By DENALI BOLLENS
Staff Writer
On Saturday, February 28, UHS boys baseball played two games against Sage Hill (SHHS). Eric Brunst (Sr.) opened the game and pitched five innings of a two run ball game. Brunst struck out six SHHS players during his time on the mound.
Next, Jake Collins (So.) relieved and gave up a 2 ball home run to tie the ball game 4-4. At the bottom of the sixth inning, Chris Kawata (Sr.) came up the bat and got hit by a pitch. With a man on first, Willie Wang (Sr.) approached the plate and bunted the ball to move Kawata to second. Heading into the seventh inning, Collins struck out three batters in a row to win the game.
Neil Boudreau (Jr.) said, “This game was nail biting to watch, and watching Jake pitch in the last inning was nerve racking but he was able to get us that W.”
In the second game against SHHS, Tomer Reuveni (Jr.) pitched five innings with zero runs. Reuveni had three strikeouts while on the mound. Next, Collins retired six batters in a row. Because of UHS’s impressive pitching, SHHS was unable to score in the second game against the Trojans. UHS also had many strong grounders in left field, and were able to secure the 4-0 win against Sage Hill.
On Monday, February 23, the current baseball team played the former UHS players at the alumni game. Collins was the starting pitcher for the day. Collins ended with three scoreless innings and gave the mound to Reuveni. Reuveni was able to keep the morale and continue with two more scoreless innings.
While the alumni were unable to score, Brunst was able to make some impressive hits and get the current UHS boys on the scoreboard. Brunst said, “I’m looking for a great season ahead, I really have a good feeling about this year. We are coming out with heat.”
Boudreau came up to pitch following Collins. Though he threw some hard balls, former professional baseball player Steve Hagins (1993) was able to return the ball, sending one out of the park. Throughout the game, the current Trojans had a strong approach at the plate, and hit hard groundballs that forced the alumni to make throwing and fielding errors.
The game ended with the current UHS boys baseball team beating the alumni 13-3. Catcher Wang said “Getting the opportunity to play against alumni is extremely humbling. All the alumni had such talent back in the day, and our whole team looks up to them.”
The team will compete in the Foothill Tournament, beginning on March 5.