ULV, Wright open season on verge of record
Campus Times
February 13, 1998
What a difference a year makes for the University of La Verne baseball
team.
With last year's overall record of 12-28 and Southern California Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference (SCIAC) record of 9-12, the ULV baseball team, according
to head coach Owen Wright, has "no where to go but up."
One reason the Leopards are headed in the right direction is the fact
that Wright, in his 36th year of coaching baseball, is three victories away
from his 600th win. He previously worked at Elizabethtown for 21 years and
has worked at ULV for 15 years. This year's version of the Leopards is the
70th intercollegiate athletic team Wright has coached.
"I really think we'll do better," Wright said, who has a combined
record of 936-640-45 in both coaching baseball and soccer. "It has
been a La Verne tradition to do better and last season was the worst I have
had by far."
Wright attributes this to many elements, some of which were the lack
of depth and the pitchers' season ending early due to injuries.
"Even though last year was a really disappointing year, I think
it's really going to motivate the team to work harder and compete to be
SCIAC champions," said sophomore centerfielder Andrew Woolsey.
This year, Wright feels one of the team's strengths is the quantity
of pitching. There are 12 in all, including leading pitchers sophomore Saul
Hardin and senior Maynard McClarrinon.
The Leopards also have a strong middle defensively, a combination of
centerfielder Woolsey, senior shortstop Lyle Miller and junior second baseman
Justin Ott. The Leopards are also strong behind the plate with junior catcher
Justin Dospital and sophomore catcher David La Peer.
"The best thing about our team is that we have a lot of players
that can play a lot of positions, which is a great advantage. Armando Hernandez
[junior] plays third, he's a great hitter and can pitch as well. Garren
[Injijian, junior] can play right field and first base," said Woolsey.
"This year there is good team unity and enthusiasm. They get along
as friends both on and off the field," said Wright.
"This season we're more of a team atmosphere rather than individuals,"
said Hernandez.
Wright's only concern is the fact that with only 11 returners and 14
newcomers, including key newcomers Hardin and Ott, there are "so many
new faces and it will take time for us to come together and gel," he
said.
Said Woolsey, "Our team is young. We have a lot of new players,
so it's taken awhile for us to adapt to each other."
Although Biola defeated ULV, 16-2, Feb. 4, Wright is not discouraged
and remains positive.
"We had one real bad inning and gave them 10 runs. Biola is a scholarship
school, they should beat us. They've got all of fall to practice and play,"
said Wright.
"First and foremost I think the rain put a damper in the coach's
plans as far as practice wise," Woolsey said. "The day before
the game it rained hard and it limited our practice time. We didn't get
on the field much.
"The team played well in the first couple of innings but broke
down in every aspect of the game because it was our first time being in
a competitive situation. The more games we play, the better we're going
to get."
Other teams that Wright feels will be a challenge for the Leopards are
Cal Lutheran and Chapman.
The Leopards play Pomona-Pitzer today at 2:30 p.m on Ben Hines Field
and conclude the series with a doubleheader at Pomona tomorrow at 11 a.m.
"I think we should do well," said Wright, who encourages fans
to come out and give the Leopards support. "There is no reason they
should be any stronger than us."
