When Daniel Roman, head coach of the baseball team, was asked about his goals for the upcoming playoffs, he had only one answer: to win a State Championship. However, this goal is not a new one; in fact, it is one that the baseball team has been trying to achieve since the program started. Since CHS has over 100 State Championship victories in various sports, many students assume that every team has won at State, but baseball is one of two teams that has yet to do so.

Sam Berry, varsity baseball player and senior, said, “I think it would really mean a lot to become the first team to win a baseball State Championship because we know there’ve been good teams in the past, and it would be really nice to be known as the best team at Carmel.”

This goal of winning State extends far beyond just Roman and Berry. CHS baseball was created over 60 years ago, but it has only made it to the State Championship once.

“It would mean a lot (to win State). It wouldn’t just be for me, it’d be for everybody who came here before us who have had good teams and never gotten through to a State Championship. It’s just every team, every person who has been a part of Carmel baseball, it should mean something to. For these guys, it would mean everything, it puts baseball on the map here. We’re one of the few sports that hasn’t won a State Championship,” Roman said.

Although the State Championship is the ultimate goal for the team and would be meaningful to a number of people, the team does not feel any expectation to win State. According to Berry, the players do not feel pressured to do well in the IHSAA tournament, but rather to reach their full potential as baseball players. Berry said that he and the rest of the team know that this year’s roster has a lot of potential for success, and there is an expectation for them to play a very high level of baseball.

“I don’t feel any pressure. I never feel any pressure about playing a game, it is still a game. But, the expectation, that’s what (the players) need to meet. Their own expectations, the expectations of me, the expectations of the Carmel community, it’s about reaching expectations but there’s no pressure,” Roman said.

Cam Pferrer, varsity baseball player and junior, said that he thinks the team is fully capable of meeting everyone’s expectations of them. Pferrer said that because last year’s team was quite young, this season there are lots players who were previously sophomores and juniors returning to the team, giving them much more maturity. Last year, one of the team’s biggest downfalls was its inexperience, so having eliminated that, Pferrer said the teamdoes not have many weaknesses.

Berry said, “Our biggest strength is probably our pitching staff we have a really deep staff full of young pitchers, and very good ones. Our weaknesses, right now, I cannot really name a weakness we have.”

With the team feeling strong about their capabilities, the primary thing left for them to do is practice. The team practices during the fall, winter and spring, and most of the players also play in summer leagues. According to Berry, the opportunity to practice year round is one ofthe team’s biggest advantages because they go into the season very prepared.

“Conditioning helps because games can be long, and if you’re not in physically good shape, then your body will start to wear down and not be able to perform towards the end of the game,” Berry said.

In addition to getting the players in shape, conditioning also helps to unite the players. According to Berry, after many of them play on different summer teams, it is always helpful to come together and train as a team before their season begins.

Jack Van Remortel, varsity player and sophomore said, “(Other players) have all been good mentors; they’ve all been great with me. I have a good relationship with all the guys and they just always push me to be my best.”

With baseball being a team sport, the communication and connection between the players is vital to the team’s success.

Roman said, “I think this year’s team, the chemistry is a little bit different than last year. Not that last year was awful in any way, but I can see that we’re making strides and becoming a better team overall.”

According to Roman, with the team making clear and continuous progress, he believes that the State Championship is within reach. The team won a championship in the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference (MIC) just recently in 2014, and although the MIC is quite different than the IHSAA tournament, it is a step in the right direction for the team.

Pferrer said, “I think the MIC is a strong football conference, but it’s not as good baseball-wise. So, I think the competition that we play isn’t that comparable to the Sectional we play in.”

Additionally, the MIC championship is decided over the course of 14 games, so one or two losses do not eliminate a team’s chance at winning. In contrast, playoffs allow no room for losses, or according to Roman, even a mediocre game.

“State Championship’s not like that, you lose one and you’re done. You can have not even a poor game, but the other team plays exceptionally and it doesn’t matter. So, a lot of things have to go right for you to win a State Championship. You’ve got to have a little bit of luck, a lot of skill and doing the right things here and there,” Roman said.

With multiple Top 25 teams in their Sectional, the team knows that the playoffs will be difficult from the get-go, but they are determined to succeed. Berry, Pferrer and Van Remortel all agreed that the team is aiming to win their Sectional, and they hope to just take it step-by-step from there. None of the players or coaches have any doubts about what the team is capable of, it is just a matter of how well they will be able to use their strengths in the competition.

Roman said, “I know the formula, I know what it takes (to win a State Championship). It’s getting the kids to buy into that formula, and we’re getting there slowly but surely. It’s just the willingness to lose yourself within the program, and if they do that, they’ll go a long way.”