Dallas ISD is rallying behind Woodrow this week.
After sweeping Frisco Reedy in the second round of the UIL playoffs, Woodrow Wilson’s baseball team advanced to the regional quarterfinals for the first time in program history and became the first DISD team since 2011 to make it that far. Frisco beat Woodrow 5-1 Wednesday night in Game 1 of the best-of-3 series.
“It feels like it’s bigger than just a series this week,” senior center fielder Hudson Wilk said. “Lots of people are watching. Other schools are wishing us good luck. It’s kind of a Dallas ISD thing, not just a Woodrow thing.”
Led by first-year head coach Cody Nelson, Woodrow finished second in district play before sweeping Bryan Adams in the first round and Reedy in the second. Nelson, who coached some of the players at Long Middle School, was an assistant at Woodrow for the previous three seasons. The program won three consecutive district championships from 2021 through 2023.
Woodrow’s success this season is especially significant given the curveballs thrown in the team’s direction.
“The biggest bump in the road was really health issues during district [play], but I knew once we got healthy that the challenge was going to be there in front of us and we could hang with anybody in the state,” Nelson said.
“I told them going into each and every game that it’s going to be big, but don’t make it too big.”
That is sound advice as Woodrow plays its regional quarterfinal series against Frisco, ranked seventh in The Dallas Morning News’ Class 5A/others poll and 30th in the state by MaxPreps. Frisco, fresh off two playoff sweeps of its own, is mighty from the mound.
Senior Oklahoma commit Michael Catalano finished the regular season with a 0.85 ERA and 65 strikeouts. In Frisco’s 6-0 shutout of Mesquite Poteet in Game 2 of its second-round playoff series, the pitcher gave up one hit and no runs through six innings. Catalano struck out 15.
Landon Karrh allowed three hits and no runs through six innings in Frisco’s 10-0 Game 1 win over Poteet. The senior Baylor signee struck out seven.
“They’re going to be very good. Almost a full Division I pitching staff,” Woodrow junior pitcher Juan Aranda said. “We’re ready. We’re prepared. We have all their scouting reports down and we know their weaknesses and things like that.”
Plus, Woodrow has its own strengths. Aranda led the Dallas area in batting average in The Dallas Morning News’ final regular season baseball stat leaders list, hitting .560 in 84 at-bats. Senior Andres Villanueva also starred at the plate with a .476 batting average. Sophomore Oliver Minyard’s 29 RBIs placed him among the top 10 in the Dallas-area stat leaders, and Aranda wasn’t far behind him, driving in 24 runs.
Aranda is a force on the mound, too. The lefty posted 77 strikeouts in the regular season.
“I would say we were for sure under the radar. I hope we can get on people’s radar,” Wilk said. “It’s slowly happening as the week progresses and we see how we do. I have a good feeling.”
Reedy swept Woodrow in last year’s second-round series. In 2022, Frisco Independence eliminated Woodrow in the same round.
The difference this year has little to do with play on the field, Aranda said.
“Last year, we weren’t really that connected,” he said. “We feel closer with this new head coach, and all of us just came together as a team this season. We played looser in the games.”
Wilk added: “The team hangs out a lot outside of school, too. I feel like that’s the most important part, really. I’d say from last year to this year, the chemistry of the team is a night-and-day difference.”
While injuries — including a player breaking his nose and another undergoing Tommy John surgery — challenged Woodrow earlier in the season, many members of the roster returned in time for playoffs.
Woodrow made history by advancing to the regional quarterfinals but hopes to go even further.
“The kids’ strength and resilience has been unreal,” Nelson said. “We’ve come back from games. We’ve been down. We’ve dug our way out. … That’s what I love the most about this program, and it’s going to be the most exciting time in my career to do something special with this team.”
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