Greece Athena baseball eyes Sectionals repeat
GREECE, N.Y. (WHEC) – Greece Athena baseball is a team like everyone else in Section V, but their program runs deeper than most. The Trojans have won five Sectionals Championships since 1999, including one last season. They’re trying to run it back.
“We have a ton of talent, but you can’t overlook that. We still gotta come here and work every day. It’s a new season once the Sectionals start, so the record doesn’t really matter, talent doesn’t really matter, it’s game by game at that point,” said senior Connor Osier.
The talent speaks for itself. Osier is committed to play baseball at the University of Houston. A handful of other players are getting interest from other Division One schools. With that talent, comes extra pressure.
“It’s definitely a challenge. We’ve got a target on our back all the time – we can’t upset anyone but we can get upset,” said junior Sammy Saucke.
And for Greece Athena, it’s also about helping each other be the best players they can be.
“We all push each other in practice and in games. We all want each other to do good, but we all want to do a little bit better than the other,” said Osier.
Derrick: “They’ve helped me a lot. They push me to be better. If they push me, I’m gonna push them,” said junior Derrick Allen.
The final push is getting ready for Sectionals, where the pursuit of back-to-back banners, officially begins.
“Intensity gets upped a little bit. Everyone gets upped, you don’t wanna get knocked out. It’s my last year. Wanna go as far as you can,” said Osier.
“We just can’t take anything lightly. Every team, we gotta take ‘em serious,” said Allen.
Saturday, the Trojans declare war on the rest of Class AA.