Warden tops all-conference selection
After sweeping through league and districts, the Warden baseball team swept through all-conference selections.
The Cougars had the entire starting lineup recognized and four players named to the first team, more than any other team in the SCAC East. Columbia-Burbank had six players selected and River View and Dayton had two players each selected to the first team.
"You can't take a break as a pitcher against our lineup, anyone can beat you," Warden head coach Jerry Powell said.
Roly Rodriguez and Robert Reyes were named co-MVPs for the league and Powell was named coach of the year.
Rodriguez finished the season 6-0 on the mound with a 1.08 ERA, striking out 62 batters faced and walking only 13. At the plate, he batted .522 with four home runs and 37 RBIs in the third spot.
Reyes went .667 from the plate with 40 hits and 25 RBIs in the lead off spot. He went a perfect 26-for-26 in the stolen base category and scored 49 times for the Cougars. Reyes also finished the regular season with a .740 on base percentage.
Tommy Guerra was a first team first baseman and pitcher with a 3-0 record on the mound and a 2.17 ERA. Guerra allowed eight hits and struck out 22, batted .479 from the plate with four home runs, 27 runs and 39 RBIs.
Chris Kottong was the fourth Cougar selected to the first team with a .500 batting average, .579 during league games, and 31 RBIs in the 20 game season.
Jorge Reyes was named second team as a pitcher and shortstop for Warden. Reyes finished 6-0 during the regular season with a 0.76 ERA, striking out 57 and allowing 12 walks. He also batted .295 on the year with 29 RBIs.
Edward Rodriguez, starting catcher for the Cougars was a second team selection after finishing the season batting .487, .590 during league, two home runs and seven stolen bases.
Rey Garza, the third second team selection, batted .509 on the year with three home runs, 8-9 stolen bases, 38 RBIs and 27 runs.
Andrew Garza and Andrew Moron were selected as honorable mentions for the Cougars. Garza batted .434 with 23 runs on the season, while Moron hit .340 with three home runs and 20 RBIs.
As a team, the Cougars finished the season 19-0-1 with a team ERA of 1.34 in 115 total innings pitched. The offense scored 305 runs and the defense allowed 38 runs.
"The experience they went through as a junior squad last year, gave them confidence to be leaders this year," Powell said about the team.
Royal's Jack captures first team selection
Jeff Jack was the only Royal High School baseball player named to the SCAC all-conference first team as a pitcher and catcher.
Jack batted .491 on the year with 28 hits, 22 RBIs and four home runs. Jack also had 10 doubles, 10 stolen bases and a slugging percentage of .912 as a sophomore on the team.
A.J. Eldridge, Ray Valle and Calvin Mathis were second team selections for the Knights, while Brandon Hubbard was an honorable mention.
Eldridge, also a catcher for Royal, had 17 assists from behind the plate.
"He did a great job as a freshman catcher," Royal head coach Paul Olsufka said.
Valle had five wins as a pitcher and a .453 batting average with 24 hits. Valle also produced a .755 on-base percentage. Mathis batted .315 on the season and was selected as a pitcher and third baseman on the team.
Hubbard score 25 runs for the Knights, stole 12 bases and hit .339 on the season.
Royal's all-conference selections were all underclassmen, giving Olsufka hope for a turnaround to this year's miss of the playoffs.
"I am encouraged with what we have coming back next year," Olsufka said.