Amidst the smell of freshly grilled hot dogs and the sound of elementary schoolers playing tag, the varsity baseball team faced off against the Cedar Ridge Raiders on Friday, March 22, at Warrior Field. After losing back-to-back games against Round Rock and another against Cedar Ridge 3-0, the Warriors suffered another loss, succumbing to the Raiders 10-0.

Members of the Warrior Band Horn Section began the night with a performance of the National Anthem, their trumpets ringing out for all the families who attended Future Warrior Night. The theme intended to generate excitement about the baseball program for elementary schoolers from feeder schools, allowing them the opportunity to walk onto the field with the team. Soon after the future Warriors left the field, Antonio Martinez ‘26 struck out two Cedar Ridge batters to start the game. However, the Raiders quickly achieved three runs, two off of singles, and one off a walk. The bottom of the inning passed briskly with a double out, setting the tone echoed by the offense for the rest of the game.

“I could’ve put more pressure on them by being more selective at the plate,” John Ramsey ‘24 said.

The second inning proceeded with strong pitching and quick, successive outs for both teams — but the third inning pushed Cedar Ridge further ahead. The Warriors committed a series of errors, including a balk from Martinez, allowing the Raiders to score three more runs during the inning, setting the score 6-0. The Warriors did not make it on base during the third inning, nor the rest of the game, excluding a walk from Owen Norrell ‘24 in the fifth and final inning.

“[It’s been a] rough start to the season but we had a rough start to the season last year and I think we can turn it around,” Jacob Wright ‘25 said. “It’s a mentality [issue] and we just need to change our mentality but I have full confidence in our team. [We just need a] clear mind, and to not think about [this game] a lot and move on to the next game and come out attacking.”

Continuing to keep the bases loaded, Cedar Ridge scored another two runs during the fourth inning, but the Warrior defense pulled in tighter and Wright swapped in for Martinez. The Warrior offense did not make any advancements, however, finishing out the inning without any runs. The game ended after the fifth inning, where the Raiders scored twice, cementing the final score 10-0.

“We are not [playing] up to our potential,” Manager Michael Imm ‘24 said. “We could be better, I’ve seen us be better. We have two D1 pitchers for a reason, we have two other non-senior pitchers that are really good and they can be better. I’ve seen everybody on the team, they’re perfectly capable of hitting really well, but they’re not right now so I think eventually it can’t be okay to just be complacent.”

Varsity baseball will play their next game against Vista Ridge at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26, at Warrior Field.