The Casa sports that are part of this season’s conclusion are: badminton, baseball, golf, lacrosse, softball, swimming, tennis, and track. While some of these sports have started or been scheduled, there are others whose events’ dates are yet to be determined. But as the teams begin to prepare for the games, many expectations have emerged from players and coaches.

Baseball

In Freshman Baseball, Casa Grande began its season with two key wins against Ukiah, winning the first game 7-4 and the second game with 9-0 for Casa. Unfortunately, the Gauchos had the bad luck of losing the next two games, both against San Marin with the scores of 11-2, and 11-10 in what was a more tied and intense game.

But not everything is bad news, as Casa’s team recently has crushed Rancho Cotate Cougars with a score of 18-5, reviving back the momentum they had at the beginning of the season! Casa Grande is yet to play against them once more on March 14, in the Cougar’s home, but the players are ready to crush them again. (Hope this didn’t jinx it.)

Additionally, we have gotten the opportunity to get some of the players’ expectations and more for this 25/26  baseball season. The Freshman outfielder, Caiden Franks, was asked about his expectations for the season, and his response was encouraging, giving high but realistic goals of what the team has to achieve in the season: “Some of my expectations for the upcoming season are for every player to be the best teammate they can and to finish top three in league.” Franks was also asked about his expectations for himself as a player, and he said that some of his goals that he has settled for himself are to “secure a starting spot and be the best possible teammate [he] can for [the] team. These goals align with [the] team because this is a team sport and team sports need team players.”

Let’s not forget about the JV and Varsity teams, who have also been giving incredible performances with both having an overall record of 3-1 (three wins and one loss) so far, with Varsity scoring 21 runs in four games, and JV with 37 runs in four games according to statistics from MaxPreps. They are yet to play a lot of games in which they will need all of Casa’s support to reach glory. 

Badminton

As for badminton, the Gauchos will begin their season playing against Petaluma High in the Trojans’ home. The league will last from March 12th until April 30, while the VVAL badminton championship will be from May 8 until May 23, according to Vine Valley Athletic League. Casa Grande will play 12 games in between the dates of March 12 to April 30.

As the season starts, the Casa’s badminton players’ expectations and other comments for the season echo those of baseball. Two ninth grade badminton players, Aiden Schlientz and Diego Argueta, were asked what their expectations were for the season. Schlientz responded with enthusiasm: “I’m hoping for some fun matches, as well as learning new skills.” Argueta’s answer to the question was enthusiastic and competitive as he said that his ‘’expectations for this season is that we win the league.” As far as winning the season goes, Schlientz said, “I’m not sure about a winning season, as this is my first year, but I do hope so,” while Diego Argueta stated, “I do think we could have a winning season, very strong players on our team, who have the potential to win us the season. I do think we are going to have a winning season” — a response that surely will motivate all his teammates.

The Gauchos clearly have great hopes for this badminton season, as they absolutely want to go for the league. But most importantly, they want to have fun and learn from what will be a great experience. All Casa students give their support to them and wish them the best luck!

Track & Field

The track and field season has officially started, and the dates for all the events have been confirmed. According to Vine Valley Athletic League, this season’s league will begin on March 26 and will end on April 30. Then, the championship for track & field will take place on May 10 and will conclude on May 31.

The Gaucho runners are getting ready for what will be a sensational season of track and field. Jack Dufour, a senior who, unfortunately, is temporarily off training due to a torn Achilles tendon, was asked what were his sensations for this year’s track and field team. He said, “I think our team is doing really well, we’re all putting in the really hard work that we need . . . I think a lot of our athletes are going to make it to regionals.” He also added that his personal goals had been to “try to make it to state this year.” But sadly, as said before, he recently suffered an injury. Yet, that did not stop him from supporting his fellow teammates and encouraging them.

Dufour also talked about the other schools’ track and field teams and which ones appear to be toughest. “Our main competition this year is looking like it’s going to be Vintage High School. We beat them in my sophomore year, then came back and beat us last year . . . Napa and American Canyon are very tough competitors too,” said the Gaucho athlete, attributing the rivals for their great level.

Also, Coach Kosi, who is in charge of the training for sprints and relays, was also asked about his sensations of the team. “We’re still figuring that out . . . they’re young, but we have some really talented athletes,” Kosi said. He was also asked about how much he thinks the players are prepared. He said that they appear to be good, but as the season is just about to begin, “you don’t know what you don’t know . . . I think they’re still adjusting to my style . . . they’re improving everyday.” The season is just starting, so there’s still time to fully determine to learn from these runners, but so far they appear to live up at a good level. 

All of Casa’s students are waiting excitedly for this track and field to start and will show support to the team until the very end!

Hope for Casa’s Sports

As the conclusion of this sports season approaches, Casa’s ambition of being champions in each sport category grows. Every player and coach for each corresponding team works harder and harder every day to bring the champion title back to Casa Grande and make all Gauchos proud. However, in the realistic perspective, it is incredibly difficult for a high school to win all tournaments in each sport, meaning that there would have to be a sport or more that might not be able to achieve glory. But even if one, half, or all the sports are not able to be crowned champions, what really matters is the effort and passion that each player and coach puts in every training and game.

As it’s well clear that in sports, the winner will not always be the one who truly deserves to win. Sometimes, maybe even often, points will not be scored due to small details. What if in baseball a home run is not scored because it bounces back into the field from a fence or a player accidentally slips while running from base to base? Or what if in badminton someone in a clear and comfortable position does not hit the birdie? Or what if when a track runner jumps over a hurdle but they touch it with the tip of their foot and it falls down? Should the best be determined just by who ends up winning, or by who gives the actual best performance and is consistent at it? The objective for each season is to win everything, but the main goal is to work, improve, and beautifully perform (sports-wise) as a team and as an individual.

The real hope or hopes for not just this season but for every season is not that Casa wins the championships, but that they give good sensations, that they are enjoyable to watch, and that they give their absolute best and act positive no matter the outcome.

Allez les Gauchos!