The Lake Oconee Wild Things kicked off their inaugural season on May 30-31, facing off against the Cartersville Canons at Lake Oconee Academy’s Titan Field.
The program additionally hosted a seven-inning exhibition scrimmage on May 28 to showcase the new collegiate team.
The Wild Things are one of eight teams in the Sunbelt League, a summer collegiate association of Metro Atlanta area teams funded partly by Major League Baseball.
The league allows athletes to expose their talents to other colleges and scouts, with the season running from late May until late July.
Despite a weekend of intense competition, the Wild Things fell to the Cannons 8-5 in their Friday evening game and 18-13 on Saturday afternoon.
Tony Matos, head coach of the Wild Things, said he was pleased with his players’ efforts throughout the weekend. Despite the losses, he believes the season opener will help the team succeed going forward.
“The guys definitely gave me a lot to think about, and it’s kind of like, you know, you throw this together in a week and have to see what you have,” Matos said. “So, now we have a finer idea of what we need to do moving forward strategically to help us, and I think we competed very well.”
Game one of the weekend series was scoreless for the first four innings, then the Wild Things and the Cannons scored three runs in the fifth. Cartersville held off Lake Oconee in the next two innings. The Wild Things scored their remaining runs in the eighth and ninth innings.
Despite the rough start, Matos believes the team made multiple improvements in their second matchup with the Cannons.
“We have talented guys, but there are just times where we lose focus, or we’re not consistent in the zone pitching or hitting, or we don’t have our approach,” Matos said. “But we talked a lot about [our] approach, and they adjusted.”
The second game of the series was a tight competition between the two teams, with Lake Oconee trailing on and off during the game. The Cannons were the first to add runs to the scoreboard, with two in the first inning and three in the third.
Lake Oconee added four runs in the third inning and scored nine more within the sixth to ninth innings. The Wild Things eventually took a one-run lead in the eighth inning, making the score 11-10.
Despite their efforts to bounce back, the Wild Things lost by a five-run margin after the Cannons added eight in the top of the ninth. Lake Oconee added two runs to the board in the final inning, leaving the score at 18-13.
Matos’ position as head coach marks his first venture working with athletes at the collegiate level. During the school year, he works as a full-time teacher and varsity baseball coach in Barrow County.
“It’s been a whirlwind for me, and I’m definitely learning a lot, too,” Matos said. “A lot of the stuff [in the game] happens on me, too, so it’s not just on the players. I’m learning right along with them and just figuring out how to be a better coach at this level.”
With the remainder of the season, Matos hopes to get to know his athletes better and see “a cleaner baseball game.”
“I feel like I’ve only been around them for three or four days, but I know them so much better than I did the first time we met,” Matos said. “So, it’s just a relationship. That’s what I’m looking forward to.”
The Lake Oconee Wild Things will face the Atlanta Astros at home this Friday at 7:05 p.m. and Saturday at 4:05 p.m.