Ah, it’s finally that time of the year where the Jesuit Rangers baseball team is getting into full swing and starting district play. For the Rangers so far, this season has been nothing short of solid, as they have won 9 straight games.
After a series of scrimmages, the Rangers went down to Austin where they opened the regular season in the annual Austin Tournament. The Rangers started off with a great 7-5 offensive win against Magnolia high school but fell short 2-6 later that night to a very impressive Lake Travis team.
The next day in the tournament was not as successful for the Rangers as they were defeated 2-3 by Pflugerville despite a solid pitching performance by the Rangers. Later that day, the Rangers took on O’Conner high school where they competed against one of the top offenses in the state and lost 4-8. The following day, the Rangers took on Cedar Park and San Angelo Central where they found themselves on the losing side 6-8 and 4-7.
Senior outfielder John Michael Lucido, along with the whole team, was disappointed with how the Rangers played in the tournament. Despite losing five straight games, Lucido commented that “we played two state ranked teams and we played them both tough, staying with them throughout the game.” Lucido also added that the Rangers have a young team, and some of the players were nervous in their first varsity game.
With fierce determination, the Rangers’ high-powered offense helped them win 6 straight games in the Jesuit Classic and improve to become one of the best teams in the district. The Rangers shut out their district opponent Irving 10-0 behind a ridiculous 1 hit complete game pitched by Luke Gibbons ’14. That night, Kyle Muller ’16 registered his first varsity homerun, lifting the Rangers to a 10-3 victory over Red Oak.
The following day, the Rangers got off to a solid start, defeating one of the top team’s in the state, Rockwall, 3-2. With a solid pitching performance, Chris Muller ’14 earned the win with a walk-off hit by Nic Ready ’15. The Rangers also defeated Grapevine Faith 9-8 in an explosive offensive game for both teams.
On the final day of the Jesuit Classic, the Rangers continued their win streak against archrival Bishop Lynch 8-1. Kyle Muller pitched nearly the whole game and only allowed one run en route to his first career varsity win. The Rangers finished the tournament with a 6-5 victory over Plano West behind a very solid complete game by Pete Hamrick ’16.
Hamrick was not surprised with the way his team responded. Hamrick added that he “knew [they] had the potential to win every game” and that “this was really where we started to play together as a team.”
Coach Brian Jones had a very similar opinion to Hamrick’s, adding that he was “impressed as to how we rebounded after the opening season tournament.” Jones added that West Virginia commit Darius Hill ’15 stood out in the tournament, registering 11 RBI’s, 5 triples, 3 doubles and an overall batting average of .685.
Three days later, the Rangers took on district rival Skyline Raiders where they left the field with a 9-0 victory behind Gibbons’ second shutout of the season. In the next game, the Rangers had a very unique experience, as they took on Byron Nelson at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Chris Muller had a dominant pitching performance in this game, earning the win along with solid pitching by Harrison Folk ’15, Gibbons and even a save by Kyle Muller, ending the game with a 9-7 victory.
Chris Muller continued his success against Berkner where he only allowed 1 run in a matchup against one of the best pitcher’s in the state. Coach Jones was excited with the way his team played in this game–especially since Berkner is one of the top competitors in the district.
Coach Jones is impressed with how his team has played so far this season, and his expectations have remained the same. Jones and the entire Rangers baseball team believes that they can win 20 regular season games and continue their success in the playoffs.
The Rangers have now emerged as the top team in the district.
