Spring Creek grad Will Rouse signs with Lenoir CC

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on June 28, 2016 1:48 PM

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bcoley@newsargus.com

SEVEN SPRINGS -- Spring Creek head coach Heath Whitfield views pitcher Will Rouse as a leader by example.

No yelling, crying or any sort of demonstrative behavior. The young pitcher projects a quiet, mild-mannered personality.

The resounding sound of the baseball popping into the catcher's glove is loud enough to get his point across. So loud, that it attracted the attention of coaches from Lenoir Community College, where Rouse plans to play next season.

When deciding on colleges, proximity was a major factor in Rouse's decision. He was contacted by a couple of distant Division III schools, but Rouse made it known from the beginning that he preferred to stay close to home.

LCC -- just 20.6 miles and 26 minutes away from Spring Creek -- seemed like the perfect fit.

"They're a small school, and have a good student-to-teacher ratio," Rouse said. "They have nice sports facilities and campus facilities."

Rouse may be attending a small school, but he is bringing a big right arm along for the trip. This past season, the right-hander tallied a 9-1 record and 1.66 earned run average (ERA).

He struck out 56 batters and allowed just nine walks in 712/3 innings.

"(Lenoir) is getting a guy who can throw three pitches for strikes," Whitfield said. "And he can pound the strike zone with sort of a heavy sinking two-seamer. He gets a lot of groundballs, and if you put a good defense behind him, he'll get a lot of outs.

"He's not going to beat himself."

Rouse's performance in the 2016 season earned him all-Carolina 1A Conference honors for the second season in a row, which matched Spring Creek's two consecutive Carolina 1A Conference titles.

Humble and soft-spoken, Rouse owed all of his success to the eight other players on the field.

"My team behind me definitely," said Rouse, referring to his source of success. "Like Coach (Whitfield) said, I pitch a lot of groundballs. I don't strike a ton of people out, so I rely heavily on my defense."

Rouse will be entering a program with plenty of stability at the leadership positions. Lenoir Community head coach Stony Wine has been with the program for 11 years, and he has been assisted by coach Charles Tilghman for the past nine years.

Despite his fruitful career as a Gator, Rouse is well aware that the next level will bring its own difficult challenges. And he is willing to work his way up the ladder once again.

"I'm definitely going to have to earn my spot," Rouse said. "I need to get stronger, and just help the team the best I can."

Rouse said that his strength lies in his off-speed pitches, but added that he needs to work on his velocity. This summer, he plans on hitting the weight room, getting faster and throwing in the bullpen.

Whitfield knew toward the end of Rouse's junior season that his star pitcher had the tools to play at the next level. It was a time in which he began to claim his spot as the ace on the Spring Creek pitching staff.

If Rouse listens to the LCC coaching staff and does what is asked of him, there is little doubt in Whitfield's mind that the young pitcher can play a major role for his new team.

After watching Rouse play for the past few seasons, Whitfield knows that the right-hander's exemplary actions speak much louder than his terse words.

"He's not a really rah rah or vocal type of guy," Whitfield said. "But he plays the game hard and runs the bases hard. He goes about things the right way. He's a team player."