By James Hernandez

James: Talk a little about the resolve the team showed this weekend in Rangely, winning the final three games of the series after dropping the opener Friday afternoon.  

Coach Garritano: I was very happy with the resolve our club showed.  CNCC's game 1 starter did a very good job and our hats are off to him.  We kept battling throughout the weekend in very wet, sloppy conditions to win the series 3-1.

James: Jesse Keiser had a nice weekend (3 runs, 4 hits and 4 RBI) in Colorado. How does his improved play help the overall outfield depth of the team? 

Coach Garritano: Jesse did a nice job this weekend.  We faced a staff that featured 3 right handers so it gave him a chance to play on a consistent basis.  We have seen tons of left handers this year so his at bats are down from a year ago.  He is a very good player that hopefully hits his stride at the right time.

James: Sage Diehm only pitched one in inning in the final game of the weekend. Did it have to do more with  injury or more to do with him not having command of his pitches?

Coach Garritano: It was more of a precautionary move.  He tweaked his hamstring late in the 1^st inning and we just made the decision to make a change at that point to not risk serious injury.

James: Relief pitchers Tyler Hallead and Todd Danzeisen have become two of the most reliable options out of the bullpen for this team. Can you tell us a little about their growth and maturity as the season has progressed.  

Coach Garritano: They both have been very good for us lately.  The nice thing is I believe we have a few left handers that can do a great job of changing the look and change speeds very well.  Tyler's last two outings have been good enough to give him a weekend spot start this Saturday.

James: Can you provide our readers with a brief scouting report of this weekend's opponent the USU-Eastern Golden Eagles? 

Coach Garritano: USU – Eastern does a nice job of changing looks on the mound.  They have a few arms that are really tough.  We have to do everything we can to contain their CF, Austin Guertson.  He is definitely one of their key offensive weapons.

James: How much of a luxury is it having an elite, experienced closer like Alec Hutt (18.2 IP, 3 ER, 27 K's, opp. b/avg .169) to close out games for this team?

Coach Garritano:  It is definitely nice to have Alec at the end of games.  He has been very consistent for us this year.  It is sort of a double edge sword, you want to see him at the end of games but you don't want to HAVE to use him.

James: CSN is celebrating Military Appreciation Weekend at Morse Stadium Friday and Saturday. How cool is it for you and the team to play in front former and active Military members? 

Coach Garritano: It is such a blessing to us that we get to play in front of former and active Military members.  They do and have done so much to protect our freedom on a daily basis.  We have mentioned to our teams in the past that we play on Friday's and Saturday's.  Their game day is every minute of their lives.  We would like to thank all members of our service branches for everything they do for our country.  God Bless the USA!!

James: Have you ever coached a team where eight of the nine position players are hitting .300 or better this late in the year? Do you feel this team can outhit or at least matchup bat for bat with any offense in Junior College? 

Coach Garritano: This has definitely been a fun offensive group to manage.  1-9, these guys get it done.  There numbers are hands down the best we have had here in our 6^th season.  There are lots of power numbers across the country within different conferences.  The beauty of our numbers compared to some other national numbers is all 56 games we play is with wood in our hands compared to metal.

James: Can we expect the starting rotation (Jones, Gonzalez, York and Diehm) to remain the same this upcoming weekend?  

Coach Garritano: We will remain with Jones and Gonzalez going Friday starting at 1:00 PM.  Saturday, Mikey York will start game 1 and then we will go with Tyler Hallead in game 2 to wrap up the series.We only have 2 home series left on our regular season schedule so please come out and support your #10 NJCAA nationally ranked Coyotes!  See you at the park and Go Coyotes!!

Thanks Coach, and as always good luck!

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