Cougs drop double header to North Valley; look to the future
From our weekly issue dated May 05, 2010
Andrew McLaughlin slide past the pitcher’s tag to score one of four Cougar runs in a loss to the Mustangs on Saturday, May, 1. (IVN photo)
As the spring sports season is hitting its homestretch, Illinois Valley High School varsity baseball coach Bob Johnson is optimistic about the team“s future prospects.
A game originally scheduled for Tuesday, April 27 at Illinois Valley High against Hidden Valley was canceled due to inclement weather. It has been rescheduled tentatively for Thursday, May 6, also at IVHS.
On Saturday, May 1, the Cougars hosted North Valley for a double-header. The first game resulted in a 16-4 loss for the Cougar squad.
Junior Bryan Biggs pitched the first four innings and was relieved by junior Andrew McLaughlin. Johnson said that he is pleased with McLaughlin“s performance, which included two strikeouts.
“He“s started throwing the ball a lot harder, and his breaking ball is better,“ Johnson said. “I was hoping that if he could pitch and compete this year, he“ll be one of our big guns next year.“
The Cougars racked up 11 hits in the loss, including one each from McLaughlin, Biggs, junior Zach Anderson and senior Justin Miles. Senior Ben Kendall went 3-4 from the plate, and senior Tobin Mikels went 4-4.
Anderson was the starting pitcher for the second game, which I.V. lost, 15-5.
“We got smoked in the first inning for six runs,“ Johnson said. “But if you take those six runs out of there, we played fairly even with them the rest of the way.“
Anderson, McLaughlin, Biggs and Miles got one hit apiece. Kendall went 2-3.
Even though the season is winding down, Johnson already is looking toward next year.
The team will lose some players to graduation, but most of its pitchers likely will return. Also encouraging to Johnson is the fact that Illinois Valley will drop from its current 4-A classification to 3-A, where it will compete with similarly sized schools.
For the rest of this season, the squad will be down to only 10 members, as some have been forced to drop out due to academic ineligibility.
But despite the challenges, Johnson said that he“s glad to see improvements in the team“s attitude.
“They don“t quit anymore,“ he said. “Before, we had some problems. They“d get down after they“d get behind. But now, they“re not doing that. Until the game is over, they“re playing the best they can.
“That“s a big deal to me,“ the coach observed.
Enthusiasm for the program appears to be contagious, as Johnson has noticed increased attendance at home games.
“The parents and people in town are supporting us,“ he said. “I“d really like to start winning some games here and get the community more involved.“
For the long-term, Johnson said that he already is planning to conduct coaching clinics at the Little League level to strengthen the squad“s future prospects.
“It“s usually three to four years until everybody gets through the system,“ the coach said. “It“s amazing how much better the kids get when you do that. But I think we do have some talent here.“
After Thursday“s tentatively scheduled game hosting the Mustangs, the Cougars will travel to Henley on Saturday, May 8 to face the Hornets.
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