The ECU baseball team held its first official spring practice under fifth-year head coach Cliff Godwin Friday afternoon at Lewis Field inside Clark-LeClair Stadium.
 
Godwin and his staff guided the Pirates through a three-hour workout consisting 90-minutes of drills and a five-inning scrimmage, where ECU hurlers took the mound pitching to live hitters for the first time since the fall Purple-Gold World Series.
 
The Pirates return 23 letterwinners, including USA Collegiate National Team members Jake Agnos and All-American Bryant Packard, 2018 American Athletic Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player Spencer Brickhouse (2017), Freshman All-America selection Alec Burleson (2018), 2018 All-AAC performers Brady Lloyd and Tyler Smith, as well as 2018 AAC All-Tournament honorees Turner Brown and Jake Kuchmaner.
 
Also stepping onto the diamond are 10 newcomers, which features five position players, three pitchers and a pair of two-way players. The 2018-19 recruiting class consists of two infielders (Thomas Francisco and Ryder Giles), three outfielders (Lane Hoover, Christian Jayne and Christian Smallwood), a pair of two-way players (Connor Norby and Stephen Wilmer) and three pitchers (Evan Odum, Garrett Saylor and Carter Spivey). In all, the roster consists of eight freshmen, seven sophomores, 10 juniors and seven seniors.
 
The Pirates, who are set to open their 85th season of intercollegiate baseball on Feb. 15 at home against Radford, won the 1961 NAIA National Championship, have claimed 25 conference titles (13 regular season/12 tournament), made 29 NCAA Regionals and advanced to four Super Regionals (2001, 2004, 2009 and 2016).
 
Season tickets are officially on sale with packages starting as low as $120. Pirate fans have seven different options to choose from and can purchase their 2018 tickets by utilizing ECU’s Online Ticket Center or by contacting the ECU Athletic Ticket Office at (252) 737-4500.
 
Ticket Options
Chair Back with Seat Rights – $200
Chair Back Upgrade (must have Pirate Club approval) – $400
Regular Reserved Bench – $200
Faculty/Staff Reserved Bench – $160
Senior Citizen Reserved Bench – $160
Young Grad Reserved Bench – $120
Economy Plan (Section 201/202 & Jungle) – $120