NEWFANE — Medina trailed by three in the sixth inning. But in the dugout, there weren’t any signs of panic.
Instead, there were players hollering, motivating their teammates to keep going when they stepped up to the plate. Instead of tensing up, the Mustangs were ready to get back into the game.
All they needed was one man on base. It soon turned into a scoring frenzy, with six runs and two extra-base hits to take the lead in an 8-7 win over Newfane Monday.
After experiencing an early postseason exit last season, the Mustangs are now a year older. And with the ability to score runs at a stretch, they’re ready to slug their way back to a deep postseason run.
Medina is 8-1 on the season and in first place in the Niagara-Orleans League with a 4-1 record.
After learning to play together last season, the dividends are paying off for the Mustangs. With nine players back in the lineup, Medina is taking the lessons learned to good use.
“It’s really just about maturity,” Goyette said. “Not getting down if you make a mistake, grinding through mistakes. Baseball is a weird sport, bad mistakes happen. … You just have to shrug it off and move to the next one. They’re learning how to put the ball in play more instead of trying to swing for doubles and homers all the time.”
With eight games left in the regular season, Medina is projected to outpace its offensive production from last season. After totaling 76 runs in 17 games last season, the Mustangs are currently outscoring their opponents, 54-18, in nine games.
Plus, Medina has scored five or more runs in an inning five times, after only doing so three times all last season. Six players are driving in at least five runs, including a team-high eight from junior Ryleigh Culver.
“Once we get on base, we’d like to hit and run,” Goyette said. “… If they make the plays, they make the plays. But, if they don’t make the plays, we’re going to score multiple runs in an inning. So, that’s really always been our philosophy for my eight years now here.”
When Medina is at the plate, it wants to get into the pitcher’s head. It doesn’t have to be by making contact, as extending the at-bats is another goal for the Mustangs.
The approach at the plate was taught at an early age for the varsity Mustangs. Since seventh or eighth grade, the Mustangs have learned from coaches like Goyette how the entire program works and what they’re looking for in hitters.
“We work at-bats, pitchers, they automatically get frustrated,” said senior Julian Woodworth, who has scored a team-high 14 runs. “They either tense up, muscle up, throw one in the dirt. … The biggest thing is just fouling a lot of pitches off, and then, eventually, you’ll find one that you think you can handle and put it in play.”
Medina is 6-0 when scoring at least five runs in a contest. But, Medina knows the sectional postseason is around the corner.
Similar to years past, Medina opened its season by hosting teams from Section V at Veterans Park. This season, Medina collected two wins against Alexander and a win apiece against Holley and Batavia, outscoring their opponents 25-2.
But as the team prepares for higher caliber pitching in the sectional tournament next month, the Mustangs are confident in their plan moving forward.
“Five or six runs a game usually isn’t realistic in sectionals unless you just face a pitcher that has a bad day,” Goyette said. “Other than that, the boys know they got to get on base, and, as soon as they get on base, we’re either going to be doing something to move them along and try to put somebody in scoring position.”
Medina continues its season with a rematch against Newfane at 4:45 p.m. Wednesday at Veterans Park.