Central baseball takes care of business in first games

Contributing Writer

UCO baseball opened their season with three wins, beginning with a run-rule victory against Northern State. Following that game, Central beat Southwestern Oklahoma State 10-2. Last of the winning streak was a 5-2 game against Oklahoma Baptist University.

The team has a lot of experienced players returning from last year’s season. UCO has 13 returning players, with only three of those 13 being pitchers. Head Coach John Martin brought in a hefty handful of new players to the team, and of those 27 new players, 16 are pitchers and the other 11 are position players.

One of the 13 returning players is junior outfielder Kaleb Glass. Glass played in 47 games, with 44 of those starting for Central. Glass adds a lot to the team not only by his defensive skills but also by his offensive stats, finishing last season with 23 stolen bases on 27 total attempts.

“We’re more mature in the field and and more mature at the plate, so we understand how Coach Martin is wanting us to play,” Glass said. “Regardless if it’s a practice or we have back-to-back games, this is how we’re expected to play and this is how we’re expected to handle our business, day in and day out.”

The Central baseball team is playing by the motto “one game at a time” this year, doing whatever they can to come out with the right mindset at the beginning of every game to use that motivation on the field.

For every team, the goal for the end of the season is to finish strong. And Glass wants a national championship.

“We just want our game to talk for itself and go win the conference and show everyone that we aren’t supposed to be taken lightly,” Glass said. “I think we have the right group and the right mindset to accomplish that goal.”

Central Oklahoma has a total of 50 games this season, with 33 being played for the MIAA. The team will play 14 games at Wendell Simmons Field during February.