Samuel Kaplan

Sports Editor

Two years ago, the Milken Varsity baseball team made an appearance in the CIF championship game, the deepest run in school history. This season, there were doubts that a team would even exist. With less than nine players committed right before the season started, the Wildcats were desperate to fill out their roster. Luckily they found enough players and made another magical run through the CIF playoffs. Although falling short in the quarterfinals, the team’s run stunned the Milken community and created a buzz around campus.

Although finishing with a losing record in the regular season, the Wildcats won a wildcard game to make the playoffs. After beating Lennox Academy 10-0, the Wildcats qualified once again for CIF playoffs. Although matched up against one of the top seeds in the tournament, Riverside Christian, the boys in blue were unfazed by their opponent’s impressive record and devout fan base. Noah Mintz ’14 hit a clutch RBI double, as the Wildcats pulled off a huge upset stunning everyone with the 3-2 win.

Because Milken upset one of the top seeds in their tournament, their schedule got considerably easier in the next round. Matched up against Pacific Lutheran, the Wildcats performed that seemed all but impossible as the year began.  Led by the dynamic pitching of Jonah Resnick ’13 and Harris Girocco ’13 as well as Mitchell Mayer’s ’13 four for five outing, the wildcats stormed to a 17-3 annihilation.

After advancing two rounds, the baseball team’s sensational run fell short as they fell to Firebaugh 8-0. The Wildcats were unable to get their bats going as they had very few hits and saw their season come to a close. On a positive note, more than 50 people came out and supported the team which was one of the bigger crowds in recent memory. Although the boys in blue will be losing seniors JJ Ross ’12 and Corey Gitman ’12, the team should still be very competitive next year.