Coming off a season where the Titans clinched their first league title since 2014, hopes for the season were quite high and optimism was high inside the Titan baseball program. San Gabriel Valley sports writer James Escarcega projected the Titans to top the Rio Hondo League once again, and with a core of seniors Sid Danenhauer, Ryan Park, Coleman Morning, and Mikey Yessian returning alongside returning junior starters JJ Wilson and Tomas Bilvado, expectations for a return to the CIF semis were truly there. However, the Titans jumped up from Division 6 to Division 4, a huge jump for any program. But the Titans proved they were up to the task. “We didn’t really think much of it,” said Wilson, referring to the jump of divisions. “We earned our spot from last year and now we had to show we actually earned it.”
To open up the season, the Titans powered their way to eight wins in the first nine games, the only loss being a 2-0 heartbreaker to Burroughs. The league opener went similarly to this matchup between Burroughs, with the Rams of Temple City winning 1-0 in an extra innings thriller. However, despite this loss in the league opener, triumphs in many tight games against every opponent in league propelled the Titans to their second consecutive league title, with a 9-3 record in league and a 20-7 record overall for the regular season. South Pasadena and Monrovia, finishing second and third respectively, also qualified for CIF berth in the Division 5 playoff.
The first round of playoffs featured a showdown with Citrus Hill, a team from far away
Perris. The Hawks traveled to McNamee Field to battle the Titans on our home turf, and with Bilvado on the mound for the Titans, Citrus Hill was left flabbergasted. Bilvado shut out the Hawks offense, as the Titans handled Citrus Hill 5-0. This left the Titans forced to travel to the fourth overall seed Oak Hills, a team that was coming off an 18-1 first round victory. Oak Hills also had a star talent in sophomore Jacob Webster, their shortstop that is currently committed to play at UCSB, a top baseball program in the nation.
Following an hour and a half drive to Hesperia to battle the Bulldogs, the score out of the gates remained close early. The game in the first few innings was quite back and forth, but by the sixth inning Oak Hills had run away with it, leading 9-3. However, the Titans did not back down. They scored three in the top of the sixth to make the score 9-6, putting themselves back in reach, but ultimately, they just came up a little short. Final score: 9-6, Oak Hills. However, Coach John Franklin’s message to the team post game was not negative. He described how this year, his team was one of the best he had ever coached, and the team should be nothing but proud of their hard work this season. They had earned back to back league titles, and in the face of adversity in the playoffs, they did not back down. “The end was disappointing, but we have a lot to build towards next year,” said Bilvado. And with five starters returning to the fold next year, as well as both starting pitchers, a third consecutive Rio Hondo League title could be in the Titans’ grasp.
