It’s been a long, cold lonely winter but it’s about to get better. Spring sports return to Lovelock this weekend. PCHS hosts its annual baseball and softball tournaments on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The weather report predicts partly cloudy skies with winds at five to 10 mph. You’ll need a jacket or your Mustang swag. The temperature should hover around 50 degrees at the highest.
PCHS baseball picks up seven players
Last spring the Mustang baseball team said goodbye to five seniors off a 12-man roster, almost half the team.They included Raul Rincon, Tim Fecht, Blake Barter, Jordan Gentry and Logan Oberman.
Last spring’s team had six weeks to learn everything they usually learn in twelve.
Officials shortened the season and scrapped the State tournament due to Covid.
On a cold, rainy weekend last May, Lovelock hosted Incline, Yerington, Silver Springs, West Wendover and Battle Mountain for the Northern 2A regionals.
The Mustangs took their (15-0) loss against Battle Mountain with grace and headed over to the softball field to watch the girls beat Incline.
The boys finished at 1-13, overall, and 1-13 in the 2A. Yerington won the regional championship.
There are no returning seniors this season.
Grad-to-be Nick Flores is a talented newcomer. On the plus side, head coach Jared Jensen added seven players. He’s excited about his 19-man roster.
Altogether there are nine freshmen, six sophomores, three juniors and a senior.
“We return Blake Burrows who led last year’s team on base percentage and Wyatt Diaz who led our team in fielding percentage,” says Jensen. “We return some good young sophomores including Conner Fecht, Thomas Meyers Jr. and Aaron Kienbaum. We also have a key starter in our outfield returning – Noel Zaldivar.”
Diaz and Kienbaum received Honorable Mentions from the 2A last year. Burrows made the second team.
The freshmen include Travis Donaldon, Izayuh Mcglothin, Denzel Zaldivar, Tyler Beer, Tyler Miller, Landon Fitzpatrick, Jacob Burke, Wyatt Hughes and Brian Flores. Sophomores Lucian Gonzalez, Eddie Herrara and Preston Tomsu-Burse round out the team.
Wrestlers, football and basketball players pack the squad and are determined to turn things around with the help of their coaches - Jensen, Jesse Canchola and Jake Bohan. Superintendent Russell Fecht will pitch in as a volunteer assistant. Now all they need is a home crowd.
Lovelock’s pre-season tournament opens against rival school Battle Mountain on Thursday at 3 p.m. Friday, Pershing plays the Portola Tigers at 9 a.m.
They finish up on Saturday, playing Quincy at 8 a.m. and Sparks at noon.
“We are a young but athletic team,” says Jensen. “We have so many good young newcomers coming in that we’re excited about what they can do. We’re optimistic about where we could be by June.”
