, Tenn. 26th round Los Angeles in 2001), SS Walter Sevilla (Miami, Fla. 34th round Milwaukee in 2000), and LHP Ben Riley (West Des Moines, Iowa 49th round Minnesota in 2000)
The rest of the class includes OF/P Joey Andrews (Englewood, Colo.), OF Chad LeGate (Longwood, Fla.), 2B Nick Crowe (Johnson City, Tenn.), RHP Justin Reed (Punta Gorda, Fla.), P/3B Rob Fitzgerald (New Orleans, La.), OF Jordan Czarniecki (Anderson, Ind.), LHP Jeffery Terrell (Lewisburg, Tenn.), 3B Jack Newark (Las Vegas, Nev.).
Full details of the top 10 recruiting classes are in the Oct. 5 issue of Collegiate Baseball.
1. Southern California 2. Louisiana State 3. Notre Dame 4. Miami, Fla. 5. Stanford 6. Mississippi 7. Clemson 8. Arizona State 9. Florida State 10. South Carolina 11. Oklahoma 12. Texas 13. Cal. State Fullerton 14. Georgia Tech 15. Oklahoma State 16. Texas Tech 17. San Jose State 18. Mississippi State 19. Vanderbilt 20. Cal. St. Northridge 21. Tennessee 22. Arkansas 23. Alabama 24. Rice 25. Baylor 26. UCLA 27. Wichita State 28. California 29. Long Beach State 30. Texas A&M
