The Central School Jaguar baseball team is off to another great start with a 9-1 record and 6-0 in district play. Although there is always room for improvement, Coach Mike Roberts said his team is on the right track.
“I knew we had the tools and the players to be possibly better than we were last year and it was a matter of them putting it all together,” Roberts said. “Hopefully, we haven’t peaked yet. We want to be playing our best ball at the end.”
Last season, the Jaguars finished a 17-6 season with a loss to Blountstown High School, 3-1, in the regional finals. Thus far, the team has not lost a ball game since their second regular season matchup against Milton High School.
Like with any new season, the Jaguars are adjusting to change in depth after losing six senior players from last year’s roster. However, new seniors are stepping up to fill the void. One example is Aaron Robinson as starting pitcher, filling the void left by Justin Abel who graduated last year. Roberts refers to Robinson as a “workhorse.”
“Aaron has stepped up and has really dominated in the last three games he has pitched in,” Roberts said. “He has really bared the burden this year so far until these (younger) guys are where we need them to be.”
While Robinson has been key in several of the victories, especially against district rivals, the senior has felt the burden as the team’s go-to pitcher.
“It has been a challenge. I have had to work a lot harder than I have in the past,” Robinson said. “We haven’t had another guy step up, so it puts a lot more pressure on me but I am taking it on.”
Robinson said he can always rely on his teammates when it counts.
“You have to trust your team to pick you up and I trust them like they trust me,” he said.
Senior teammate and catcher, Nolan Frady, said Robinson began to take on the extra responsibility last season.
“He really began to show how good of a pitcher he was, because he had to,” Frady said. “This year, I think he has really outdone himself on the mound. He has not lost a game.”
Frady also complimented the young players on this year’s squad who are contributing where needed.
“We got a lot of people playing spots they are not used to, but they are doing a good job at it,” he said.
Like Coach Roberts, Frady likes where the team is at, but there are opportunities to improve.
“As of right now, it is where it needs to be,” he said. “As the year progresses towards district play, it needs to get a little bit better.”
Dakota Perritt, a junior classman who contributes to the infield at shortstop and on the pitching mound, hopes the team can continue the current momentum throughout the season.
“If we keep going, we will make it,” he said.
Perritt believes this year’s team has the talent to go even further.
“I think we are more capable than we were last year,” he said. “We got more ball players, people who are more dedicated to the team and work hard.
A change in the way the team mentally approaches each game will also benefit as the season progresses, Perritt said.
“We have to stick with the game now and work to the next one,” he said. “If your head ain’t in the game, then you are not going to do well. Like Coach Roberts said, ‘A goal out of plan is just a wish.’ You got to be prepared for that game. You can’t be thinking ahead.”
The varsity Jaguar baseball team will travel to take on district rival Ponce de Leon on Tuesday. The game starts at 6 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Baseball: Central Jaguars continue win streak with 9-1 record