COLUMBIA -- The college roller coaster for University of South Carolina baseball player Harley Lail is near the end of its run.

An Indian Land High graduate, Lail, who graduated earlier this month with a degree in retail management, is heading into the twilight of his college baseball career.

With the SEC Tournament this week and the NCAA regional playoffs near, the 17th-ranked Gamecocks are quietly in the hunt and Lail is right in the mix.

Lail has started all 56 games this year for South Carolina and ended the regular season with a .238 average with five home runs and 27 RBIs.

"The year has been going well," he said. "We have had some ups and downs. This year hasn't been what I wanted, but I am still playing. I can't complain."

Lail is in his second year at USC after transferring from Spartanburg Methodist. He has been with the team for three years, but had was medically red-shirted his first year and played in just seven games.

Last year, he started in 44 of the 50 games he played and hit .291 with four home runs and 25 RBIs.

Lail has been called "a true face of Carolina baseball" by his coaches and is known for his work ethic and hard play. Although he said this year hasn't been that good for him on the field as he would like, he said making the transition from a small Class A school to playing major Division I baseball has been a process.

While at Spartanburg Methodist, Lail finished his sophomore season with a .397 average and his 13 home runs. He earned All-District honors and made the All-Region team in 2005. There just two years, Lail said it prepared him to make the move to Division I baseball.

"It's a huge difference when I transferred here," Lail said. "Baseball-wise, I came from a small school and it was a big difference. It's top notch baseball. The pitchers you face are all first rate pitchers. It's a big difference."

But Lail has adjusted, but strives to improve. He had talked with some major league baseball teams that were interested in him before the season, but worries that with his numbers being lower than he would like, come June, his phone might not ring.

"As far as myself, I expect big things," he said. "I'm never pleased. Even if I came from a small school, I feel like I have got the same ability as some one from a big school."