The latest talk regarding the baseball team came from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) preseason coaches poll, where CWU tied for third place with Montana State University- Billings (MSU- Billings). However, catcher Austin Ohland, explained that he doesn’t put much thought into such standings. 

“Typically, I try to not pay too much attention to things like that,” Ohland said. “This is baseball and it is anyone’s conference, if they get hot at the right time. While we might be third now, I think we can finish ahead of that if we go about our business the right way.”

Before CWU baseball’s season opener took place last weekend, pitcher Ryan Arredondo expressed his confidence in his team’s abilities and their readiness to step foot on the diamond.

“I will always expect great things from this team and everyone on it, as do they,” Arredondo said. “We are confident in our preparation and excited to get the first taste of a long great season.”

Arredondo also provided a bit of insight as to what the difference is between this year’s approach compared to last. 

“[There are] lots of small subliminal differences between this year and last,” Arredondo said. “Small things in this game are what make you successful or not, so identifying what those are and making the appropriate changes is key. I believe we’ve done so.”

Both players give credit to their coaching staff for the work they’ve put into the program. Seeing that the baseball team is currently running on only two paid coaches, the responsibilities the coaches have taken on are more than usual. 

“Our coaches’ roles are beyond comprehension,” Arredondo said. “They have a ton on their plate and a lot of logistics to work out on a day-to-day basis. Every year they work extremely hard, and this year they’ve somehow upped their workload.”

Both players also agreed that the best thing about their team this year is the brotherhood felt among the group.

“We have become a pretty close-knit team,” Ohland said. “After all the hectic scheduling of the Pav being under construction, we have gone through a lot together and it has just brought us all closer.”

Arredondo echoed this and said: “The best thing about this year’s team is the positive camaraderie. Everyone has great relationships with one another and [the] guys are closer than ever.”