Senior, Michael Belcher is captain of the Woodland baseball team for the second year in a row, leading them to greatness. The team is off to a strong start this season with nine consecutive wins and no current losses. This winning streak reflects on how strong of a captain Belcher is and is a good reflection of how this 2024 season will go for the team.
Belcher has been playing baseball since he was five years old and has never stopped loving the sport. He joined the Woodland baseball team his freshman year and has been an outstanding player since. He is now fully committed to Bryant University, in Rhode Island and will continue his education and baseball career while he’s there.
Being a captain means having great leadership and communication skills, which Belcher has shown for two years in a row. The team had a great season under his leadership last year, and now under his leadership, they are having another great season. Belcher is co-captaining with another senior Ethan Stepputis, they were both captains last year and have great communication to lead the team to success.
He was a captain last year and enjoyed being a leader, and is grateful to be a captain again this year, and to lead this new team to victory. A part of being a captain is showing the underclassmen the ropes of a high school team and giving them a good mentor to look up to.
“Being an example to the underclassmen and even working with the other seniors to lead is the best part of being a captain,” said captain Micheal Belcher.
As a junior captain last year, Belcher thought it was harder to talk to the seniors since he was younger than them, but now as a senior he feels more comfortable talking to everyone, and helping them become better players.
“Now as a senior, I feel everyone looks up to me, which helps me be a better captain,” said Belcher.
He’s excited for the upcoming season and to play the harder teams like Wolcott and Holy Cross. No captain wants the team to lose, but he’s up for a challenge. Part of being a captain is being there to bring the team back together after a loss. If the team does suffer a loss he is prepared to make sure he and his team are working harder to win the next one.
“There’s no team to really circle on, just work on the next team in front of us,” said Belcher
With the school year ending soon Belcher is working harder than ever to ensure the team’s victory for his last season at Woodland. There is a lot to think about before going away to college, but instead of getting consumed by it, he is on the field every day making his team stronger.
