Rivalry Showdown
As the new season approaches, I took a look at some of the rival programs in the area and see how our teams stack up. To figure out some who some of baseballs most heated rivals are I asked the team what they thought. When I asked Coach Reichert about who his least favorite rival was he said, “we have a general respect for all our opponents and believe they can all be dangerous.” This is a general theme he emphasised throughout my talk with him and during baseball practices. He says that there's no team in the league that will just roll over and lose.
When talking with the rest of the team about their biggest rivals South Royalton came up a lot. Last year the South Royalton baseball team finished 14-0 and won the Division 4 state championship. This year Rivendell plays them on April 21st and May 15th. Though unable to topple that team last year many people have optimism about our chances this season. They say that South Royalton has good pitching but with our depth of hitters we should still be able to score runs. While attending practices as a first year baseball player I have noticed a lot of positive thinking by the team and the coaching staff. One thing that they have been stressing is that in baseball you can beat anyone and, likewise, anyone can beat you. They want us prepared and ready to play to the best of our ability for every game even if its against a team that Rivendell should beat thoroughly.
The other big rival that Rivendell is slated to play is Thetford Academy. The two games scheduled are for April 27th and May 7th. Last year, Thetford Academy finished 7-9 and lost to #1 seeded Enosburg Falls in the second round of the playoffs. Last year Thetford and Rivendell played 2 tough games against each other. But by the end of both these battles Rivendell managed to come out on top.
Games against these teams should be some of the top highlights of the season but you should stay on the lookout for games against tough opponent Blue Mountain Union School and neighboring school Chelsea Public School. In addition to these highlighted games fans should try and make it to as many games as possible to come support their Rivendell Raptors!
