Panther Ball Club Off to Impressive Start
Trevor Phipps
As the spring season hits full throttle, baseball fans across the country are starting to soak up the sun and enjoy America’s favorite pastime.
Despite the Colorado Rockies experiencing familiar woes, local baseball fanatics are enthused about the prospects of the Woodland Park Panther baseball team
The Panther baseball stars are off to their best start in several years, and they have a huge potential to stay successful all season. After their first seven matches out on the diamond, the Panthers have dominated all but one game. And in this particular loss, they fell to their rivals, Manitou Springs, during a brutal, snowy battle.
Due to weather conditions, the Panthers’ first three home games were postponed. And then during their first match at Panther Field, the wind and snow turned the game into a blind, slippery bout during which Manitou got the best of them.
On March 28, the Panthers finally had their chance to prove to their fans that they mean business this season. After taking a pause for their spring break, the Panthers came out and completely dominated both double header matches against the Harrison Panthers.
During the first game of the double header, Woodland Park’s pitcher, junior Link Bryden, dominated at the mound, and only gave up one hit and two runs during six innings pitched. Bryden also shined at the plate by scoring two runs, two RBIs, a double, and a homerun during his three times at the plate. The Panthers beat the team 12-2 in the first match.
As a pitcher, Bryden has a 3-0 record and a 1.40 ERA. At the plate, he has a 0.429 batting average and has racked up nine runs, nine hits and 10 RBIs so far this season.
During the next match against Harrison, star pitcher, sophomore Cody Becker took the mound and also trounced the team’s batters. Becker only threw three hits during his team’s 12-2 bout during the second game of the double header. The second match also proved to be Becker’s turn to smack away a homerun.
During this season, Becker has pitched the most innings on the team and currently has a 2-0 record, a 2.29 ERA and he is rated 11th statewide with 37 strike outs. When at bat, Becker has a .316 batting average. He has racked up 10 runs, six hits and seven RBIs this season.
After winning the double header at home, the Panthers continued to dominate on the road when they beat the Palmer Terrors 7-4 on April 1. At press time, the Panthers had a 6-1 league record and were in first place in their 3A/2A Tri-Peaks League.
The Panthers’ speed while out running bases has also been noticed this year. The Panthers’ opponents have come to realize that the WP team knows how to steal bases
Junior catcher Gavin Strouse is third in their league and 15th statewide with eight stolen bases this season. Senior Gabe Marquez is right behind him with seven stolen bases and freshman Nathan Vieux trails with six.
Coach Touts Team Cohesiveness
Panther Coach Chris Becker said that the team works well together as a unit with everyone knowing their role. He also credited the team’s young talent with several returning varsity starters, as a key to their early season success.
The team’s returning stars this year include seniors Gabe Marquez, Cody Fries and Wyatt Stimits, juniors Gavin Strouse and Link Bryden. Strouse and Bryden are third- year starters this season. Freshman Nathan Vieux and sophomore Cody Becker are new to the team, and they have contributed greatly to the Panthers’ success.
The coach also has cited the stellar pitching skills of Bryden and Becker as an added winning punch. In addition, the coach mentioned the energy the team brings to every game, a quality recognized by their fans.
Overall, the coach says not much has changed with the program from last year, but the team’s success is a culmination of their hard work. “We have been building this for three years and are now seeing the results of returning players and changing the culture around the program,” Coach Becker said. “We also have a couple of starters that we didn’t have last year that are now making large contributions.
But there are still areas of needed improvement, according to Becker. “One aspect of the game we need to work on is being more consistent in everything we do,” the coach explained. “Another aspect is our hitting as a team, we are improving but it is the piece that is lagging behind the rest.”
Becker said that there are several big match-ups coming this month and in May. The next big battle will be the in-league double header against the 5-1 Florence Huskies at home on April 19.
This Thursday, the Panthers have a league double header at home against the 1-5-1 Ellicott Thunderhawks starting at 3 p.m. Next Monday, they play at home against the 0-6 Sierra Stallions and then on Wednesday they play another home match against the 2-0 SkyView Academy Hawks.
