ELAC Baseball Returns to Playoffs
by Stephen Morales
@grecomeco23
ELAC Baseball Head Coach Alec Adame wanted to challenge his team this year. He put together a tough non-conference schedule that while it was a gauntlet, would prepare his team for their conference slate of games.
On Sunday, Adame's plan was rewarded as the Huskies received a bid to the CCCAA Baseball So Cal Regional playoffs. This is the Huskies first playoff appearance in five seasons.
Adame was quick to give credit to the entire team. "Our team went through some rough obstacles in the beginning of the season. They faced a lot of adversity trying to find themselves with truly buying in to our team concept. We could have hung it up and quit right then and there, but I have to tip my hat to the guys who stuck it out and continued to focus and work hard at what we needed to get better at. We had to mature quickly, and take responsibility the hardest way. It all payed off, and the feeling of the team is that the grind was worth it! Myself and the rest our coaching staff are very proud of our team! We all are excited to travel to Palomar College to compete for each other!"
The Huskies will travel to Palomar College to begin the best of 3 first round series. Game 1 will be on Friday May 5th and 2pm. Game 2 will be on Saturday May 6th at 11am. Game 3, if necessary, will be 30 minutes after the conclusion of Game 2.
Palomar is the number one seed in the South finishing with a 33-6 record. The Huskies enter the series with a 18-22 record but came on strong in conference play going 15-9.
The moment the bracket was released, Adame and his staff began looking into their opponent.
"Our first impression of Palomar is that they are a great hitting team that only has 6 losses throughout the regular season. They are lead by LHP Kyle Carr who has been up to 95 MPH with a clean delivery, and also an absolute strike thrower with 71 innings pitched, and just over 100 strikeouts. We will have our hands full, but we are playing really well at the moment, and we all are super excited about the opportunity to compete!"
The key for the Huskies these past weeks has been pitching as all 3 Huskies starters have thrown multiple games. Francisco "Paco" Dominguez, Robert Banuelos and David Morales have carried the Huskies and will have to be at the top of their games in order for the Huskies to advance. Adame knows starting pitching will be the key.
"Our pitching is lined up with our 3 big horses In Francisco Dominguez, Robert Banuelos, and David Morales. Like I said before, these three guys are capable of being the Ace on any staff! We are fortunate that they are all on our side, and are ready for the opportunity! Our three starting pitchers have carried us throughout the entire year, and are our backbone to getting us to where we are now!"
In recent weeks the Huskies have also found the long ball as Daniel Vierra, Michael Easter, Julian Eskridge, Matthew McEntire all went deep in the last few games. Along with the long ball, the Huskies will also look to Ruben Hernandez, Alex Mendez, and Rudy Ponce to lead the way on offense.
Husky Athletic Director Bobby Godinez is looking forward to this baseball journey "It was great to see them fight, and claw for this opportunity. They could've shut it down at the beginning of the season and they decided to persevere through and give themselves a chance. I'm really excited to see this run"
It may be a tall order, but these Huskies have battled all year long and we know they are going to battle this weekend.
GO HUSKIES!
