Coming off of a state championship run last year, the MSD varsity baseball team is preparing to enter their spring season for the 2021-2022 school year. The team is hoping to translate their hard work into success in their upcoming games, and is looking to hopefully have another season as great as their last one.

Last season, the Eagles finished with a 28-2 record and were ranked number two in the state and number one in the Florida 7A district. To cap it off, they came home as state champions.

To fuel the team with even higher expectations, on Wednesday, Jan. 26, MaxPreps came out with a ranking naming the Eagles as the best baseball team in the state of Florida.

“Being ranked number one was exciting, but as a team we don’t want to get caught up in the rankings,” third baseman Rylan Lujo (14) said.

The team is keeping a very humble and calm mindset going into the next season. Though the rankings are important to the team, they are more focused on having another triumphant season and maintaining their position.

During their off-season, several players committed to colleges. Shortstop Devin Fitz-Gerald (1) was one of the recent commits last month on Jan. 12.

Though the team has lost a few seniors from last year, and will be losing some major players after this season, the younger athletes on the team are being given the chance to step up and prove what they can do.

The team’s success can be credited towards the all-around leadership, from the upperclassmen to their younger peers. Last season, the team consisted of four freshmen, who have shown great maturity on the field.

“The freshmen were very mature and knew their role and what they needed to do to help the team,” pitcher Jake Clemente (24) said.

The underclassmen credit most of their skills and results to their upperclassmen due to the knowledge and respect they shared with them.

“The upperclassmen played a major part in our results as freshmen,” Lujo said. “I came on to the team thinking they were going to demand a lot, but they showed us a lot of respect and shared their knowledge with us.”

The Eagles start their season back up at home on Tuesday, Feb. 15 against West Broward High School at 6:30 p.m.