Post by Calallenbaseball on Feb 5, 2012 17:41:00 GMT -6
Calallen: No. 10 in Preseason Xcellent 25 Baseball Rankings presented by Reebok
Calallen possesses the talent to have its greatest team this season.
Thursday, February 02, 2012
By: Joseph Santoliquito | MaxPreps.com
#10 Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas)
The Calallen baseball squad has dominated its district the past couple years. Success at the state level has been elusive, though. This year's team aspires to win the state title like many Calallen teams before it..
The stats and accolades can keep rolling: Conference 31-4A champions β again, and a perfect 14-0 district record. But if you asked any senior on Calallen's baseball team what was the one gaping, missing piece in two years of excellence, they'd all answer the same: No state championship.
The Wildcats have won three Texas 4A state championships since 2000, capturing state crowns in 2000, 2005 and 2008. They've also learned what it's like falling short of winning a state title in each of the last two years.
With a team led by Wyatt Mathisen, Armando Arrevelo, Tyler Neslony, Desi Castillo, Tate Bammert and Preston Dorsey, the Wildcats seem primed to finally knock the door down and win their first state championship in four years.
With that type of returning lineup, the Wildcats begin the 2012 season ranked No. 10 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Preseason National Baseball Rankings, presented by Reebok.
Mathisen will be a key component in Calallen's success. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior, who's being projected to be a high draft pick in the June professional draft, has great command, throws with consistent velocity around 90 mph, posted an 11-2 record with a 1.27 ERA in 2010, and is coming off a season in which he hit .481.
Arrevalo is a lefty, also with good command and a great changeup, and he enters his senior year off a junior season in which he went 12-1 with a 1.52 ERA.
So it appears the Wildcats will be fine in the pitching area. They should be in every game they play. Their six losses last season were by a combined 11 runs, and of the six, four were one-run defeats.
Offensively, Calallen will need to fill the void left by the graduating Tanner Vandevere, who hit .459 last season. Neslony has proven to be a solid run producer, possesses a strong arm and hit .390.
But the underlying driving force of the team's seniors is not another district crown, but to add 2012 to the list of state baseball championships at Calallen. You get the feeling they won't accept anything less.
Local look: "They're by far the class of District 31-4A, which is one of the more competitive districts. Calallen is supposed to be really good with everyone pretty much back. It's a given they'll be the top-ranked team in the state. The last few years, they experienced some tough losses at the state level. That's definitely left a bitter taste in their mouths. This is a team with some serious unfinished business this year. They've won state championships before, but as far as this team being a state-championship caliber, they have to be part of the conversation. They've set the bar very high and they have to get over that hurdle. These seniors want to win a ring. Their goal is to win the final game of the season."
- Greg Rajan, Corpus Christi Caller-Times
School size: 4A
Enrollment: 1,354
2011 finish: 39-6, state 4A runner-up to Rider (Wichita Falls, Texas)
Head coach: Steve Chapman
Career record: 813-187
Years at school: 29
Notable players coached:
Ryan Duke (Phillies organization)
Jason John (Reds organization)
Jordan John (Astros organization)
Logan Verrett (Mets organization)
Kristian Bueno (Astros organization)
No. of starters returning: 8
Key losses:
1B Tanner Vandevere
P Scott Hill
C Chad Vanaman
Key returners:
P Armando Arevalo
C Tate Bammert
P-SS-C Wyatt Mathisen, .454, 13 HR, 15 DBL, 57 RBI
OF Tyler Neslony, .384, 50 RBI, 19 DBL, 7 HR, 50 RBI
P Desi Castillo
3B Greg Hernandez
OF Preston Dorsey, .409, 11 DBL, 10 HR, 48 RBI
INF-P Lee May Gonzalez
Key newcomers:
1B Jimmy Roche
INF Christian Cantu
Toughest game: Moody (Corpus Christi) and Calallen have a great rivalry, though the Wildcats swept Moody 5-0 and outscored Moody 25-6 last season. Alice, too, is traditionally strong, though the Wildcats also swept them last year, 2-0, but in two distinctly different games, winning 9-0 and 1-0. The Wildcats will play again in the McAllen Tournament, a 24-team tournament Feb. 23-25. Calallen will follow that up with the 30-team Smithson Valley (Spring Branch) Tournament March 1-3, and host its Calallen 12-team tournament March 8-10, then begin its district schedule.
Local outlook: Region 4 is loaded, according to Chapman. Getting out of the area will be tough, with Moody, Alice, Ray (Corpus Christi) coming down from 5A, and traditionally strong Boerne-Champion (Boerne), Lake Travis (Austin) and Flour Bluff (Corpus Christi). Statewide, the Wildcats may have to concern themselves with two past nemeses: Brenham, which beat the Wildcats for the 4A state title in 2010, and again Rider, (Wichita Falls), which stood in the way of the Wildcats winning the state title in 2011.
Overall outlook: Chapman has a lot to like. His praise is measured when it comes to this team, but it is a team with a great balance of quality pitching and hitting. "Hitting will be a strength, if we can adapt to the new BBC core bats," Chapman said. "If there is a concern, I'm not sure we have as much team speed as we've had in the past, and we don't know who's going to fill some positions. Nothing is for certain. Kids will need to produce to keep playing. I don't like to tell anyone that they have a certain spot." Expect the Wildcats, barring a rash of serious injuries, to go deep into the state playoffs again this season.
Coach quote: "The seniors on this team want to get back to the state tournament and prove themselves. Our whole community's expectations are high; my expectations are high, but that's every year. Anything less would be a big disappointment for them and for all of us. But baseball is a funny game, where there are no guarantees, and just because we have a bunch of kids back and are tradition-rich, we still have to play the games."
- Steve Chapman
Calallen possesses the talent to have its greatest team this season.
Thursday, February 02, 2012
By: Joseph Santoliquito | MaxPreps.com
#10 Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas)
The Calallen baseball squad has dominated its district the past couple years. Success at the state level has been elusive, though. This year's team aspires to win the state title like many Calallen teams before it..
The stats and accolades can keep rolling: Conference 31-4A champions β again, and a perfect 14-0 district record. But if you asked any senior on Calallen's baseball team what was the one gaping, missing piece in two years of excellence, they'd all answer the same: No state championship.
The Wildcats have won three Texas 4A state championships since 2000, capturing state crowns in 2000, 2005 and 2008. They've also learned what it's like falling short of winning a state title in each of the last two years.
With a team led by Wyatt Mathisen, Armando Arrevelo, Tyler Neslony, Desi Castillo, Tate Bammert and Preston Dorsey, the Wildcats seem primed to finally knock the door down and win their first state championship in four years.
With that type of returning lineup, the Wildcats begin the 2012 season ranked No. 10 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Preseason National Baseball Rankings, presented by Reebok.
Mathisen will be a key component in Calallen's success. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior, who's being projected to be a high draft pick in the June professional draft, has great command, throws with consistent velocity around 90 mph, posted an 11-2 record with a 1.27 ERA in 2010, and is coming off a season in which he hit .481.
Arrevalo is a lefty, also with good command and a great changeup, and he enters his senior year off a junior season in which he went 12-1 with a 1.52 ERA.
So it appears the Wildcats will be fine in the pitching area. They should be in every game they play. Their six losses last season were by a combined 11 runs, and of the six, four were one-run defeats.
Offensively, Calallen will need to fill the void left by the graduating Tanner Vandevere, who hit .459 last season. Neslony has proven to be a solid run producer, possesses a strong arm and hit .390.
But the underlying driving force of the team's seniors is not another district crown, but to add 2012 to the list of state baseball championships at Calallen. You get the feeling they won't accept anything less.
Local look: "They're by far the class of District 31-4A, which is one of the more competitive districts. Calallen is supposed to be really good with everyone pretty much back. It's a given they'll be the top-ranked team in the state. The last few years, they experienced some tough losses at the state level. That's definitely left a bitter taste in their mouths. This is a team with some serious unfinished business this year. They've won state championships before, but as far as this team being a state-championship caliber, they have to be part of the conversation. They've set the bar very high and they have to get over that hurdle. These seniors want to win a ring. Their goal is to win the final game of the season."
- Greg Rajan, Corpus Christi Caller-Times
School size: 4A
Enrollment: 1,354
2011 finish: 39-6, state 4A runner-up to Rider (Wichita Falls, Texas)
Head coach: Steve Chapman
Career record: 813-187
Years at school: 29
Notable players coached:
Ryan Duke (Phillies organization)
Jason John (Reds organization)
Jordan John (Astros organization)
Logan Verrett (Mets organization)
Kristian Bueno (Astros organization)
No. of starters returning: 8
Key losses:
1B Tanner Vandevere
P Scott Hill
C Chad Vanaman
Key returners:
P Armando Arevalo
C Tate Bammert
P-SS-C Wyatt Mathisen, .454, 13 HR, 15 DBL, 57 RBI
OF Tyler Neslony, .384, 50 RBI, 19 DBL, 7 HR, 50 RBI
P Desi Castillo
3B Greg Hernandez
OF Preston Dorsey, .409, 11 DBL, 10 HR, 48 RBI
INF-P Lee May Gonzalez
Key newcomers:
1B Jimmy Roche
INF Christian Cantu
Toughest game: Moody (Corpus Christi) and Calallen have a great rivalry, though the Wildcats swept Moody 5-0 and outscored Moody 25-6 last season. Alice, too, is traditionally strong, though the Wildcats also swept them last year, 2-0, but in two distinctly different games, winning 9-0 and 1-0. The Wildcats will play again in the McAllen Tournament, a 24-team tournament Feb. 23-25. Calallen will follow that up with the 30-team Smithson Valley (Spring Branch) Tournament March 1-3, and host its Calallen 12-team tournament March 8-10, then begin its district schedule.
Local outlook: Region 4 is loaded, according to Chapman. Getting out of the area will be tough, with Moody, Alice, Ray (Corpus Christi) coming down from 5A, and traditionally strong Boerne-Champion (Boerne), Lake Travis (Austin) and Flour Bluff (Corpus Christi). Statewide, the Wildcats may have to concern themselves with two past nemeses: Brenham, which beat the Wildcats for the 4A state title in 2010, and again Rider, (Wichita Falls), which stood in the way of the Wildcats winning the state title in 2011.
Overall outlook: Chapman has a lot to like. His praise is measured when it comes to this team, but it is a team with a great balance of quality pitching and hitting. "Hitting will be a strength, if we can adapt to the new BBC core bats," Chapman said. "If there is a concern, I'm not sure we have as much team speed as we've had in the past, and we don't know who's going to fill some positions. Nothing is for certain. Kids will need to produce to keep playing. I don't like to tell anyone that they have a certain spot." Expect the Wildcats, barring a rash of serious injuries, to go deep into the state playoffs again this season.
Coach quote: "The seniors on this team want to get back to the state tournament and prove themselves. Our whole community's expectations are high; my expectations are high, but that's every year. Anything less would be a big disappointment for them and for all of us. But baseball is a funny game, where there are no guarantees, and just because we have a bunch of kids back and are tradition-rich, we still have to play the games."
- Steve Chapman