By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
William & Mary third baseman Ben Williamson had gone 1-for-3, the hit being a home run, at No. 17 Virginia Tuesday afternoon. Yet after the team bus pulled into Plumeri Park that evening, Williamson grabbed a teammate and went directly to the batting cage.
Which probably would have been the case had he gone 3-for-3.
"We like putting in the extra work and making sure our swings stay where we want them to be,"
Williamson said. "That it's consistent every day. And we can compete at the highest level every day."
Williamson has been doing that. With the Tribe set to begin a three-game series against Charleston Friday at Plumeri, he is batting .420 (fifth in the conference) with two home runs and 11 RBI.
"He's been everything as advertised," W&M coach Mike McRae said, "and more."
To be clear, this production is not an anomaly. In his 113-game career at W&M, Williamson is hitting .308. He has more multi-hit games (39) than 0-fors (29). In his two seasons of summer ball, he batted .291 with the Tri-City Chili Peppers and .299 with the Vermont Mountaineers.
Batting second in the lineup, Williamson has struck out only three times in 61 plate appearances this season. His on-base percentage is .525.
Not that he's bragging about any of it.
"It's just a matter of showing up at the field every day and doing what it takes to win," said Williamson, a senior majoring in business analytics with a concentration in marketing. "If the stats come, they come."
One reason the hits are coming, Williamson believes, is the past two summers he spent in collegiate leagues.
The summer is big because you get about 40 games and around 200 extra at bats against good competition, arms you don't see every day," he said. "It's really big from a development standpoint because you can go out there and play.
"And it's not over-coached. So you can find out who you are as a player there and take it back to school.
Williamson has been just as valuable in the field. Last season, while splitting time between shortstop and third base, Williamson made only four errors in 165 chances (.976). He was named the CAA's Defensive Player of the Year.
This season, so far at least, he's played exclusively at third base.
"He's extremely valuable," McRae said. "I would make the argument that defensively third base gets taken advantage of as much as shortstop in the college game. It's a lot different than in the pro game."
As for which position he prefers, Williamson is fine either way.
"I just want to make plays," he said. "Help our pitchers out anyway I can."
The Tribe will begin conference play with a 7-6 overall record. Of its six losses, four have come by one run.
As expected, W&M's pitching has been outstanding with a conference-leading 3.36 ERA and an opponent's batting average of .232 (second). The offense remains a work in progress with a team batting average of .284, seventh in the conference. The Tribe does lead the Colonial in runs with 109, 59 of which came in a three-game sweep of Marist.
"Our pitching has been unreal," Williamson said. "We've had a number of guys step up (including) a lot of guys who were freshmen last year. As a team, we need to do better offensively so we can give those guys a little bit more run support."
The Tribe's first conference opponent is the overwhelming preseason favorite. Charleston (9-3) has beaten every team on its schedule so far at least once, a list that includes No. 11 Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina and Michigan State.
The games will be Friday at 3 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m.
"Every time we play against teams who are preseason favorites, we've got to play with a chip on our shoulder," Williamson said. "Coming in as the quote-unquote underdog is always fun because you play with a lot less pressure. We've got to take it to them this weekend."
