If there is anything more extraordinary than the Jesuit Rangers baseball team’s new home, Wright Field, it would have to be the baseball the Rangers squad have been playing there this season.
The Rangers stormed into the post-season after completing a four game sweep of district rivals Irving MacArthur and RL Turner from April 21 to May 1, setting up what the team hopes will be a playoff run for the ages.
Even before the final two series of the district season, the Rangers dominated their opponents, defeating them by an average of 5.4 runs per game. The team’s final four district games were no different.
Against Irving MacArthur on Tuesday, April 21st, the Rangers hauled in seven runs in the first three innings to put the game out of MacArthur’s reach. Senior outfielder Grant Reuben ’15 put the team on the board early by powering a two-run single in the first inning. Senior first baseman Nick Ready ’15 was fantastic, boasting 3 RBIs on only a single hit, with a home run in the third inning. The Rangers ultimately earned the win in a 7-0 shut out.
The following Saturday was the same story we’ve heard all year: domination. The Rangers destroyed the Irving MacArthur Cardinals 13-1, giving the Rangers the outright district title. Jesuit got off to a red-hot start, scoring 11 of their 13 runs in the first 3 innings. Home runs by junior Kyle Muller and two of the team’s senior captains, outfielder Darius Hill and Nic Ready helped seal the win.
Not surprisingly, these wins against MacArthur were memorable for members of the Rangers squad. When asked how these wins felt, Junior outfielder Jared Bond ’16 said, “Playing the last games to clinch the district was a truly memorable experience.”
The Rangers’ continued their winning ways in the final two games of the district season. On Tuesday April 28, they beat RL Turner 8-0. They scored half their runs in an almost flawless fourth inning. Darius Hill had a two-run single, followed by a Nic Ready sacrifice fly that drove in Hill, and a solo home run by Kyle Muller. Muller was particularly impressive at the plate, going 2-4 with the solo home run and another RBI.
In their final district game of the season, with the outright district championship already in the books, the Rangers looked to finish the district season undefeated. That second game against Turner on May 1 was not quite as easy the first, however. The Rangers put three runs on the board in the first inning. Nic Ready’s RBI double drove in Darius Hill, followed by Ready scoring on a Turner fielding error. Later in the first, senior catcher Cole House grounded out but drove in Grant Rueben to give the Rangers a solid early lead. Turner would score a pair in the top of the third inning, but the Rangers answered with two of their own in the bottom of the third to put them on top for good. Jesuit pulled out the win with a final score of 5-3.
These final four games of the regular season capped off an amazing district season for the Rangers. The team finished district undefeated at 14-0 and closed out the regular season riding an astounding 16 game win streak. Outfielder Jared Bond says credit goes to everyone in the lineup. “It hasn’t been a one sided effort. It truly has taken the whole team from lock-down defense to explosive offense to take us where we are. Our pitching staff dominates while our offense puts up at least 5 runs a game.”
When asked what he thinks the team’s biggest area of improvement has been as the season progressed, Head Coach Matt Jones felt it was “coming together and being a true team. Going in we knew that we had talented individuals, and a lot of the time talented individuals don’t play well together, because they are looking out for themselves. I think the big thing for us is being able to come together as a team, and sacrificing for the team if need be.”
Heading into the playoffs, the Rangers are showing the kind of maturity and confidence that teams need to make a post-season run. As Coach Jones noted, “I’ve seen some things with the latter part of district. We’ve been in a couple of close games, and the thing is we didn’t panic, we stayed calm, we stayed under control … In that confidence knowing that we could battle back or we could maintain where we were and eventually end up winning the game. That was what was big and good to see.”
Finishing undefeated in district play has not gone unnoticed. MaxPreps recently ranked Jesuit third in the nation in its Top 25. Coach Jones has the team focused on the road ahead rather than headlines. “We are honored to be there, obviously it puts the spotlight on us. We try to stay away from those types of things. We don’t talk about it, we don’t gloat about it, we don’t go around putting our chests out on something like that, because you still got to play the games, no matter who’s across from you, you still gotta play … We maybe district champs, but playoffs is a different season, and we are playing one week at a time, and our expectations are high, but we still have to go out there and go play the game.”
The Rangers have opened the post-season doing exactly that. The team won its first round playoff series against Mesquite in a two game sweep this past Thursday and Friday. Let’s hope the lights continue to shine bright for the Rangers for five more weeks.
