Westlake pitcher Chris Watkins and Bowie sophomore Robby Dickey engaged in a spirited pitcher’s duel that typified the rivalry between the longtime district foes.

Watkins gave up just two hits and had 12 strikeouts in the complete-game win, but Dickey matched that shutout effort for almost seven innings. Dickey departed the 0-0 game with one out and the bases loaded for Breedlove, who trickled a hit down the first-base line. Darilek sprinted off the bag and beat a throw to home to end the game.

Westlake enters Tuesday’s District 25-5A opener against Bowie Tuesday with its first nondistrict winning record since 2003 despite replacing 10 starters, including two starting pitchers, from last season’s state semifinalist lineup.

Better yet, said Westlake coach Jim Darilek, Westlake has room for improvement as several youngsters still battle for spots in the starting lineup.

Those young players made some strong impressions in a 5-4 extra-inning setback to Round Rock Westwood in the third game of the Langerhans Invitational. Even after a brief rally in the bottom of the eighth inning fell short, Darilek had few grievances about his squad’s effort.

“We competed real well,” said the veteran skipper, who is traditionally parse with his praise. “I have no complains because we’re playing decent ball. We’re trying to gather some depth at some positions. I had some people in getting some work that haven’t been playing as much, and I thought they did OK.”

The newcomers to the lineup included third baseman Andres Mitre, who has battled for the starting nod at the hot corner. Mitre had an RBI single that tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning, which was one of only four Chap hits against Westwood ace Brooks Eady. Mitre also had four putouts that included a nifty barehanded throw to first on a well-placed bunt down the third-base line.

“I was a little nervous at the beginning,” said Mitre, who has played shortstop throughout his subvarsity career. “But after that first pitch, it was fine. It [third base] is just like playing shortstop; see the ball and catch it.”

Like his coach, Mitre cited the competition for playing time as a team strength that will benefit the Chaps.

“This whole preseason [nondistrict], everyone is working hard and getting playing time to see who can do the best,” he said.

Several other reserves made a case for more playing time as well. Garrett Ochoa had a strong game behind the plate, and Hayden Ross manned second base without any mishaps.

In addition, reserve outfielder Lewis Guilbeau came off the bench and blasted a two-run homer over the centerfield wall that tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning. The shot against Westwood reliever Urbane Martinez not only kept Westlake in the game, but it also provided a dash of redemption for the free-swinging sophomore, who fanned five times in the previous game.

“Lewis is a good fastball hitter, and the guy was just pumping fastballs in there,” Darilek said. “I thought it was a good time for him to come in.”

Westlake’s most impressive performance may have come from junior pitcher Nathan Fleet, who handcuffed the potent Warriors in his first career start. Fleet gave up four hits and had six strikeouts in six innings of work. He may have tired in Westwood’s two-run sixth inning, but his 104 pitches easily marked a career-high.

“Fleet pitched real well,” Darilek said. “I didn’t want him to go as long as he did, but he was still in it, and I wanted him to try and finish it. He did a good job.”

Chaps close tournament with pair of wins

Westlake followed the setback to Westwood with an 8-6 win over Pflugerville Hendrickson. Collin Shaw earned the win on the mound after pitching five innings and helped himself with an RBI double. Davis Breedlove hit a two-run double, and Guilbeau continued to wield a hit bat with two singles and three RBIs.

The Chaps suffered a 9-8 loss to Seguin in Saturday’s tournament finale. Westlake surged to an early 4-1 lead before the Matadors battled back against a trio of Chap pitchers. Shaw, Guilbeau and Chris Watkins each hit doubles to pace Westlake’s offense.

Both Chap pitchers delivered shutout wins in the first two games of the Langerhans Invitational yesterday. Watkins and Westlake (6-1) topped Vista Ridge 3-0 in the first game of the annual Central Texas tournament, which the Chaps co-host at Woerner Field. Outfielder Collin Shaw broke the scoreless deadlock with a three-run shot that cleared the left-field wall in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Hanson tossed a complete game in a 3-0 over Keller Fossil Ridge in yesterday’s nightcap. Catcher Robert Baldwin continued his early-season barrage with a solo homer in the sixth inning that capped the scoring.

Westlake welcomes Westwood today at 4 p.m. and faces Hendrickson at 7 p.m.

The Chaps (4-1) finished with a 3-1 tournament record and just missed the semifinal round by virtue of a tiebreaker with Del Rio team who also posted a 3-1 record but beat Westlake 5-0. Westlake defeated Laredo Nixon 7-5 and Laredo Cigarroa 7-3.
Westlake serves as a co-host of the Langerhans Invitational this weekend. Visit www.whschaps.com for a complete schedule.

The Timberwolves jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the second inning before Robert Baldwin triggered a Chap rally with a solo home run in the bottom of the frame. Solid hitting along with a few Cedar Park miscues kept the Chaps rolling. Davis Breedlove hammered an RBI double later in the inning and then came in to score to take the lead.

Nathan Fleet shut down the Timberwolves to earn the win on the mound.

And this year’s Chap baseball team offers plenty of proof for that trait of Westlake athletics.

The Chaps lost eight of their nine regular starters from last season’s 26-13 state semifinalist team to graduation as well as their top two pitchers. But Coach Jim Darilek still expects his team to contend for a fifth consecutive district title and another playoff spot.

“That’s always our goal,” he said. “We lost a lot of kids from a team that was pretty special, but I think we have some guys with something to prove.”

According to Darilek, a strong off-season bolsters his team’s hopes entering tonight’s season opener against Cedar Park.

“I’m a little surprised by how good they look, to be honest,” he said. “Guys that were backups have matured and gotten stronger, and they’re taking ownership of the team.”

Although just a junior, Collin Shaw looks to be one of those owners. The lone returning starter from last year, Shaw hit .338 with 14 RBIs during the 2009 regular season. The center fielder will likely anchor Westlake’s lineup from the fourth or fifth spot, and he could also earn a regular spot in Westlake’s pitching rotation. A year ago, Shaw had a 4.88 ERA while tossing 18 2/3rds innings.

“He’s been a pleasant surprise on the mound,” Darilek said. “His velocity stands out, and he has good movement.

“I think that Collin has accepted the fact that he’s an outfielder, but he’s going to have to help us out [pitching].”

Expect 6-foot-6-inch senior Miles Hanson to handle plenty of work on the mound. He threw less than 12 innings during the 2009 regular season but showed his mettle in a series-clinching performance against Smithson Valley in last year’s playoffs. In the third and decisive game, Hanson gave up just three runs in seven innings during a 4-3 Westlake win.

“He got his feet wet and showed what he’s made of in that game,” Darilek said.

Southpaw Chris Watkins will join Shaw and Hanson in the primary rotation. When not on the mound, Watkins will likely start in left field, and Hanson will handle the duties at first base.

The rest of the lineup appears set, although Darilek has a couple of spots to solidify before the start of District 25-5A play against Bowie March 9.

Leadoff hitter Jon Darilek will start at shortstop, and senior classmate Davis Breedlove will start at second base. Both played extensively last season.

Junior Robert Baldwin served a one-year apprenticeship behind the plate last season and takes over full-time catching duties, and sophomore Lewis Guilbeau has earned the start in right field.

Sean Murphy and Robert Andon could challenge Watkins for playing time in left field. Expect Troup Evans, Alexie Nunez or Andres Mitre to start at third base.

Regardless of who completes the lineup, Darilek thinks this year’s attack could offer something new. A year ago, the Chaps hit .314 as a team with an impressive on-base percentage of .436. However, Westlake produced just 10 home runs in 30 regular-season games.

“Overall, I think we’ll have more power,” Darilek said, citing sluggers such as Baldwin, Shaw and Hanson. “If we can keep getting on base like we did [a year ago], I expect us to get some runs.”

Expect. There’s that word again.

Schedule
February
22: vs. Cedar Park, 6 p.m.
25-27: at Border Olympics, Laredo

March
4-6: at Centex Classic, Westlake
9: vs. *Bowie, 7 p.m.
11-13: at Westwood Warrior Classic
16: at *Pflugerville, 7 p.m.
17: vs. *Bastrop, 7 p.m.
23: vs. *Connally, 7 p.m.
26: vs. *Anderson, Northwest, 7 p.m.
27: vs. Georgetown, noon
30: vs. *Austin High, 7 p.m.

April
1: vs. *Akins, Burger, 7 p.m.
6: vs. *Bowie, Burger, 7 p.m.
9: vs. *Pflugerville, 7 p.m.
13: ay *Bastrop, 7 p.m.
16: at *Connally, 7 p.m.
20: vs. *Anderson, 7 p.m.
23: vs. *Austin High, Burger, 7:30 p.m.
30: vs. *Akins, 7 p.m.

* District 25-5A game

Roster
No. Player Class Pos.
1 Robert Andon 12 OF
2 Andrew Sullivan 11 P/IF
3 Troup Evans 12 IF
4 Collin Shaw 11 OF/P
6 Hayden Ross 10 IF/P
7 Jon Darilek 12 IF
10 Andrew Gray 12 OF/P
11 Davis Breedlove 12 IF
12 Andy LaBaw 12 IF
13 Matt Balsizer 11 C
14 Sean Murphy 11 OF
15 Alexei Nunez 12 IF
17 Miles Hanson 12 1B/P
19 Lewis Guilbeau 10 OF/P
20 Bret Schumacher 11 IF
21 Andres Mitre 11 IF/P
22 Lance Duran 10 C/OF
25 Nathan Fleet 11 OF/P
26 Nathan Powell 12 1B/P
27 Robert Baldwin 11 C
28 Garrett Ochoa 11 C/IF
29 Chris Watkins 12 OF/P

The Chaps will open the baseball season today at 6 p.m. against visiting Cedar Park, while the Westlake softball team will host San Marcos at 7 p.m.

Tomorrow’s boys and girls soccer games and boys playoff basketball game remain as scheduled.

According to kvue.com, a winter storm watch Tuesday includes Blanco, Burnet, Gillespie, Llano, Travis and Williamson counties. There is 70-percent chance of snow and sleet tomorrow, according to the Web site.

Beginning in the 2010-11 school year, Westlake will spend at least the next two seasons competing in a new District 15-5A that also includes Austin High, Anderson, Bowie, Akins and Del Valle, which has moved up to 5A for the first time in school history.

Westlake has an enrollment of 2,486. The UIL cutoff for Class 5A schools was 2,065 students, a drop from the previous cutoff set at 2,085.

Bastrop and Connally, which currently compete with Westlake and the Austin schools in District 25-5A, will drop to Class 4A. Current district foe Pflugerville will compete in District 16-5A with schools from Williamson County.

Because four teams make the playoff in each sport, the move almost guarantees a playoff spot for every Westlake program.

“I think it’s a breath of fresh air,” said Darren Allman, Westlake’s head football coach and the Eanes school district athletic director. “Del Valle is talented and a program on the rise, and the playoffs will offer some new challenges.”

While district competition appears weakened for most sports, the postseason looks more perilous. Westlake’s football team has competed in Class 5A Region II four times and has a 4-4 record, including back-to-back first-round playoff losses in 2004 and 2005.

In comparison, the Chaps have a 35-5 record in 12 trips through Class 5A’s Region IV.

With the possible exception of volleyball, Region II offers an upgrade in every sport. The region includes the entire Austin area, Dallas and its eastern suburbs, the northern suburbs of Houston, East Texas and the Waco and Killeen metropolitan areas.

Scheduling emerged as the first challenge for Westlake’s coaches. Because the Chaps’ district lost two teams, the start of district play in every team sport will be pushed back two weeks. That particularly helped basketball, which will start district play after the Christmas break, but it caused some consternation for other coaches.

“This does cause some scheduling problems, and I will have to find four more games for next year,” Westlake baseball coach Jim Darilek said. “But it does give us more time to improve [for district].”

Realignment notes
Westlake hasn’t competed in a six-team district since the 2000-2002 school years. …. Only one of the nine Class 5A or 4A districts that contain Central Texas teams will have eight schools. During the past two years, five of the eight Central Texas districts had at least eight teams. … The UIL enrollment cutoff marked the first time since 1990 that the UIL lowered the minimum enrollment number for a Class 5A school. … There will be 245 Class 5A schools in the state for the 2010-12 school years.

Solving the nation’s health care quandary, for example. Or, say, finding a suitable way to withdraw from Afghanistan. Perhaps, even discovering a way to implement a playoff system in college football.

But since President Obama and his legislative ilk in Washington D.C. have refused to address the UIL realignment, we’ll have to tackle the issue ourselves.

The UIL, the governing body of the state’s high school athletics, will reveal its new alignments for each district in all five classifications Monday at 9 a.m. at www.uil.utexas.edu.

With the understanding that no certainty exists until that time, let’s answer some questions on how realignment will affect Westlake for the school years that start in 2010 and 2011.

It’s a true-or-false format, kids. Like the UIL, you have a 50-percent chance of getting a correct answer.

Theory: Westlake will remain in Region IV.

Answer: False, despite a wealth of reports that predict the Chaps staying in District 25-5A. According to respected high school poster Carl Padilla, the UIL will lower its enrollment cutoff for Class 5A from 2,085 to 2,039. Such a shift would result in a net gain of three 5A schools in Region IV, which currently includes the most Class 5A school of any region. Schools such as San Marcos and Seguin will return to Class 5A, while the likes of Bastrop and Pflugerville Connally drop to 4A.
A quartet of schools with 4A numbers have petitioned the UIL to compete at the 5A level, including Austin Anderson and a trio of schools from Laredo. The UIL almost always agrees to such a petition, thus creating a 10-team district in 29-5A that includes seven Laredo schools and three schools in Del Rio and Eagle Pass, according to Padilla. If the UIL culls the Del Rio and Eagle Pass schools into a district that includes southern San Antonio schools, Westlake will move into Region II.

Theory: Westlake will remain in a district with the Austin 5A schools.

Answer: True, although the Chaps’ historical ties with schools such as Austin High and Bowie don’t matter a spoonful of beans to the UIL mapmakers. Westlake will be one of the three schools in Central Texas that hold the coveted status of a single-high school 5A district, along with Pflugerville and Del Valle. Thus, Westlake can be moved to fill gaps in districts stretching from Williamson County to the northern suburbs of San Antonio.

Remember, the UIL broke up the Little Southwest Conference two years ago when they attached Abilene to a district centered in the Forth Worth area. Tradition matters little when matched against cold statistics.

Theory: Westlake will renew district rivalries with old foes San Marcos, New Braunfels and Seguin.

Answer: False, unless the Chaps stay in Region IV. San Marcos and Seguin will likely move back into Class 5A after a two-year hiatus, and they will be a part of Region IV’s northernmost district. However, look for Westlake to join Anderson, Austin High, Bowie, Akins and Del Valle in a second Central Texas Region II 5A district. Don’t be surprised if the UIL slots San Marcos into that district as well, despite the town’s proximity to Seguin and New Braunfels.

Theory: Westlake will face a much different nondistrict schedule in football.

Answer: True. Westlake coach Darren Allman can’t finalize his nondistrict slate until after realignment, but it’s unlikely that he will want to play more than one Class 4A school.

That school will remain Lake Travis because of the budding rivalry and corporate sponsorship dollars from Chik-fil-A. Cedar Park will likely drop to Class 4A and fall from the Chaps’ schedule. Longtime nondistrict foe A&M Consolidated faced Westlake because their coach, Jim Slaughter, had an established relationship with former Westlake coaches Ron Schroeder and Derek Long. Allman doesn’t have such familiarity with Slaughter, thus a two-year renewal with the Tigers isn’t guaranteed.

Current Class 5A area alignments
District 16-5A
Cedar Park
Leander
CP Vista Ridge
Georgetown
Round Rock
RR Westwood
RR McNeil
RR Stony Point

District 25-5A
Westlake
Austin Bowie
Pflugerville Connally
Pflugerville
Austin High
Bastrop
Austin Akins
Austin Anderson

District 26-5A
New Braunfels
SA Churchill
SA Johnson
SA Lee
SA MacArthur
SA Madison
SA Reagan
SA Roosevelt
Smithson Valley

Westlake Picayune’s predicted 2010-2012 Class 5A area realignments

District 13-5A
Pflugerville
Leander
Georgetown
Round Rock
RR Westwood
RR McNeil
RR Stony Point

District 14-5A
Westlake
Austin Akins
Austin Anderson
Austin Bowie
Austin High
Del Valle
San Marcos

District 25-5A
New Braunfels
Seguin
Cibolo Steele
Converse Judson
Converse Wagner
SA East Central
CC Carroll
CC KIng

Carl Padilla’s predicted 2010-2012 Class 5A area realignments

District 14-5A
Del Valle
Leander
Pflugerville
Georgetown
Round Rock
RR Westwood
RR McNeil
RR Stony Point

District 25-5A
Westlake
Austin Bowie
Austin High
Austin Akins
Austin Anderson
San Marcos
Seguin
New Braunfels

District 26-5A
Cibolo Steele
SA Churchill
SA Johnson
SA Lee
SA MacArthur
SA Madison
SA Reagan
SA Roosevelt

Street, a right-handed five-year veteran, converted 34 of his 37 save attempts in 2009. At one point, he converted 26 straight saves, which was the longest streak in the National League in 2009.

Street, a 2001 Westlake High School graduate, earned all-state recognition in both baseball and football for the Chaps. He enjoyed a three-year baseball career at the University of Texas, where he earned All-American honors each season and helped his team win the College World Series in 2002. In that season, Street set a CWS record for the most saves and won the Most Valuable Player award.

Oakland drafted Street in 2004, and the closer earned American League Rookie of the Year honors that season. The Rockies acquired Street after the 2008 season