The Wilmington Sharks entered the 2007 season with lofty goals of competing for the Coastal Plain League title. Two games into the season the Sharks looked like a team that could do just that. After sweeping New Bern in a two game set to open up the season the Sharks felt like they were a contender. Those two games, however, would be the highlight of the first half of the season as they ended up going 6-18 during the month of June. This stretch landed Wilmington at the bottom of the Coastal Plain League South division at the end of the first half of the season. During the second half the Sharks managed to turn it around and with less than a week to go in the season found themselves within striking distance of the division lead.

Head Coach Andrew Wright and the Wilmington Sharks turned everything around in the second half of the season. “Obviously, we didn’t play to the level that we expected during the first half of the season,” said Wright. “However, I am very proud that we never gave up and were able to battle back during the second half. We put ourselves in a position to win the division, and that is all I can ask for.”

This year’s Sharks team was marked by some great individual performances throughout the season. Offensively, Stephen Batts led the way hitting for a .341 average, putting him at fifth place in the league, while also hitting 4 homeruns and driving in 23 runs. Batts led the Sharks in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, runs, hits, doubles, and tied for the lead in RBI. Batts, along with Sharks shortstop Brent Weiss, represented the Sharks at the Coastal Plain League All-Star game. Another player that would have been an All-Star if not for an abbreviated season was University of Michigan first baseman, Nate Recknagel. Recknagel hit 8 homeruns and tied Batts for the team lead in RBI’s with 23. He was able to do this despite missing a large portion of the first half of the season due to the Big Ten Tournament.

On the mound the Sharks were paced by Bryant Gaines, Alex McKenzie, Cody Epply, and Kevin Light. All four performed well on the season both in starting and relief roles. Gaines, a sophmore from UNC, proved to be the team’s workhorse leading the team in wins with 4 and innings pitched with 54.2 all while posting a 1.81 ERA and holding opposing hitters to a .191 batting average. Gaines ended the season by throwing complete game shutouts in 2 of his final 3 starts.

With the 2007 season behind them the Sharks have already got their eyes on the 2008 campaign. Assistant General Manager Chris Reavis is already looking forward to a bigger and better 2008 season. “I am already looking forward to building on this season and making 2008 the best season yet,” said Reavis. “But before we do that I want to thank all of the fans and our sponsors who supported us this year making the 2007 season so great.