Varsity:
OHS’s varsity baseball team is springing into action this season with high intensity. After ending last season just short of a championship win, the team is back and ready to take back what they lost.
Not only is baseball a hard sport to compete in physically, it is also a mental game because players have to learn to push through the challenges that come with playing.
“No matter what happens you have to keep going, you have to keep playing through and just realize everything is going to even out,” said Jacoby Noble, sophomore.
The varsity team is tapped into good team chemistry. Which is key to playing well together.
“We try to play with more energy and pick each other up instead of trying to tear each other down,” said Brent Sollars, junior.
There is no bond stronger than one created from sports, and the OHS baseball team is no stranger to a good team connection.
“We’ve been hanging out almost every single day and we try to get together on the weekends and we have team dinners, and my favorite is when we play poker together,” Noble said.
The varsity team has many goals for this season to help motivate them to get far in this season. These goals are the foundation to the team’s success.
“The goal is always to play in the stadiums and at some point for them to play the perfect game,” said Jeff Baumgartner, head varsity coach.
Baseball is a highly competitive sport in the state of Arizona and in order to find success on the field it’s important to hold yourself to a high standard.
“I have a certain amount of standards that all the guys are trying to live up to and I’m constantly nagging that standard into them so we find success on the field,”Baumgartner said .
JV:
Last season the OHS JV team had a successful year and the players stepping up this season are carrying that momentum into the new year.
“I love getting to go out there and work hard while playing the game [baseball],” said Griffin Gregory, sophomore.
Similarly to the varsity level, at the JV level you still play an intense mental game.
“You have to have a short memory, if you go 0-4 you have to be able to come back and do better,” Gregory said .
In order to have a successful game, having self discipline is key to keep pushing yourself past mistakes.
“Baseball is a challenging game, when you do bad you have to control your emotions and you can’t let it get in your head,” said Clayton Sheets, sophomore.
The team dynamic of the JV team is what sets them apart from other teams they face.
“There is a lot of effort, everyone is working hard and ready to compete even during practices,” said Tyson Gorder, sophomore.
Freshmen:
A team to not be forgotten about is the OHS freshman team, they work hard everyday to live up to the expectations the teams ahead of them have set up
“We go out to every practice and work hard,” said Jameson Mohler, freshman.
Even at the freshmen level baseball is a hard mental and physical game that you need to be able to fight through.
“The constant practicing, the wear and tear on your body, you push your body past the limits and you have to learn how to deal with failure,” said Chase Waterbury, freshman.
At the end of the day, the wins and bonds created from their team chemistry makes all the hard work worth it.
“The teams are a lot of fun, I love winning with my teammates and basically everything about the team it’s a great environment,” said Sam Cruise, freshman.
