Sport: Baseball

Warrior Baseball Claims 2023 State Championship Title

Warrior Baseball Claims 2023 State Championship Title

During a two-game tournament event on Monday and Tuesday, the Cypress Christian Warriors battled against weather delays and two formidable opponents in Geneva School and McKinney Christian. After a scoreless first inning against the Geneva Eagles, Cypress Christian took a 5-1 lead in the second inning when Beckett Swinney and Gavin Gray singled, Brody Tucker, Ameron Sheikh and Drew Mestayer walked and Zach Thibodeaux doubled. The two teams didn’t allow any further runs until Geneva tied up the game in the top of the sixth inning. Jacob Lukaszewski pitched an impressive first five innings giving up one unearned run on three hits and four walks while striking out six. Warren Haudek took the mound in the seventh inning to finish the game, allowing zero hits and zero runs while walking one and striking out two. In the final at bat, the Warriors started off with a strikeout but then earned walks for the next three batters, which loaded the bases. This set up the dramatic ending to the game, when Swinney hit a walk-off single to win the semi-final match up. 

The state final game pitted the Warriors against the McKinney Mustangs who seemed hot offensively right from the start. While their first run was answered by a CCS run in the top of the second, the ‘Stangs then plated four in response. Cypress scored only one in the third, and McKinney struck again in the fourth – leaving the Warriors down 2-6. The fifth inning proved to be the turning point of the game when CCS scored seven unanswered runs. Both teams scored one run each in the sixth and went scoreless in the seventh, leaving the final score at 10-7. Mestayer and Haudek were the pitchers of record for the game, with Haudek earning the win. The Warriors collected 13 hits overall.  Mestayer, Tyler Bienko, Gray, Haudek and Williams each managed multiple hits. Cypress Christian was sure-handed and didn’t commit a single error. Mestayer made the most plays with six. CCS stole five bases during the game as Mestayer and Thibodeaux each led the way with two.

As an added bonus to the day, Lukaszewski, Swinney, Thibodeaux and Williams were each named to the TAPPS Division 3 All Tournament State Team. Congrats to the 2023 CCS Varsity Warrior baseball team!

The team’s perseverance and a “row the boat” mentality led them to the baseball program’s third state title.

 

Houston Chronicle Article – TAPPS state roundup: Cypress Christian wins baseball, softball titles (houstonchronicle.com)

Warrior Baseball

Warrior Baseball

The varsity Warrior baseball team won two of their four games in last week’s round-robin tournament, scoring 32 runs over the three days of games. The leaders at the plate were Tristan Fokken, Warren Haudek, Jacob Lukaszewski, Drew Mestayer, Ameron Sheikh and Beckett Swinney.

The junior varsity team split their doubleheader against HCYA over the weekend. Hudson Dennis, Adam Williams and Aidan Leonard each had multiple hits in the first game of the day, while Michael Conomos went 2-3 in the second game. The team beat Concordia Lutheran on Tuesday, 14-0 with Tristan Fokken throwing a no-hitter. They play away at Houston Christian today and at home on Monday against Bo Porter Academy.

CCS is hosting another tournament this week where the varsity team will face the Tomball Kings and Mansfield Knights, while the JV team will take on the Northside Falcons. Come root, root, root for the home teams while enjoying the weather and some tasty concessions.

Varsity Warriors take the field today at 4:30 and 6:30 p.m., and they play again on Saturday at 12:15 and 2:30 p.m. JV plays the 10 a.m. game and 4:45 p.m. game on Saturday. Adult tickets are $5, while senior citizens and non-CCS student tickets are $2. All CCS students may attend free of charge. Remember to bring your cash; the gate and concession stand do not take credit cards.

Varsity Baseball Earns Academic Excellence Award

Varsity Baseball Earns Academic Excellence Award

For the second consecutive year, the CCS Warrior varsity baseball team has earned the American Baseball Coaches Association’s Team Academic Excellence Award. The roster of 13 student-athletes compiled an average GPA of 95.7%, while also defending their TAPPS district championship. During the 2021-2022 academic year, only 18 high school teams in Texas earned this distinction. 

The CCS baseball coaching staff commends the steadfast academic support of players from both family and faculty, alike. We sincerely recognize the sacrifice of players, families and teachers who arrived early and stayed late in pursuit of excellence.

Baseball District Champs!

Baseball District Champs!

The varsity baseball team finished their regular season as district champions! In the first week, CCS defeated the Northland Cougars with scores of 8-4 and 13-1. After that, the Warriors defeated Legacy Prep with senior pitcher Andrew Williams on the mound. Backed by some great defense, Andrew pitched a complete seven-inning game shutting down Prep with a score of 5-0. The Warriors defeated Prep in a second game with senior pitcher Pearson Pollard throwing a complete game shut-out with only 80 pitches. The score of 19-0 was topped off with Jackson Braun going deep with a grand slam to secure an early end to the evening. The team continued successfully through the season while battling injuries in key positions, but they are now ready to begin the playoff journey.

Their season record earned them a bye in the first round of playoffs, but you can come watch them face off against San Antonio Holy Cross at home for the TAPPS Area title this Tuesday. Come cheer on the Warriors and enjoy some fresh grilled burgers and hot dogs.

Area Playoffs

  • CCS vs San Antonio Holy Cross
  • May 10 at 5 p.m.
  • CCS Will Rhodes Memorial Stadium

Senior Night Photos: