The Lakeland High School baseball team hasn’t had the success it wanted this season, but the players remain hopeful.

With a talented Southeastern District, it has been difficult for Lakeland to win games. In recent seasons with the Virginia High School League making conference rules, Lakeland was allowed to play district teams and Class 3 teams. However, with the baseball schedule now made up of two games against each district opponent, it has been tough for Lakeland this season. They are in the lowest classification in the district.

Despite the losses, Coach David Devers doesn’t believe it has distracted his players.

“We just talk to them about things that they need to work on,” he said. “We want to keep our energy up, and we want to stay motivated. We want to make sure we are working hard and showing improvement in certain areas, and everything will take care of itself.”

The last few games Devers believes the team’s defense and overall play has gotten better. At practices, during games and after games, Devers is continuously instilling confidence in his team. When a team struggles it is easy to check out, but the team remains in good spirits.

There have been bright spots for Lakeland. Cody Anderson has been having a good season for the Cavs. He is hitting over .300, and Tyler Spencer has also been hitting over .300 for the Cavs. Andrew Kelley has been protecting the mound the best he can for the Cavs as well. The young players are starting to hit their stride this season, which bodes well for the Cavs going forward.

While the Cavs head into the last month of their schedule, Devers is looking forward to seeing improvement. Based on the way the first half of the schedule went, Devers is hoping to see more improvement from his team. Even if the second half of the season isn’t as successful, Devers will be happy with the players giving their all.

“As long as the kids are working hard and getting better, that’s what’s important,” Devers said.

“We are confident we can end the season strong,” Anderson said. “We are just trying to enjoy the game.”

Lakeland will face Hopewell High School on the road at 4:30 p.m. Friday. They took a loss to Deep Creek High School Thursday afternoon.

Deep Creek 14, Lakeland 2

DCHS 0 4 1 9 0—14

LHS 0 0 0 2 0—2

DCHS: Hits 12—Sacre 3, Hollifield 3, Walck 2, Morse 2, Johnson, Faivre; Runs 14—Duez 2, Johnson 2, Sacre 2, Faivre 2, Bouche 2, Walck, Morse, House, Felton; RBI 13—Sacre 4, Morse 4, Johnson 2, Walck 2, Hollifield

LHS: Hits 7—Anderson 2, Edwards, Sing, Bennett, Kelley, Hawkins; Runs 2—Spencer, Bennett