No. 2 Liberty-eylau finding momentum in district play
TEXARKANA, Texas—liberty-eylau’s journey to another shot at a state championship may have gotten off to a rocky start this spring. Still, the Leopards are beginning to find their momentum in district play.
Liberty-eylau (13-4-1, 3-0 District 15-4A), which is ranked No. 2 in this week’s Class 4A THSBCA poll behind state champion China Spring, has won six straight games and eight of the last 10 after starting the season with a 2-3 record.
And, as always, head baseball coach Zach Fowler, who is in his eighth year leading the program, is there rallying his troops.
“Right now, I feel like we are improving,” he told the Gazette. “We didn’t start out the way we wanted to, but you never do. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are heading down the right path and playing the game the right way.
“If we stay focused and continue to do that, we can be a special ballclub.”
Another key factor to the Leopards’ late success is the players who had to step up after the program lost some of its standouts to graduation.
“[Losing players] definitely affected us some,” Fowler said. “Each team is so different and dynamic. When you lose good players, you hope other players step up, and they have this year. It’s been a different experience with a different group of kids, but we have been finding out what makes them click and are on the right track to making improvements daily.”
The Leopards are tied atop the District 15-4A leaderboard with crosstown rival Pleasant Grove (97-1, 3-0). Both teams are 3-0, with the rest of the field falling behind.
The coaches’ rankings have Liberty-eylau in the second spot, with the Hawks receiving votes but on the outside looking in. In other rankings, L-E holds the fifth spot in the Class 4A Diamond PRO/THSB Top 25, and PG is sitting at No. 15.
Rankings mean little to Fowler, however, outside of his team earning respect.
“One thing about the polls is you feel respected from around the state, which we want our program to be respected,” Fowler said. “But those rankings have nothing to do with what’s going to happen on that field.
“I tell our kids all the time that rankings aren’t real when it comes to games. “Rankings are more about what you have done so far in the season and have nothing to do with what you are going to do going forward.”
Liberty-eylau will hit the road Friday against Paris (4-8, 0-3), which dropped a 13-0 decision to Pleasant Grove last week.