While the Westhill Warriors baseball team may have fallen in the Section III Semifinals, ending their quest for three State Titles in a row, the future does look bright.
J.C. Pena just finished up his first year as a Warrior, coming to Syracuse from the Dominican Republic.
He was a big contributor both on the pitchers mound and defensively for the Warriors, and the best part for the team is that he's just a sophomore. Despite his age, Pena has the look of a senior, or maybe even a freshman in college and can hurl a pitch towards the catcher with exceptional speed well into the 80s (mph).
While J.C.'s prowess on the diamond could spell a very bright future, he had other reasons for coming to the United States.
"I want to go to college, if it's possible" says J.C.
There were certainly adjustments, J.C. says the pitchers in the U.S., at least that Westhill played, don't throw with the same velocity that high schoolers in the Dominican do. There were changes off the diamond as well.
"The climate was terrible" he said in regards to our near-record setting snowfall this past winter.
Pena surely blended in with the fun-loving bunch at Westhill, and even before our interview with him he played out a mock interview with teammate Ben Walsh imitating a former Saturday Night Live skit. While surely the Warriors' players and coaches aren't thinking about the future, still probably in shock over their loss to Marcellus on Saturday. Glancing at the future, and seeing how much the team impacted J.C. and how it could play a key role in his future in this nation, certainly the Westhill community is proud and excited to see what he has to offer in the coming years and to see just how far he can go in baseball.
