The smells of hot dogs and nachos fill the air. The incessant heckling by Jesuit students rings throughout the stands as each opposing hitter steps into the batter’s box. The melodic chorus of Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” plays during the middle of the 5th inning. Yes, that’s right… Jesuit Baseball has returned to Wright Field and with the team a little over halfway through their district schedule, it’s time for a quick recap of the first half of the season.
While snow and ice did cancel the Weatherford Tournament in which the Rangers were set to face state-ranked Smithson Valley and Aledo, nevertheless, the Rangers started off strong with a dominant win over Little Elm to start the season, paving the way for a six-game stretch in the Collin County Invitational. In this tournament, the Rangers battled to a 4-2 record on the weekend. Freshman Jake Fults threw a no-hitter in his first-ever varsity start, earning him Jesuit Athlete of the Week. Not to mention, junior Luke Isett was awarded Prep Baseball Report Pitcher of the Week for his dominant performances over Little Elm and Midlothian Heritage, allowing just 2 hits across 10 innings.
The following week, the team carried its momentum to a 4-0 record in the Frisco Tournament. On the pitching side, Luke Isett ‘23 threw another gem, going 7 strong innings in a 1-0 win over Burleson. Not to mention, junior Callen Singhania and senior Jake Storey carried the offense combining for 11 hits and 11 RBIs.
Nevertheless, as in all good teams, along with success comes to a few failures and shortcomings and the team lost a few heartbreakers in the first half of the district. After losing a 2-0 game to district rival JJ Pearce on the Tuesday of Spring Break, the Rangers endured a two-hour rain delay to lose 9-2 against Pearce once again. Yet, the Rangers bounced back to a decisive 9-0 victory over Lake Highlands just to lose 7-6 on a walk-off in game two. However, the Rangers haven’t lost in district since, sweeping three series’ over MacArthur, Nimitz, and Berkner in decisive victories.
Interview with Varsity Head Coach Brian Jones
After this recent power surge by the team, I decided to catch up with Coach Jones to get his thoughts on the team and what to look for moving forward in these final two district matchups:
What were your expectations for the team heading into the season?
Jones: “You know… we had a lot of seniors last year (13 seniors). Heading into this season, we have seven seniors and only five of them are returning along with two juniors (Jack Barr and Nick Barber). We have thirteen newcomers that include a freshman. We’re still working through some kinks but I have the same expectations I have every year and we’ll adjust as the season continues.”
Through your first four district games, your team went 1-3; however, you have swept the following three series’. What do you think changed or what changes have you made?
Jones: “After our walk-off loss to Lake Highlands where we were leading 6-2 at the start of the inning, things had to change. At the beginning of the year, the seniors chose the quote “Never Satisfied” for reasons like this. We grew complacent and OK as to where we were headed as a team and we wanted to find a way to light a fire underneath our players after that game. We got guys that have come off the bench and produced. We have other pitchers that can come in pitch too.
Not to mention, we changed the way we have worked with our hitters. They [Pearce and Lake Highlands] were pitching us outside and most of our hitters were struggling so we’ve changed the way we take batting practice and I think it showed against MacArthur and Nimitz.”
What is the team looking forward to as the district wraps up?
Jones: “Well, we’ve taken a focus to never take anyone too lightly. We are looking for another dominant series against Irving and we want to use that momentum against Richardson. They [Richardson] have shown that they can compete and we want to be ready for them in one final push for playoffs. We want guys to play with passion and confidence.”
Looking Ahead
In their final two district series’, Jesuit will face Irving High School (0-10) in the first set followed by Richardson (7-3) who may pose a threat to Jesuit’s playoff hopes. Currently, the Rangers sit fourth in the district standings and are looking to end the season on a positive note before the playoffs. Go Rangers!
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