Sanderson, former E. Wayne standout, lands ECU baseball job

Published in Sports on August 27, 2006 2:12 AM

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GREENVILLE -- Former Pirate baseball standout and Eastern Wayne graduate Ben Sanderson has been named Director of Baseball Operations at East Carolina.

The Seven Springs native and four-year letter winner helped the Pirates to four NCAA Regional appearances (2000-03), one Super Regional (2001) and a combined 170-78-2 record. As a senior, he earned his second of two NCAA Regional all-tournament team selections in the Atlanta Regional and became the first recipient of the honorary No. 23 jersey which was the number worn by ECU head coach Keith LeClair throughout his coaching and playing career.

The number is awarded annually to a deserving player who best displays the hustle, determination and desire that made LeClair a great coach and player. Ben Sanderson wore the No. 23 in 2003, Jamie Page in 2004 and last year Brian Cavanaugh dawned the No. 23 uniform.

"We are excited to have Ben Sanderson back in our program," said Godwin. "Ben has great pride in East Carolina and is a great addition to our baseball staff."

During his junior campaign he was a member of the 2002 Conference USA Tournament Championship team that posted a 4-0 record and earned a NCAA Regional bid to the Clemson Regional. For his outstanding play, he was named to the regional all-tournament team. Sanderson closed out the season with a .405 batting average, which ranked second on the team and is tied for ninth on the single-season charts.

In 2001 the Pirates earned their first-ever NCAA National Seed, a top-10 national ranking, and NCAA Regional (Wilson) title while winning a school record-tying 47 games. As a freshman he helped ECU to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Tournament title and a NCAA Regional (Lafayette) appearance.

"I am extremely excited about being a part of Coach Godwin's staff at East Carolina," said Sanderson. "It is an honor to be associated with such a prestigious program and I am happy to be back in Eastern North Carolina among the best baseball fans in the country. The goal is to get this program to Omaha and compete for the national championship. I look forward to assisting the staff in any way possible to make that a reality."

Before coming back to ECU, Sanderson spent two years as the operations manager/ strength and conditioning coordinator at the Triple Crown Baseball Center in Greenville, where he organized and coordinated strength and conditioning programs for youth members ages 7-19. He also managed daily facility activities including one-on-one and group instruction, camps and special events, as well as general facility maintenance.

From December of 2005 until August of 2006, he worked with the Durham Bulls Baseball Club as a group sales assistant, creating and implementing admissions marketing campaigns for season ticket holders, mini plans, group tickets and picnic and suite areas.

Sanderson earned his undergraduate degree in exercise and sports science from ECU in 2003 and in May of 2006 completed his master's degree in exercise and sports science (sports management concentration).