Swing! Clang! Play ball! The baseball season at Air Academy High School has arrived! Since the spring sports have approached,  the baseball season has begun where young boys on the team join with their coaches, friends, and teammates to play this enjoyable sport again. The baseball team’s purpose is to compete at their highest level with a competitive nature, focus on sportsmanship, and build a strong character. These skills are used both on and off the field, throughout high school, and into their future. 

The AAHS baseball team runs practices every day from 3:30-5:30 p.m. where they perform drills such as warming up, stretching, hitting the ball, throwing, catching,  as well as practicing infield and outfield plays. The game of baseball contains three primarily fundamental skills: throwing, catching, and hitting. The drills that are run during practices support the fact of being able to master those skills and to be able to perform them well during games. Fortunately, the AAHS baseball team members have mastered these sets of skills and been able to have success in the games that have been played. 

“Practices are usually right after school and pretty fun. We just get a lot of reps and work on things that we were struggling with, within the game, sophomore Matt Hanson commented.” 

The work ethic is just as important because it does not just benefit each individual, but allows for these athletes to perform at their strongest potential together. A strong work ethic also benefits the entire team and encourages improvement. Each member of the team has proven the difference between an average player and a player with a strong work ethic because of their willingness to work hard and dedication to the team. 

“I am a freshman and this is my first year playing baseball for Air Academy High School and by having supporting teammates and a good coach it helps us to work harder and play better during our games, ” freshman Luke Brooks explained. 

The season has been pretty successful for all teams. The C-squad has won three of their games but lost three and junior varsity has won three games but lost two. The update on the last game for junior varsity was a game up against Fountain-Fort Carson that had a score of 11-8. 

“It was a tough game, but we were able to pull through with the encouragement of our teammates, ” sophomore Louis Alicia mentioned. 

Having a supportive environment allows for the opportunities for each individual player to be pushed to do their extremely best, work hard together as a team, and have a lot of fun while playing the sport. Building strong relationships with the teammates and coaches allows for the chances of strengthening their bonds and creating a supportive environment. Enhancing a hardworking, supportive, encouraging, accepting, and competitive environment grants more opportunities for success during a game. 

“ Playing baseball for AAHS has been an amazing experience. I get to play with teammates I’ve played with since I was young and enjoy making such great bonds with these great guys. My favorite part is definitely just being who I am on the field with my teammates and everyone playing for each other. There is definitely no selfishness on this team, “ Hansen vocalized. 

The AAHS baseball team demonstrates how coming together to work as a team is incredibly important. These players work hard, support, encourage, accept, practice, and plan together. Overcoming adversity within a sports team it allows for an opportunity to build great relationships in the nearby future.