JUCO infielder Jonah Bride commits to Gamecocks
The South Carolina baseball team on Friday landed its third junior college commitment of the last month.
Infielder Jonah Bride of Neosho County Community College in Chanute, Kan., visited USC last weekend for the LSU series and gave his pledge to the Gamecocks a week later.
“Everything was wonderful. My visit was great,” he said. “The facilities, the coaches, everything made me feel like I was at home.”
Bride was named first team All Jayhawk Conference as a utility player for Neosho County. He hit .471 in 204 at-bats with a school-record 96 hits, 14 home runs and 93 RBIs.
The 93 RBIs rank second-best among players in the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Division 1, while the .471 batting average is fourth-best nationally.
Bride also had a .964 fielding percentage and 79 put-outs, earning a Gold Glove at third base. He was a first-team selection for the all-region team.
Bride (5-11, 195) is from Owasso, Okla. His high school teammate and best friend, Braden Webb, will also join the Gamecocks this fall after recovering from Tommy John surgery the past year.
Bride will play this summer for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters collegiate summer baseball team in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisc. He will compete for a spot in the Gamecocks infield in 2016. He mostly played third this season and played second base and shortstop in high school.
He was impressed with the atmosphere during the USC-LSU series.
“All the fans seemed die hard,” Bride said. “That’s what it’s all about, playing in front of people like that. The stadium is awesome. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Junior college influence
Jonah Bride is USC’s third junior college commitment of the last month. Also committing to the Gamecocks recently were first baseman Ross Grosvenor, from Walters State Community College in Morristown, Tenn.; and outfielder Dom Thompson-Williams of Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
This story was originally published May 22, 2015 at 7:09 PM.