ODU at NAIA Baseball World Series
May 23, 2003
Mark Znidan
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
After playing baseball for two years at Ohio Dominican, Derrick Wright thinks he knows all there is to know about coach Paul Page.
On second thought, Wright sometimes wonders whether Page has a home.
"Coach is normally here at school from the crack of dawn until 7 or 8 at night," said Wright, a senior third baseman. "Coach works some really long days."
Page's extra toil has helped transform the Panthers (39-16) into one of the best NAIA teams in the country. They'll begin play in their third straight World Series against Olivet Nazarene (45-8) this morning in Lewiston, Idaho.
As Ohio Dominican held its final workout this week, however, Page questioned himself. "I don't know. I look at our records and maybe we should be winning more," he said. "We've gotten to the World Series, sure. But we've never won a lot there."
But, Page has won a lot in 16 seasons at Ohio Dominican. He has a 615-265-5 record and sent four teams to the NAIA World Series. He's won six regular-season and seven tournament championships in the American Mideast Conference. Page said the players, assistants and athletics department staff have made winning easier. Wright, however, said everything starts with Page. "Coach wears his heart on his sleeve," he said. "He's so hands-on, and not just as a coach. He's concerned about your school, your family and how you're doing overall. "On the field, pitch for pitch he's so focused. That's why we're so successful. Coach is always telling us that every little thing counts. He tells us that every player -- and that includes backups -- plays a part in the team's success."
Page said hard work has been his credo since growing up in Williamstown, W.Va., a city of 3,000 on the Ohio River. He was an All-Ohio Athletic Conference catcher at Muskingum. "That's the way I've been taught," Page said. Veteran coaches "Ron Polk at Mississippi State and Don Schaly at Marietta knocked it into me that you do things a certain way. I coach that it's a team effort. "It starts with caring about your players. When they're here, sometimes I don't think they know how much we care. We do ask a lot of them. We're trying to develop young men, not just baseball players. So what's rewarding is when these guys come back and tell us how much they appreciate the coaches here."
Asked about the team's chances in the World Series, Page thought before answering. "You know, I love these players, but sometimes they tend to let down if you're not on them all the time," he said. "They play better when I get on them. So maybe I'm going to get upset and we'll win some games."
Reprinted with permission, The Columbus Dispatch, © 2003.
