Deacon Sports Xtra: Lowder Soaking In Memorable Experience with Collegiate National Team
7/7/2022 8:00:00 AM | Baseball, Les Johns
“It’s really fun and thrilling to represent our country and also be able to share the experience with a couple of my teammates.”
In three innings of work on the mound during the USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team training camp last week, Wake Forest starter Rhett Lowder was dominant, striking out six against zero walks and no earned runs. Lowder was touching mid-90s on his fastball and fooled some of the best hitters in college baseball with unhittable offspeed pitches.
"It's super exciting just meeting all these guys who we've played against all year," Lowder said about the USA Baseball experience. "It's really fun and thrilling to represent our country and also be able to share the experience with a couple of my teammates."
Lowder and Wake Forest teammate Teddy McGraw both received good news on Tuesday afternoon as USA Baseball announced the pair of Demon Deacon arms landed on the 26-man roster that will travel to the Netherlands on Wednesday and begin Honkbalweek Haarlem on Saturday, July 9.
#ForGlory 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/5Iq7INA1Zv
— Rhett Lowder (@lowderrhett) July 5, 2022
The stars and stripes open against Japan at 8 a.m. ET and follow with games against Italy, Cuba, the Netherlands and Curacao to complete group play. All games will be streamed online via HonkbalSoftbal.tv.
Lowder and McGraw join Johnny Aiello (2017), Kyle Sleeth (2002), Bret Wagner (1993), Jake Austin (1989) and Erik Hansen (1985) as Wake Forest representatives on the national team.
Wake Forest is one of five schools in the nation with multiple players on this year's squad (Florida State, LSU, Ole Miss and Vanderbilt). Additionally, the Deacs were one of three schools to have three participants at the week-long training camp as Brock Wilken joined the pair of arms during exhibition games in Cary, Durham and Charlotte.
Lowder, who became the first Demon Deacon ever to be named ACC Pitcher of the Year on May 23, has gone on to become the third Unanimous All-American in Wake Forest history, joining Will Craig (2015-16) and Stuart Fairchild (2017) in grabbing all six All-America honors in the same season.
"It was awesome and very exciting," Lowder said. "But that's just a testament to what we did as a team this year. I couldn't have done it without the guys. I definitely view it as a team award."
Lowder finished the season with an 11-3 record and a 3.08 ERA, leading the ACC in wins while coming in third in the conference in ERA and strikeouts (105).
It's unlikely Lowder will pitch on the Cape this summer, as he plans on resting his arm after his time with USA Baseball is concluded.
"I just want to enjoy my time here and soak in everything, however long that might be," he said. "I'm going to enjoy this time and compete with the guys. I've thrown a lot this year, so I don't know if there will be more competition after this. I want to get stronger and then get back to meet the guys who are coming in for summer school.
"When I'm done here, it will be a down period. I don't know for sure. I'm just going to enjoy my time and see where it takes me."
While Lowder has been collecting awards and competing in USA Baseball, Wake Forest Baseball has been adding to its 2023 roster with some key position players and added depth on the mound.
"It's awesome and it makes me that much more excited to get back to campus and meet my new teammates," Lowder said.
The Demon Deacons put together an incredible 21-game improvement this season versus the 2021 campaign, and earned a spot in the Maryland Regional. A late-season sweep at NC State seemed to seal the inclusion of Wake Forest into the NCAA Tournament field, and then a win over highly-ranked Miami in the ACC Tournament likely improved its seeding. With a young nucleus returning for 2023, the Deacs believe they can take the next step.
"It's a long season," Lowder said. "We played well with our backs against the wall. We swept the series at NC State and then beat a really good Miami team.
"Obviously, we didn't play the way we wanted to in the regional. But it was a good experience with a lot of young guys. We'll be ready next year, hopefully at our place. It was a good learning experience."
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