Chattahoochee Valley Community College entered last season's Region 22 tournament ranked No. 2 in the nation. The Pirates made a quick exit, posting a 1-2 mark, much to the disappointment of head coach Adam Thomas and CVCC fans.

Thomas still has questions as to the fast fade to black of his Pirates, a team that posted 42-8 record last season and brought a wealth of veteran talent back for the 2009-10 season.

Thomas is convinced his club was the best in the nation and the facts back up the coach's claim.

The Pirates boasted five all-conference players in the lineup, three NJCAA academic All-Americans and an NJCAA honorable mention All-American in pitcher and seventh-round Arizona Diamondbacks draft pick Jeff Shields. Among the 17 sophomores from last season’s team, 16 signed with colleges or were drafted. The only unsigned player, pitcher Ethan Brubaker, turned down offers to instead focus on academics.

“I’ve never had a better team,” Thomas said. “We’ve had some good ones, and we’ve had a lot of great kids. But that group was just special.”