Killian Set To Enjoy One Last Hurrah Together

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Killian Manager Angel Herrera has a lot of pride to take the field this season with the team he has playing behind him. It is a veteran and talented group that don the Cougars uniform this season, a squad with all the potential in the world. The mantra this season is to seize the day and make the most of this year, both on and off the field.

The Cougars have eight seniors on the roster, and all of them have been in the program for their entire high school careers. All eight of them are signed to play college baseball, and as a group they have enjoyed a lot of success winning on the field together. They are a tight group with terrific chemistry together.

“I believe in my team, it has earned their place in our program’s history by what they have done between the lines,” Herrera said. “I am proud of them, but not just because of going to college and the things we have done, but because of whom they are as people. I love these kids. They could be half the baseball players that they are and I will still feel the same way because of who they are.”

Herrera admits it is a bittersweet feeling coaching them this season. He constantly feels a mixture of emotions. He loves his team and he has the utmost confidence in them, but he also knows this is the last go-around with this particular group. Every major moment of the school year is the last time for a group that has carried this program since they were all sophomores playing together.

Herrera comes to the field everyday just focused on enjoying himself and enjoying being with these guys. He savors the time together, as he realizes that after they graduate in June and go on to the next chapters of their lives he will not have a front row seat to it. Just as he has always preached, it is about taking it game by game. They are just going to try to enjoy the 2015 season the best they can and see if they can do some things.

“Every team has the goal at this time of year to end by playing at jetBlue Park, and in South Florida it’s a monumental task regardless of what your roster looks like,” Herrera said. “To get there means you are going to have to go through some pretty talented and well-coached teams. So the task is not easy, but we recognize that anything worth having is not easy to get. We’re ready for the challenge; we anticipate adversary and we just want to take it one game at a time. Give it our best effort and see how the chips fall.”

Fortunately for the Cougars, they have the type of team that greatly improves their odds. They have a deep pitching staff, with several starters that can carry a team on their own. The club is simply counting on them to throw strikes and mix up pitches, and to make the opponent put the ball in play and feed a strong defensive unit. They can also hit a little bit, and they don’t tend to beat themselves. Together this gives them a good recipe for success.

Seniors Ryan Granda, Vladimir Nunez and Keith Stevens lead a deep starting pitching staff. Senior Eddy Demurias has shined in a closer’s role, with Frank Follaco another solid relief option. Stevens figures to lead the staff following a strong junior campaign, and it is a role he is ready for.

“My pitching staff as a whole is pretty experienced and we all have some good innings under our belt,” Stevens said. “We’ve just got to keep doing the same things we’ve been doing for the last couple of years. I just feel like when each and every one of us steps on the mound we all can bring it. It’s a good thing to have on your team.”

Demurias leads a very strong infield unit, where he plays second base to solidify the middle with sophomore shortstop Freddy Zamora. Stevens plays first on days he does not pitch, and senior Joey Gonzalez also starts on the infield. Sophomores Alejandro Mosquera and Herbert Iser join the club, with Iser set to man the catcher’s role. Sophomore Eddie Arteaga also splits time behind the plate and along the infield.

Even with some new moving parts, the infield unit looks sharp and dangerous. Ground balls get gobbled up and the group plays with a lot of confidence.

“The Killian tradition has been passing that torch down from generation to generation,” said Demurias, a three-year starter. “It’s about being recognized as one of the overall top programs in town and the way we do things different. We try to keep that standard and bring it a little higher this year.”

Ryan “Sneaky” Guzman leads the outfield corps. This group includes Sebastian Gonzalez, sophomore Daniel Trillo and newcomer Brian Ozuna. Herrera is excited about his outfield group as he watches Brian Ozuna making a name for himself and start being a part of the next generation of Killian baseball players. Meanwhile he is watching the four-year senior Sebastian Gonzalez getting his first chance to start, and he is extremely excited to go in to battle with him out there this year.

“We’ve got some young guys who were babies last year who are counted on to grow from the experience last year and make the next jump,” Herrera said. “If they can do their job and come in to support this senior group that has carried this program since they were sophomores I think we are going to give ourselves the best chance to win. It is not going to be easy and there are a lot of challenges, but we’re giving ourselves a chance to do it and now it is about actually going out and getting it done.”

For Killian that starts by playing the game and not playing the opponent. The team has been successful because it is fundamentally sound and the guys do not beat themselves. The Cougars put themselves in position to win and then they try to execute baseball plays. They play good baseball and when a team does that, good things happen.

“We don’t want to step on the field and rest on our laurels, because frankly what we have done has not been enough,” Herrera said. “We haven’t been to states, and we want to try to get to states. We’re going to take what we’ve done in the past, learn from it and grow and do it that much better this year.”

This group knows this is their last chance to make it happen together. Nobody is looking that far ahead, but that does not change that this is their swan song together. So they are just enjoying playing this game they all love together, and give it the effort they all deserve.

“We have been playing together for a while and we have grown close,” Stevens said. “We have put in our work together on and off the field, and we are always working to get better. The opportunity is what we have been working for, so it’s exciting and we’re going to give it our best.”

A lot of these guys began playing for the Cougars baseball program five years ago. They came up as one big group together, and the program has accomplished a lot during their tour. Chief among these accomplishments is sending all of its seniors off to play college baseball. The club has 11 guys in all who are committed to play college baseball, and in the eight seasons Herrera has been at the helm the program has had 53 college commitments. The program has a 98% college commitment rate and is in the top % of the state GPA for the past two seasons.

The guys have already made their mark in Killian laurels. But now they want to end it with the ultimate dream, and bring a state trophy back home to their school.

“It’s been a long humbling journey and we are trying to end it now with some nice icing on top in our senior year,” Demurias said. “After everything we’ve been through, we are trying to finally capture our goal. We’re just trying to stay within ourselves and play to our level and not to everyone else’s level. We feel like we control our own destiny and that is how we have been preparing.”

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