On May 9, Aragon’s baseball team (19-6 overall, 11-3 Ocean League) locked out Mills High School (2-23 overall, 0-14 OL) in the last three innings to secure a 9-4 victory and place first in their league, extending them to a five game winning streak.
“We’ve been winning all year long from the get go,” said head coach Lenny Souza. “We bounced back from adversity after spring break.”
A key aspect of Aragon’s defense was accurate pitching. Junior Donald Farina pitched four strikeouts in the first three innings, despite Mills scoring three runs.
“I worked on not stressing and stayed focused knowing this was a big game,” Farina said.
On the offensive side, the focus and patience paid off with Aragon earning eight walks.
“We all knew what we had to do to win the game. We all kept our heads and played more carefully”
“Hitting is not necessarily about being a good hitter all the time,” Souza said. “It’s about hitting the right pitch and being disciplined enough to swing at the pitch that you should be swinging at.”
One key player in Aragon’s offense was sophomore shortstop Jace Jeremiah, who batted two doubles in the second and third inning.
“I hit the ball, made my adjustment to the center, and that showed in the game.” Jeremiah said.
Despite the intense first half of the game, the match soon cooled down, with only two runs made by Aragon in the second half. Souza attributes this to more careful playing.
“We all knew what we had to do to win the game. We all kept our heads and played more carefully.” Souza said.
The Dons lost to Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory (16-12 overall, 6-8 West Catholic League) 6-5 in the first round of the Central Coast Section playoffs on May 15.
