By Matt Wiley
Bust out the peanuts and Cracker Jack, as high school baseball now is in full swing at both Wesley Chapel High (WCH) and Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH).
Coming off of a 19-7 season last year, head coach Jeff Swymerās Wiregrass Ranch Bulls are off to a solid start, second in Class 7A-District 9 (to Steinbrenner High in Tampa) as of our press time.
āWeāre 7-1 right now, so you could say the season is going pretty good,ā Swymer says. āAs long as we continue to hit like we are right now, weāll be in good shape. We have 7 of our 9 starters hitting .400 or above.ā
Swymer says that the Bulls are hoping to have a 20-win season, but have a tough road ahead of them, facing a strong district of mostly Hillsborough teams, including Steinbrenner (8-0 at our press time) and Gaither (3-5).
āWe donāt really get a night off this season,ā Swymer says.
The Bullsā success on the diamond early in the season is thanks in part to the Drury brothers, Zach and Austin. Zach opened the 2013 season by pitching a no-hitter against Sunlake High, striking out 16 in the Bullsā 4-0 victory. Zach, a right-handed junior, is off to an All-Star start, with a 3-1 record, 43 strikeouts and a microscopic 0.33 ERA in 21 innings.
Swymer says that another key to the Bulls strong start is junior infielder/pitcher Michael Campoamor, who is batting .565 and already has nine runs and 10 RBIs (runs batted in), compared to his sophomore seasonās 27 runs and 17 RBIs.
Sophomore catcher Alex Goebel also has been a big contributor so far, with a .360 batting average, 9 hits, 6 runs and 7 RBIs.
āCats Off To Winning Start
At nearby WCH, head coach Chuck Yinglingās District 5A-8 WCH Wildcats are looking to improve on last yearās 14-11 record. Already 8-2, Yingling is optimistic about this yearās team.
āWeāre doing really well,ā he explains. āWeāve had two tough losses (to Tampa Catholic and Ridgewood), but weāre performing well. Weāre improving every day.ā
Standouts for WCHāso far this season include senior pitcher Chase Ingram, who already has 36 strikeouts under his belt, as well as two wins and a sparkling 1.67 ERA in 21 innings so far.
At the plate, third-baseman Kyle Custer, also a senior, leads the Wildcats in hitting with a .611 batting average, 11 hits, 7 runs scored and 7 RBIs.
Yingling says he also has his eye on senior center fielder Justin Ortiz.
āHis batting is starting to wake up,ā Yingling says. āHeās just a good, all-around athlete.ā To go along with his .308, Ortiz has 8 hits, has scored 8 runs and has 4 RBIs. He also leads the Wildcats in stolen bases this season with six.
āWeāve got a well-rounded team,ā Yingling says. āWeāre much better than last year. Weāre actually capable of substitutions this season, too, because we have more depth and we can rest our players. Thatās important.ā
WCHāand WRH wonāt square off until Tuesday, April 16, but it promises to be a tight game. Last yearās matchup went to the Bulls 1-0, but Yingling hopes this season will go a little differently.
āTheyāre a good club with a lot of talent,ā says the WCHācoach of his teamās ācross-Wesley Chapelāārivals. āItās a nice rivalry. Hopefully this year, we will be more productive.ā
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