The Arcadia High School (AHS) Varsity Boys Baseball team won a tight game against Charter Oak High School (COHS) on Feb. 10. The players played a total of nine innings, though school games are usually only seven. Walking away from the game with a score of 1-0, the AHS team was elated to have won this match.

“Our offense struggled [against] COHS,” said Head Coach Nicholas Lemas. “COHS has a really good pitcher that pitched against us, so to come away with a win is really good.”

The COHS opposing pitcher, Athen Malone, plays a much higher level of baseball than most high school players. As an athlete already committed to the Division I baseball team at California State University, Fullerton, Malone ensured the AHS offense was up for a challenge. However, the team’s training and collective effort helped them pull through.

“We have been working on being more aggressive [on] offensive and trying to take care of the ball better on defense,” said Coach Lemas. “I think we are making strides in the right direction for sure.”

Clearly, the players are working hard to up their game. Senior Roman Cicero, who plays shortstop, pitcher, and second base, explained his favorite way to prepare for a game.

“I am always excited and itching to play before games,” said Cicero. “I always listen to music, whether that be on the drive to Arcadia, or on the bus to an away game. I listen to a handful of my favorite songs which helps my mind focus.”

Cicero has played on the baseball team for all four years of his high school career, and he loves how the intensity of the game and the team’s enthusiasm make the sport so fun and competitive.

The game against COHS was exactly that; the entire match was “a pitching duel”, as phrased by Cicero. AHS pitchers Gabriel Lopez and Fernando Palencia played extremely well, preventing COHS from scoring any runs during the long match.

“The game went very well…thanks to a very resilient team, and a very strong backup in pitching,” said senior Gabriel Lopez, one of the AHS pitchers. “Overall, I think I played pretty well; I just tried to do my job in getting the team the momentum we needed to propel us to win.”

AHS scored a single run in the 9th inning. Senior Jerry Carlos, the outfielder who made the winning run, gave insight on how he prepared for the game.

“I felt confident and excited to start [this] season,” said Carlos. “My pregame routine is to listen to music and pray it helps relax my nerves before the game starts.”

The pregame music evidently worked; Carlos hit a fair ball, allowing him to safely reach first base, and ultimately allowing him to score the first and final run.

Carlos believes that “being confident and staying positive” is the most important skill in baseball because “baseball is a game of failure, and you have to stay positive during failure.”

The Apaches played well against COHS, and they are definitely in for an amazing season. Congratulations to the team for their win, and we hope to see more from them in the future!

Photo courtesy of Arcadia DCI intern Alaina Lee