Although the Madison College baseball team picked up just three wins during its spring break trip to Arizona, the team gained plenty of early season experience against teams that had already played multiple games this year.
The Madison College baseball team left for their annual spring break trip to Arizona on March 6 and expected to play the next day against Chandler-Gilbert Community College. Due to an unexpected rainstorm, their game had to be rescheduled.
After a day of practice, Madison College put up a strong fight against Mesa Community College, but lost, 6-4. The WolfPack jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but allowed Mesa to score one run in the fourth inning and four runs in the fifth inning to take a 5-2 lead.
Madison College bounced back by winning the first game of a doubleheader against Williston State College, 7-0, on March 9. Charlie Marion had two hits, scored twice and drove in three runs. Pitcher Allen Leitner had 14 strikeouts against Williston.
The second game saw Williston post a 3-2 win after scoring a run in the bottom of the fifth inning to break a 2-2 tie. Both teams had eight hits in the game, but Williston was able get one more run across the plate.
A planned nine-inning game on March 10 brought Madison College a 4-1 victory over Western Nebraska Community College. Both Camden Broske and Andres Kleinsek pitched, and they were able to get a combined 11 strikeouts with only four walks. Nick Nowak and Will Johannes both had two hits to lead the WolfPack.
March 11 was a rest day that included an early morning practice to prepare for their doubleheader against Glendale Community College. The doubleheader didn’t go as hoped with Madison College scoring just one run in the two games combined, falling 5-0 and 2-1.
On March 13, the rescheduled game against Chandler-Gilbert gave the Madison College offense a bit of redemption as the team scored a 12-2 victory. Madison College had 20 hits in the game, led by Jalen Gellings who had four hits and three runs scored.
The next two games against GateWay Community College and Scottsdale Community College were losses for Madison College. Gateway prevailed, 2-0, while Scottsdale won, 12-2.
Once the team returned, second year infielder Jake Petasek visited with The Clarion and had many highlights to share.
Madison College brought in 17 new players for this season, so this trip provided a great opportunity for them to learn more about each other.
“This trip is not only essential to grow a bond with the new players, but also to establish unity as a team,” Petasek said. “We learned how important it is to be accountable, and how to effectively communicate with one another.”
“Both the trip this year and last year has helped me create bonds with my teammates that will never diminish,” Petasek said.
“Our team meetings after each game were my favorite,” Petasek said. Every night the team “talked about the things we did well as a team, and the things we could improve on the next day.”
Even though the games did not all go as planned, “we were exposed to a lot of different situations which I feel is going to be extremely beneficial to us in the long run.”
Coming off of the trip, the WolfPack got hot. Madison College won five straight road games. The WolfPack beat Elgin Community College, 13-10, and Oakton College, 11-0. Madison College then swept Carl Sandburg in a doubleheader, 7-1 and 21-4, before beating College of DuPage 11-7. The team fell to Highland Community College, 5-1, on March 28, but swept Sauk Valley in a doubleheader, 17-0, and 3-1.
The WolfPack now stands at 11-7 overall and is set to have its home opener on April 4 against Rock Valley.
Petasek and his teammates are looking forward to having another successful season.
“I’m going to give it my all every pitch, every out, every inning and every game. Most of all, I am going to trust the process,” Petasek said.