Wesleyan baseball family honors Davis
BY MICHAEL LINDSAYENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — In nearly two decades of coaching, Scott Davis had plenty to show for where he took Wesleyan Christian’s baseball program.Certainly the dozens of jerseys and photos, notes and articles that easily filled several tables meant a lot. But the players and parents, friends and family, coaches and supporters that expressed their gratitude meant even more.
On Sunday afternoon, the school honored Davis — who, after 17 years as the head baseball coach, stepped down after last season — with a ceremony at the school during which his No. 16 jersey was retired.
“It kind of puts a bow on 17 years,” he said. “I’ve been in private business many, many years and this has always been a hobby that started as one year and turned into 17. And that was due to the tremendous relationships, tremendous players we’ve had over the years, tremendous administration.
“I’ve always enjoyed coaching, and I played the game at a high level. So, this kind of puts a bow on a nice career that we’ve had here. Coach (Mo) Blakeney has the reins now and I’m sure he’ll do a fantastic job, and I look forward to watching what the future holds with Wesleyan. We have it in a good place.”
Prior to Davis’ arrival in 2003, the baseball program at Wesleyan was just establishing its foundation. In four years, Tom Gates won 72 games and reached three straight state championships. So, the hope was to find someone who could continue the program’s rise.Davis, who played at Trinity and then one year at Ledford, played collegiately for two of the state’s most prominent baseball programs: Louisburg and N.C. State.
He’d had some interest in coaching once his playing days were done but opted to focus on building his business instead.So, after speaking with high school principal Tim Rickman, Davis accepted — but on a short-term basis. It grew from there.
“It was basically the influence of some of my friends here locally,” Davis said. “We had two or three of my buddies say, ‘Wesleyan needs a baseball coach.’ I played at N.C. State and I love baseball. So, Tim said, ‘We’d love to hire you,’ and I said, ‘I’ll give you one year.’
I was busy and travelling. And one year turned into 17.“It became more and more important for me, more and more of a passion. We built some relationships and started seeing the success we were having and the passion I had for preparing the kids. So, it really just gave me sat-isfaction to be able to coach at a school like Wesleyan and maintain a tremendous tradition and, at the same time, be blessed to be able to run my business.”
Over the years, the Trojans won five state championships (2008, 2010, 2016, 2017 and 2018) in 11 finals appearances and captured 15 conference titles, finishing in USA Today’s top 10 nationally in 2017 and 2018. Davis finished with a record of 337-90, winning nine conference coach of the year awards and the 2017 state high school coach of the year award.
“It’s been an honor for us to have him for 17 years,” Rickman said. “It’s been an honor for us to see him be as successful as he’s been. So, for us to be able to honor him has been great.“I think consistency has been the thing. And Scott bought in to the philosophy and the culture of the school. What we do as a school, his baseball team just becomes an arm of that.”
Several former players — including pro players Jon Olczak, who starred at N.C. State and now plays in the Brewers farm system, and Wil Myers, who plays for the Padres — spoke in person about the impact Davis had in their careers and their lives.
“Once I graduated and looked back on high school, I realized that there’s nobody better than Scott,” Jackson Prillaman said. “We put our heart and soul into him because he put his heart and soul into us. It was every day he was committed, and it means the world. And like I said, I would do anything to put on the Wesleyan jersey one more time.”
Mikel Rodenberg both played for Davis and, after graduating and playing collegiately at High Point, returned to coach alongside him.“As a player, I had him during his very first year here,” he said. “I was a freshman and the youngest one on the team. And having him all four years taught me how to take things from a professional approach and how to carry yourself in a way of excellence, having that winning mentality wherever you go. It not only changes the game but, off the field, how you approach your work, your family and every-thing you do.”
Davis expected his players to be prepared, work hard and compete — no matter who they were or what their relationship was. Billy Wilson has known Davis since their playing days and was one of the people who suggested him for the job. But when son Weston played at Wesleyan, he had to fight for his spot.
“I’ve known Coach Davis ever since I was a little kid,” said Weston Wilson, who starred at Clemson, now plays in the Brewers organization and was one of several players — including N.C. State’s Patrick Bailey and South Carolina’s Brett Kerry — to send video messages.
“My parents asked him to be my godfather, so we were close growing up.“And I played for him before I went there and he was like, ‘Look, I know I’m your godfather and we have a relationship. But once you come here and play, it’s not going to be like that. I’m not guaranteeing you a spot, I’m not guaranteeing you anything. But, obviously, if you want to come here, we’d love to have you.’
“So, I had to work for everything that I got there. And I appreciate that — it helped me. I had to work harder and nothing was given to me. ... Every year I was there we had a very good team. There was competition and I think he did a very good job with that and I think he was a very fair coach. He really prepared me for college baseball and especially pro ball.”
Players did note that playing for Davis was challenging. Much of that came from his own experience, he said in his speech. He talked about the influence of his coaches — including Pete Hunsucker in Trinity and Gary Hinkle at Ledford, Russ Frazier at Louisburg, and Sam Esposito and Ray Tanner at N.C. State.
Tanner once told him, “Always do what’s best for your team. If you do that, then you’ll be fine,” Davis said, which stuck with him throughout his career.He spoke about the influence of his parents — who loved and provided for him and his brother, Jay, but were also tough — as well as his friends and teammates, many of whom were in attendance.
He also talked about the support of the Wesleyan administration, staff and coaches, the players and their families.Davis also invited several opposing coaches — including Charlotte Christian’s Greg Simmons, whom he faced nine times in the state finals. Much of his suc-cess, he said, came from simply wanting to compete with — and beat — the other teams in the area that’d had so much success.
“This is some of the best baseball in the state,” Davis said. “So, you’ve got to prepare your kids to compete. I just tried to make sure my kids were prepared. We couldn’t control the wins and losses, but we could control preparation. We had some barnburner games with many schools over the years. And you had to be prepared, and that was right up my alley.
“I like preparing my teams and my kids responded to it. We learned through a lot of losses too. It wasn’t just the wins and the state titles — it was the losses too and figuring out: Here’s what happened, here’s what we have to do better and maybe the results will be a little better. That also teaches them about life. You can’t sleep in if you want a job — you’ve got to compete, you’ve got to prepare.”
The players that came through the program, Davis said, were also some of the best from the area. Many players have had successful collegiate careers and a handful have played professionally. But to see the players whose careers didn’t extend beyond high school have success meant a lot too.And that’s what Davis ultimately wanted out of his coaching career — to help all of his players work hard and succeed, like the people who helped him
.“It’s rewarding to hear those things, but I didn’t get here because I’m great,” Davis said. “I got here because of the influence of so many people. All coaches will tell you this — it’s Coach Hunsucker, it’s Coach Frazier, it’s my mom and dad and my brother. It’s that influ-ence that’s made me who I am that I can con-vey to my team in ways I experienced it that they can understand and cause them to have success in life and on the field.
BY MICHAEL LINDSAYENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — In nearly two decades of coaching, Scott Davis had plenty to show for where he took Wesleyan Christian’s baseball program.Certainly the dozens of jerseys and photos, notes and articles that easily filled several tables meant a lot. But the players and parents, friends and family, coaches and supporters that expressed their gratitude meant even more.
On Sunday afternoon, the school honored Davis — who, after 17 years as the head baseball coach, stepped down after last season — with a ceremony at the school during which his No. 16 jersey was retired.
“It kind of puts a bow on 17 years,” he said. “I’ve been in private business many, many years and this has always been a hobby that started as one year and turned into 17. And that was due to the tremendous relationships, tremendous players we’ve had over the years, tremendous administration.
“I’ve always enjoyed coaching, and I played the game at a high level. So, this kind of puts a bow on a nice career that we’ve had here. Coach (Mo) Blakeney has the reins now and I’m sure he’ll do a fantastic job, and I look forward to watching what the future holds with Wesleyan. We have it in a good place.”
Prior to Davis’ arrival in 2003, the baseball program at Wesleyan was just establishing its foundation. In four years, Tom Gates won 72 games and reached three straight state championships. So, the hope was to find someone who could continue the program’s rise.Davis, who played at Trinity and then one year at Ledford, played collegiately for two of the state’s most prominent baseball programs: Louisburg and N.C. State.
He’d had some interest in coaching once his playing days were done but opted to focus on building his business instead.So, after speaking with high school principal Tim Rickman, Davis accepted — but on a short-term basis. It grew from there.
“It was basically the influence of some of my friends here locally,” Davis said. “We had two or three of my buddies say, ‘Wesleyan needs a baseball coach.’ I played at N.C. State and I love baseball. So, Tim said, ‘We’d love to hire you,’ and I said, ‘I’ll give you one year.’
I was busy and travelling. And one year turned into 17.“It became more and more important for me, more and more of a passion. We built some relationships and started seeing the success we were having and the passion I had for preparing the kids. So, it really just gave me sat-isfaction to be able to coach at a school like Wesleyan and maintain a tremendous tradition and, at the same time, be blessed to be able to run my business.”
Over the years, the Trojans won five state championships (2008, 2010, 2016, 2017 and 2018) in 11 finals appearances and captured 15 conference titles, finishing in USA Today’s top 10 nationally in 2017 and 2018. Davis finished with a record of 337-90, winning nine conference coach of the year awards and the 2017 state high school coach of the year award.
“It’s been an honor for us to have him for 17 years,” Rickman said. “It’s been an honor for us to see him be as successful as he’s been. So, for us to be able to honor him has been great.“I think consistency has been the thing. And Scott bought in to the philosophy and the culture of the school. What we do as a school, his baseball team just becomes an arm of that.”
Several former players — including pro players Jon Olczak, who starred at N.C. State and now plays in the Brewers farm system, and Wil Myers, who plays for the Padres — spoke in person about the impact Davis had in their careers and their lives.
“Once I graduated and looked back on high school, I realized that there’s nobody better than Scott,” Jackson Prillaman said. “We put our heart and soul into him because he put his heart and soul into us. It was every day he was committed, and it means the world. And like I said, I would do anything to put on the Wesleyan jersey one more time.”
Mikel Rodenberg both played for Davis and, after graduating and playing collegiately at High Point, returned to coach alongside him.“As a player, I had him during his very first year here,” he said. “I was a freshman and the youngest one on the team. And having him all four years taught me how to take things from a professional approach and how to carry yourself in a way of excellence, having that winning mentality wherever you go. It not only changes the game but, off the field, how you approach your work, your family and every-thing you do.”
Davis expected his players to be prepared, work hard and compete — no matter who they were or what their relationship was. Billy Wilson has known Davis since their playing days and was one of the people who suggested him for the job. But when son Weston played at Wesleyan, he had to fight for his spot.
“I’ve known Coach Davis ever since I was a little kid,” said Weston Wilson, who starred at Clemson, now plays in the Brewers organization and was one of several players — including N.C. State’s Patrick Bailey and South Carolina’s Brett Kerry — to send video messages.
“My parents asked him to be my godfather, so we were close growing up.“And I played for him before I went there and he was like, ‘Look, I know I’m your godfather and we have a relationship. But once you come here and play, it’s not going to be like that. I’m not guaranteeing you a spot, I’m not guaranteeing you anything. But, obviously, if you want to come here, we’d love to have you.’
“So, I had to work for everything that I got there. And I appreciate that — it helped me. I had to work harder and nothing was given to me. ... Every year I was there we had a very good team. There was competition and I think he did a very good job with that and I think he was a very fair coach. He really prepared me for college baseball and especially pro ball.”
Players did note that playing for Davis was challenging. Much of that came from his own experience, he said in his speech. He talked about the influence of his coaches — including Pete Hunsucker in Trinity and Gary Hinkle at Ledford, Russ Frazier at Louisburg, and Sam Esposito and Ray Tanner at N.C. State.
Tanner once told him, “Always do what’s best for your team. If you do that, then you’ll be fine,” Davis said, which stuck with him throughout his career.He spoke about the influence of his parents — who loved and provided for him and his brother, Jay, but were also tough — as well as his friends and teammates, many of whom were in attendance.
He also talked about the support of the Wesleyan administration, staff and coaches, the players and their families.Davis also invited several opposing coaches — including Charlotte Christian’s Greg Simmons, whom he faced nine times in the state finals. Much of his suc-cess, he said, came from simply wanting to compete with — and beat — the other teams in the area that’d had so much success.
“This is some of the best baseball in the state,” Davis said. “So, you’ve got to prepare your kids to compete. I just tried to make sure my kids were prepared. We couldn’t control the wins and losses, but we could control preparation. We had some barnburner games with many schools over the years. And you had to be prepared, and that was right up my alley.
“I like preparing my teams and my kids responded to it. We learned through a lot of losses too. It wasn’t just the wins and the state titles — it was the losses too and figuring out: Here’s what happened, here’s what we have to do better and maybe the results will be a little better. That also teaches them about life. You can’t sleep in if you want a job — you’ve got to compete, you’ve got to prepare.”
The players that came through the program, Davis said, were also some of the best from the area. Many players have had successful collegiate careers and a handful have played professionally. But to see the players whose careers didn’t extend beyond high school have success meant a lot too.And that’s what Davis ultimately wanted out of his coaching career — to help all of his players work hard and succeed, like the people who helped him
.“It’s rewarding to hear those things, but I didn’t get here because I’m great,” Davis said. “I got here because of the influence of so many people. All coaches will tell you this — it’s Coach Hunsucker, it’s Coach Frazier, it’s my mom and dad and my brother. It’s that influ-ence that’s made me who I am that I can con-vey to my team in ways I experienced it that they can understand and cause them to have success in life and on the field.
