Ever since Desmond Stegall took charge as the head coach, the Maynard Jackson Jaguars baseball team has shown steady improvement throughout the last six years. When he stepped in just before the COVID-shortened 2019-2020 season, Stegall guided the Jaguars toward significant advancements and unprecedented achievements.
During the 2022-2023 season, the Jaguars secured a record of 22 wins and 8 losses, achieving over 20 victories for the first time ever in team history. They've maintained at least 22 wins each year for the last three consecutive seasons, with achievements continuing beyond this milestone. Last Wednesday, Maynard Jackson clinched a 7-4 victory due to a dramatic walk-off grand slam hit by senior player Marcus Blash, marking their inaugural regional title in the team’s entire history.
"Every year, it appears to improve even more, and those players have really gone above and beyond with their efforts," said Stegall, who achieved his 100th career victory on Wednesday, during an interview with Prep Sports Nation’s Daminon Lewis on Thursday. He spoke about the feelings surrounding their first-ever regional championship, highlighting accountability as key to their achievement.
The success carried into Friday with yet another victory over Pace Academy, this time securing a decisive 5-0 win. This concluded their region schedule undefeated at an impressive 14-0, which marks the first instance of the Jaguars achieving such a feat against regional competitors. "It holds significant personal value for me,” Stegall remarked following Friday’s triumph. “I wouldn’t say the program was entirely lacking before I stepped in; however, our prominence has certainly grown since then." He also commended his team for their relentless effort and commitment, attributing these qualities to propelling the program toward realizing its objectives.
Now with the just three regular season games remaining, the Jaguars will look to keep momentum as they have now won 14 games in a row and senior second baseman, Seth Geter believes the Jaguars have to remain mentally strong and "not fall below the standard" of expectations for the Maynard Jackson program. "Just stay on the same path we've been staying with," Geter added.
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