Matt Vines

COUSHATTA – New Red River baseball coach Todd Moore knows what it takes to succeed at the high school level, and the Bulldogs have done just that in the first week of the season.

 

The Bulldogs (5-0) are undefeated after a busy first week, which included one-run wins against Choudrant and Doyline and a two-run victory against Converse.

 

Add wins against Zwolle and St. Mary’s to bookend the first week, and the Bulldogs have already successfully tested themselves against good competition.

 

“We’ve played some programs with rich baseball tradition and have had several extra-inning and one-run games,” Moore said. “We do have six seniors this year, and I would have to contribute most of our success to senior leadership.

 

“Our pitching staff has definitely kept us in ball games. They done an excellent job in keeping opposing teams’ hitters in check and giving us an opportunity to win games. I’ve been very pleased with the energy our guys have, especially their resiliency in extra-inning games.”

 

Red River has limited four of its five opponents to two runs or less thanks to a pitching staff led by Tyler Hughes (Centenary commit), Jaxun Moore (Champion Christian commit) and a junior right-hander Aston Hester.

 

Before spending time in baseball academies, Moore was a highly successful high school coach in the Monroe area.

 

He led St. Frederick High (2003) and Sterlington High (2005) to state championship games and took seven of his nine teams to at least the quarterfinals in their respective classes.

 

Red River has made the playoffs the past three years with one playoff win as a program that’s beginning to challenge in District 3-2A, but the Bulldogs’ start may signal a shift toward a season with increased postseason success.

 

The Bulldogs will discover a lot in the next two weeks as dates against teams like Logansport, Haughton, Minden and Lafayette Christian will further flesh out how Red River stacks up.

 

“We will be tested for sure,” said Moore, a two-time Class 2A Coach of the Year.

 

In addition to having the experience of six seniors, a stronger offseason commitment has helped bring about the early-season success.

 

“One thing we knew we had to do back in August is really hit the weight room hard, and these guys really committed themselves to getting stronger in the fall,” Moore said. “I couldn’t be more proud of the commitment these guys have made to becoming better baseball players, and I attribute that to our seniors.”

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