Banner Tuesday for Post 1 coach

By: | SCNow
Published: June 12, 2009

Tuesday was quite a day for Post 1 coach Derick Urquhart.

At 7:40 p.m., Urquhart became a father with the birth of Catherine Dawes.

About two hours later, Florence defeated Georgetown 6-4 for Urquhart’s 100th career win as a coach.

“It was definitely a day I’ll never forget,” said Urquhart, who did not attend the game. “I know (assistant coach) Kevin Smith has been joking that he’s 1-0 and I’m still stuck on 99 (wins).

“But Kevin and Payne Parker did a great job of getting our guys down there and focused and came out with a win.”

Now in his sixth season at Post 1, Urquhart is 100-58 (.633 winning percentage).

“I had kind of forgotten about the 100-win stat until recently,” Urquhart said. “I wasn’t able to be there, but the coaches sent me text updates every so often, so I was able to feel a part of it.”

Post 1’s next game is today in Sumter at the N.C. vs. S.C. Legion Challenge. Urquhart, though, isn’t sure when he’ll return to the team.

“I’d like to get out there one day this weekend, but it will all depend,” Urquhart said. “Right now, I’m focused on the health of my baby and my wife.”

League II update
Post 1 is in first place in League II with a 3-0 record.

Florence defeated Lake City 3-1 on Monday before beating Georgetown on Tuesday.

Murrells Inlet is in second with a 1-1 record and Lake City, Conway and Georgetown are all tied for third a 1-2.

“We’ve seen everyone but Murrells Inlet, and it’s been about what I expected,” Urquhart said. “We had a big game against Conway, but the games against Lake City and Georgetown were very close.

“Everyone is within a few games of each other, and I don’t expect that to change.”

Strength in arms
Urquhart wanted more pitching depth this season without a dropoff in talent.

So far, Post 1’s pitching has been it’s strongest department.

Florence has a team earned run average of 2.61.

“Last year, our ERA wound up being over six, so this is a definite plus early on,” Urquhart said. “Pitching has been carrying us so far.”

Florence has struggled at the plate, however, batting just .275 as a team.

“We’ve never had a team bat under .300,” Urquhart said. “Part of it is we’re still trying to find the right lineup. But we’ll see who our best nine are in the next few weeks.”

Cutting down on errors is also a priority. Post 1 has made nine in five games.