Valley men’s baseball and women’s softball finish a disappointing season

Monarch baseball and softball both missed playoff contention after struggling throughout the season both being under .500 in win percentage.

By: Joshua Kahn, Staff Writer

It was a disappointing season for Monarch baseball as they went 12-28 in the overall season and 5-16 within their conference. Women’s softball posted a 1-11 in conference record and went 10-28 overall. 

Despite being tied for sixth in stats among their conference competitors, Monarch baseball could not beat a team over .500. Finishing 28 home runs and 418 hits. The Monarchs showed signs of strength and durability during tough times but could not keep up with the better teams.  

The first conference game of the season, the monarchs handled Los Angeles Mission College comfortably with a score of 15-6. However, against a much tougher opponent like Antelope Valley, they got punched out 29-18 showing an inconsistency between non-contenders and competitive teams. 

Throughout the Monarch roster, they had four outfielders and four right-handed pitchers which proved the battle for spots and an overload across positions.  

“We lost guys to injuries, and we did not have the depth that we have had in the past years,” said head coach Will Skett. “The guys who played competed in every game.”  

Throughout most of the season, the monarchs were on a seven-game losing streak, the second most within the past 10 years.  

“Our pitch execution was not very good overall, and we relied on some relief pitchers who had relatively less experience over the past few years,” said pitching coach Alex FaGalde. 

Two of Valleys' pitching arms made top five in both earned run average and strikeouts in their conference, proving the fight and power the Monarchs brought. Right-handed pitcher Zachary Freck posted a 2.85 ERA with teammate Luke Casarez being fourth in strikeouts with 71.  

Despite the hardships faced, the future can be bright due to having a freshmen's heavy roster providing an opportunity for younger players to develop. 

“Looking ahead to next season,” said outfielder Rowen Hart. “I know we have great coaching and we will be highly competitive next season.” 

Softball closed off an underwhelming season going 1-11 in conference and 10-28 throughout the entire season after falling to Oxnard College 6-4 on Thursday, April 23.  

Sitting last in conference standing behind Los Angeles Mission College, the Monarchs posted last in all stats across runs, hits, runners batted in, doubles and triples.  

The only team Valley beat consecutively was Barstow College who went 0-29 overall and 0-15 in conference.  

Their longest losing streak was six games against Ventura College, Desert College, Imperial Valley and then against Santa Barbara College with a combined score of 73 to 46.  

Valley pitcher Jovanna Ross placed top ten in conference with nine wins tied along with four other conference pitchers. 

Much like the men’s baseball, next season is still up for grabs as returners will look to work hard and prepare for another season to come. 

“This season is a great experience for the girls coming back and seen as an opportunity to learn to grow,” said outfielder Tarryn Macias.  

Alejandro Garcia contributed to this article.