Austin Cairns pitches during a preseason matchup.-Photo by Brycen Guerrero
Coming off a 14-12 record for the 08-09 season, the baseball team has started off their preseason match-ups with state ranked opponents. The team started their first game in the hills of Loomis against the Golden Eagles of Del Oro where they faced off in a D-II vs. D-IV match-up. The Golden Eagles came out on top 7-1. The varsity team then traveled down the road to their across town rivals facing the Thunder of Rocklin. With already both teams coming into the game with two losses, the battle to lead the city of Rocklin in wins was on the line. The Thunder came out on top 13-3.
After facing two well known D-II programs in the Sac-Joaquin Section for their preseason, the team looks to capture their first ever PVL league championship. Junior Antonio Gonzalez knows, even with their current record of 2-4, that they have a good shot at winning the PVL championship after playing two Division II programs.
“We struggled a lot in preseason playing teams like Rocklin and Del Oro and I think once league starts we have a good chance at fighting for the league title,” Gonzalez said.
The varsity team is currently ranked 70th in the San Joaquin Section and 533rd in the state. The team only has one loss at home and a record of 2-3 away. Their first official league play is against El Dorado. El Dorado had won the PVL championship the previous year beating out No. 2 Placer and No. 3 Whitney. The cougars will face off with the wildcats with a current record of 9-1, only losing to Rio Linda.
The varsity group seems to be a senior heavy team this year returning five senior starters. Among the seniors with the highest stats from last year include Austin Cairns, Anthony Stang and Darrel Nygard. Two have played in the varsity program for four years and one for two. Cairns and Nygard led the team last year with the highest batting percentages, .468 for Cairns and .414 for Nygard. Nygard transferred from Woodcreek High School in 08 leaving an 18-11 baseball team that qualified for playoffs the previous year. Stang led the 08-09 team with the highest number of stolen bases at seven.
With a winning percentage at .333 %, the team has only allowed 43 runs and has scored 27 on their opponents. Cairns believes that they are getting over a hard patch in their season and it should be easier once they enter league.
“The teams we’ve played in preseason don’t even compare to league. I think our true record will show once league starts,” Cairns said.
The baseball team’s first league play will begin in Placerville, where they will face the Cougars of El Dorado today.
BY: JON POSEY
