The Nucla Mustangs won their regional high school baseball tournament over the weekend, and head coach Randy Gabriel said he’s proud of the guys.
“We hung together, gutted it out and tried to keep each other up when we made mistakes,” he said. “We picked each other up.”
He said they didn’t pitch the best or play the best, but found a way to win both games anyway. They won the first against Prairie, 10-9, in what was a very good game, close all the way through. In that game, Jackson McCabe homered.
They next played Peetz, a team from way up north by the Nebraska border. In that game, Brycen Rummel hit a three-run homer, and Cole Bray hit a grand slam. The guys won 13-10.
“That was cool,” he said. “We’ve been through so much.”
He said the team has a process they go through, and the kids follow it.
“Trust the process and work hard, and we will have you ready,” he said, referring to how he builds momentum for the success the guys are having post-season. “You just have to go do the job.”
Since 2022, the Mustangs have been to the final four seven times. Coach would like to count the pandemic year too, because the team was so strong in 2020. Nobody is surprised the guys are on the roll that they’re on this year, despite the various challenges they’ve endured.
Gabriel said overall, everyone is stoked; the jubilation was big at regionals; the fan support was huge.
“We had whole families out there to take photos with the trophy,” he said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Other special moments happened too. The team keeps putting the No. 18 jersey out for good luck, in honor of coach’s son-in-law who just passed away. That tradition seems to be working, and coach said there are many superstitions associated with the number. They’re really honoring the late Braeden Coleman, and luck — or some positive force — has been with them.
They’ll need all the luck they can get this week for the state tournament when they face the No. 1 Flatirons Academy. A very legitimate team with hitting and defense skills, Gabriel said he hopes the Mustangs can pitch and play better against Flatirons. And, he knows it’s possible.
“That’s why I love baseball,” he said. “We’ve knocked off Cornerstone (Christian) who was No. 1 … Hopefully we carry that same luck with us.”
The guys will leave Wednesday for Lakewood and play Thursday at 10 a.m. If they lose, they’re done; if they win, they play again that afternoon at 3 p.m. Coach said he’s proud regardless.
The travel just doesn’t stop for them. The guys were in Alamosa last weekend, a six-and-a-half-hour one-way trip, and the weekend before that they were in Simla, seven hours a way. This week, they head to the Denver area.
Gabriel said he’s so grateful for the fans. His son, Wil Gabriel, a former Nucla and college baseball player, was there too offering support. He’s also really happy for seniors Jackson Dinsmore, Owen Tackett and Brycen Rummel, and also that younger players like Jonah Richardson got in and pitched at regionals. Hayden Branham, too, was in pinch-hitting when they needed him.
In a challenging season where many teams could’ve “folded chips,” coach said the Mustangs did not. He was humbled by all the calls and texts after the regional victory.
“Lot of people care about what happens, and tradition does mean something,” he said.
