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It took one final run to cross the plate for Monterey to finish off their opponent Forest 13-3 in the 6th inning Thursday afternoon. 

Wolves head coach Eric Richard spoke to his team as they kneeled in the left field grass around him. He said winning was not enough if they were not playing to their standard. 

“It is not so much about the opponent it is about us,” Richard said. “When we make errors that put runners on that leads to scoring. When we walk . batters that allow others to hit that isn’t where we want to be. Winning is always great but if you aren’t executing at that standard then you are not getting better.”

His team pitched and hit well in the game but he didn’t want his players to be satisfied with winning, he said. 

Monterey has gotten off to a hot start winning three games out of five. Baseball season is a sprint, and the Wolves have hit the dirt running, he said. 

Due to basketball the Wolves had a delayed start to the season, he said. He serves as both the baseball head coach and basketball head coach for Monterey. 

This year is the return of Richard to the dugout as he took a three year hiatus, he said. While he has experience coaching baseball, he has not had any experience coaching the current players,  he said.

“We are still learning each other too,” Richard said. “It has taken a little time. We have good days and bad days, but they are listening really well. Our play just needs to be a little more consistent.” 

Monterey will play against Family Community Christian School and Vidalia high school on Saturday in the Vidalia Viking Invitational. 

The weekend tournament marks the last set of games before Monterey takes on their opening week of district play against Oak Hill. Glenmora, Grace Christian and University Academy are all in Monterey’s district along with Oak Hill. 

“Any time you get to play and get put in different situations. Have different at-bats that is all preparation,” Richard said. “Some of these kids are new to a position so the more they see the more they can learn. For us it is more about preparing ourselves for the playoffs.”