The Central Catholic High School baseball team, fresh off their 2024 TAPPS Division I state championship, is back in the state tournament for the third time in four seasons.
“It’s crazy,” said Buttons junior first baseman and pitcher Matthew McClenan. “It’s everything. We’ve been working since the fall, and we’ve just been grinding every single day, just working to get back here. It’s just a blessing.”
Central Catholic senior third baseman and pitcher JD Amescua said the team is like a “brotherhood.”
“We all come together, we grow as a team, get strong and we just compete,” Amescua said. “We fight together.”
The Buttons, who celebrated their first state title in 40 years last year, are now on a mission to repeat and lay the foundation for a dynasty in TAPPS.
“Going back just means everything,” Buttons junior catcher Ricardo Ramirez said. “We put in all this work and especially just having last year — a great performance — looking to take it again and two-peat this.”
On Monday, the Buttons will take on Houston St. Pius X in the TAPPS Division I state semifinal at the University of Texas at Arlington’s Clay Gould Ballpark, with a berth in the championship game on the line.
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