- Slug: Tempe Prep Baseball
- Runtime: 3:11
- Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)
BYLINE: Eric Castellon/Cronkite News
It takes nine players to field and start a baseball game. But Tempe Preparatory Academy’s boys’ baseball team this year found itself with only 8 players. That’s when the coach turned to sisters for help. Cronkite News’ Eric Castellon has their story.
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SISTERS AMY AND KAILEY GONZALEZ HAD NEVER WORN A BASEBALL GLOVE OR SWUNG A BAT WHEN KNIGHTS HEAD BASEBALL COACH BRAD SULLIVAN ASKED THEM IN FEBRUARY TO COME ABOARD. THE ALL BOYS TEAM AT TEMPE PREPARATORY ACADEMY WAS IN TROUBLE AND AMY SAYS THEY DIDN’T THINK HE WAS SERIOUS.
<SOT: AMY GONZALEZ>
“My mom came home from one of my brother’s games, and said that the coach wanted us to join the team because there wasn’t enough players, and I thought she was joking.”
BUT COACH SULLIVAN WASN’T JOKING. THEIR YOUNGER BROTHER, DAVID, WAS ALREADY ON THE TEAM, AND KAILEY SAYS AFTER THINKING IT THROUGH, THEY DECIDED TO HELP HIM OUT.
<SOT: KAILEY GONZALEZ>
“We thought about it for a while, and I was a little nervous to do it at first, so Amy said that she would do it with me.
AMY SAYS IT’S BEEN FUN TO PLAY BASEBALL WITH THEIR BROTHER.
<SOT: AMY GONZALEZ>
“ I have never gotten to play another sport with him, and let alone to play with him and my sister on the same team, it’s been pretty fun, to get us all on the same field.”
COACH SULLIVAN SAYS THEIR FIRST GAME, HE MADE SURE TO MAKE IT MEMORABLE FOR THEIR PARENTS.
<SOT: SULLIVAN>
“The first game that I had them in the lineup, I made the starting lineup and I kept a copy and I gave it to their dad and I said, ‘Here, here’s a souvenir for ya,’ and they thought that was pretty cool.”
HAVING AMY AND KAILEY GONZALEZ ON THE ROSTER HAS MEANT THE TEAM HAS AVOIDED FORFEITS AND CAN FIELD A WHOLE TEAM AT EVERY GAME. SULLIVAN SAYS IT’S BEEN A TUMULTUOUS SEASON SO FAR.
<SOT: SULLIVAN>
“It’s nice to have that, because you know when you have 9 players, if somebody gets sick or someone gets injured, or it’s an academic issue and now you’ve got 8, you don’t know what that’s gonna look like as the weeks go on.”
THE SISTERS ARE MULTISPORT ATHLETES AT TEMPE PREPARATORY ACADEMY. AMY IS A SENIOR AND PLAYS SOCCER AND IS AN ALL-REGION VOLLEYBALL PLAYER FRESH OFF OF A RUN TO THE STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. KAILEY IS A SOPHOMORE WHO ALSO DOES VOLLEYBALL AND SOCCER, AND SHE’S ALSO A CHEERLEADER.
KAILEY SAYS THEY ARE GETTING A LOT OUT OF PLAYING BASEBALL.
<SOT: KAILEY GONZALEZ>
“The coaches are all great and really make you feel like you’re doing good and learning a lot, and the boys also help a lot with that and encourage you.”
AMY SAYS IT DIDN’T MATTER THAT THEY HAD NEVER PLAYED THE GAME BEFORE. SHE SAYS HER PREVIOUS HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS EXPERIENCE HAS HELPED A LOT.
<SOT: AMY GONZALEZ>
“Volleyball just like hand-eye coordination I guess, and then also just like especially this year as a senior, like I’ve gained a lot more confidence so just like coming out and just like going for it even though I have no idea what I’m doing has been good.”
KAILEY SAYS THEIR ROLES WITH THE KNIGHTS ARE SIMILAR FOR EACH GAME.
<SOT: KAILEY GONZALEZ>
“We most of the time pinch run or sometimes we get up to bat and play outfield.”
AND AS FOR THE KNIGHTS, THEY’VE BEEN FARING PRETTY WELL. HALFWAY THROUGH THE SEASON, THE TEAM IS IN PLAYOFF CONTENTION. COACH SULLIVAN SAYS THERE ARE A LOT OF BRIGHT SPOTS AS THEY NEAR THE END OF THE SEASON.
<SOT: SULLIVAN>
“We’re sitting at about .500, so it’s a young team, and a lot of young guys but we’re still working, we’re still building.”
REGARDLESS OF HOW THE SEASON ENDS IN MAY, AMY GONZALES SAYS SHE AND KAILEY ARE GLAD THEY JOINED THE TEAM. AND SHE HAS THIS ADVICE FOR OTHER GIRLS WHO MIGHT WANT TO FOLLOW IN THEIR FOOTSTEPS :
<SOT: AMY GONZALEZ>
“I say just go for it, like when you get out there, just do it, don’t go out there and be all scared and like, ‘What if this happens, what if I mess up, what if I do badly,’ just go out there and do what you can.”
SOT: <PRACTICE AUDIO>
ERIC CASTELLON, CRONKITE NEWS.