Elgin Community College’s men’s baseball team returned to the field to begin their season. They are currently 5-6 and they are stand in 5th for the NJCAA Region 4 Division III rankings.

On March 3, the team traveled to St. Louis, MO to play four games, they finished 1-3 that weekend. The following weekend they visited Vincennes, IN and won three games leaving them with a record of 4-4.

Co-captain Joe Laudont commented on the team’s weekend victories.

“We’re playing really well defensively and our offense is coming around really well,” Laudont said. “Especially this last weekend when we were in Vincennes.”

The Spartans hosted Sauk Valley Community College Thursday, March 22 and beat them 6-2. On March 23, they played Oakton Community College at home and lost 6-5.

The Spartans have several games per week scheduled for the upcoming month. Head Coach Bill Angelo points out how overwhelming their season can be.

“Baseball is a very intense season,” Angelo said. “We try and play 56 games in about a month and a half time period. So it’s a lot of baseball in a short amount of time. Trying to keep guys healthy is obviously one thing that we’re going to need to do.”

The team has high expectations and hopes for this season and postseason. Last year they were Region champions and look to go further than that this season.

“I know that they are highly motivated to win the region again and also win the district, and get to the world series and have a shot at the national title,” Angelo said.

According to Coach Angelo, the sophomore’s leadership and team chemistry will play key roles in their success.

“I think that all great teams share a common bond where they are all in it for each other and not for themselves,” Angelo said. “If we do that then we just try and compete. There’s good baseball in this area, so we want to try and challenge ourselves all year and get ready for the postseason.”