BRIDGEWATER, Va. - Bridgewater College shortstop Jacob Talley was a model of consistency in the lineup during his four seasons with the Eagles.
Talley made an immediate impact on the diamond, leading the Eagles in hitting as a freshman with a .357 average while earning third-team All-ODAC honors.
The Mineral, Va., native backed up his outstanding first season by hitting .359 as a sophomore and .336 as a junior. The .336 batting average, coupled with a solid .946 fielding percentage during his junior year earned Talley a spot on the 2019 All-ODAC first team.
Talley was on pace for another standout season before his senior year was cut short.. He was hitting .362 and led the Eagles with 17 RBIs and a .569 slugging percentage.
"When you're a senior, you know that day is going to come when you play your last game, but for us it came sooner than we would have ever expected," Talley said. "It's heartbreaking, not getting to finish out the year with your teammates. Definitely not the way we wanted to go out."
Talley said the way the team played during the 15 games this spring offers some satisfaction. The Eagles were 11-4 overall and 2-1 in ODAC play.
"The way we were playing, on one hand it makes it easier to accept how our year ended, but it also makes it harder," he explained. "We were playing some good baseball. There's always going to be the 'what if.' You'll never know what might have happened. That's the part that makes it tough. As seniors, we can look back and say that we had a hand in getting the program headed back in the right direction. I think that's really a positive. Hopefully, the guys who come back next year can push the program forward."
Eagles' head coach Ben Spotts appreciated Talley's commitment to the program. "From my opening press conference, Jake Talley was there. Every interaction I had with him was positive. He was eager to do whatever I needed," Spotts said. "Coaching against him, I knew he was good. Watching him every day, he's really good. As an assistant, I was fortunate to coach some pretty good shortstops at Bridgewater. They're all different, but Jake is one of the best."
Despite seeing his final season cut short, Talley still etched his name into the Eagles' career record book, ranking 12th with 174 career base hits and 14th in doubles with 33. He was on pace to become just the seventh player in program history to reach the 200-hit mark.
Talley was also a consistent performer in the classroom, earning All-ODAC academic honors each season. The history and political science major has started applying for jobs as he looks forward to his future.
"I want to be a high school teacher and baseball coach, maybe a basketball coach. If I could do it back in my home town in Louisa that would be awesome."
