Scott Smith is right. All it is is a number. It’s a pretty cool
number, mind you. One that symbolizes everything the program has
reached and accomplished in years past; one that places an added
significance on this season specifically. But, really, it’s just a
number. The San Benito Haybalers have been recognized nationally in
recent weeks by pollsters from ESPN RISE and MaxPreps, with the
latter poll connecting the Hollister softball team to some lofty
numbers, ranking the Balers as high as No. 1 in the Central Coast
Section, No. 2 in the state and No. 8 in the nation just last
week.
HOLLISTER
Scott Smith is right. All it is is a number.
It’s a pretty cool number, mind you. One that symbolizes everything the program has reached and accomplished in years past; one that places an added significance on this season specifically. But, really, it’s just a number.
The San Benito Haybalers have been recognized nationally in recent weeks by pollsters from ESPN RISE and MaxPreps, with the latter poll connecting the Hollister softball team to some lofty numbers, ranking the Balers as high as No. 1 in the Central Coast Section, No. 2 in the state and No. 8 in the nation just last week.
Feel free to digest those numbers one more time.
Pretty incredible, huh? A softball team from this small California town being recognized with the big boys in Southern California, Florida and Texas. It doesn’t happen every year, that’s for sure, and it should be recognized appropriately in the local newspaper — hence, this column.
But for everything a high national ranking means (and we’ll get to that in a bit), it’s still just a subjective number, and with it can come added attention/distraction.
Smith is well aware of this.
The San Benito softball manager had a feeling his team might be moving up the rankings when he saw some MaxPreps officials covering last week’s Spring Jamboree in Las Vegas. The team was undefeated at that point, and had just recently beat Centennial of Las Vegas and Pleasant Grove of Utah by matching 10-0 margins.
Then, the rankings came out, and the Balers were in the top 10 in the nation.
Family and fans were abuzz. Phone calls and texts were immediately exchanged from Vegas to Hollister. The players, who seemingly shook off a No. 33 national ranking from ESPN RISE the previous week, were even talking about it.
It wasn’t the first time the program has found itself in the national spotlight, however. The Balers were ranked No. 50 in the nation at the tail end of the 2007 season, and again in 2008, when it garnered the No. 23 national ranking.
But No. 8? In the nation? Not every team finds itself in the Top 25, or even the Top 50, no matter how well the season is going.
“They were all talking about it,” said Smith, who was trying to diffuse the situation early in the week, knowing the consequences such a high ranking might bring.
See, while earning a top-10 national ranking is something to be celebrated, albeit briefly, it can also supply a bit of unwanted pressure, none of which is imposed by other teams, who would love to take down a top-10 contender.
No, instead of playing your game, teams often find themselves playing for a number and trying to live up to some subjective expectation.
“It did come back to bite us that game,” Smith said of when his team played Edison of Huntington Beach on Friday morning. “They played with pressure instead of doing their best.
“We were trying too hard.”
It was still a win — 8-7, in fact. But for a team that was relaxed and brimming with confidence, which translated into the whole team “killing the ball” at the plate, the Balers were now instead struggling and pressing.
Smith feels the team will be OK, though.
“We’ll see how we bounce back and respond,” said Smith, whose Balers went 5-1 in Vegas and are currently 19-1 overall at press time. On Tuesday, the team was ranked No. 14 in the nation by MaxPreps.
Smith and his coaching staff have clearly turned the program from a local powerhouse into one that is recognized on a national level, which, I can only imagine, takes far more time and effort than a single afterschool practice.
It takes knowledge and knowhow and consistency, and being able to relay that same approach to each and every student-athlete that dons Baler red every single season.
It also takes the right players and a fair bit of winning, too.
And it is very much an accomplishment, even if there isn’t necessarily a trophy to be hoisted. It’s an accomplishment that reflects not only how well this year’s team has performed, but also what the program as a whole has accomplished in recent years.
Starting your season 19-0 is one thing, but winning five straight section championships, then starting your season with a 19-0 record, is on a completely different level, and one that will assuredly get you noticed.
Smith prefers to keep it on the field, though.
“Our philosophy is, let’s prove it to ourselves,” he said of the ranking.
The Balers can certainly do that. They play Valley Christian on Thursday, will play Gilroy on Tuesday, and will visit Notre Dame next Thursday.
There is a Tri-County Athletic League title still up for grabs, too, not to mention a sixth CCS Division I title at stake as well.
As for that elusive national championship? Well, there is no national championship, so why bother worrying about a national ranking?
After all, it’s just a number.
