By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

RESERVE — Leadership and experience.

More than anything else, those have been the determining factors in a tremendous summer of baseball play for Riverside-based Fatty’s Restaurant, says coach Britt Waguespack.

“We’ve got nine seniors coming back on this team,” he said. “This is the biggest senior class Riverside has had since 2005. These are the guys who have been with me from the start (Waguespack is entering his fourth year as RA coach). They’ve been in the program and know what’s expected, inside and out.”

The results have been impressive. After Riverside earned its second consecutive trip to the Class 2A quarterfinal round this past prep season, the team put together its best summer under Waguespack, finishing 12-4-1, all on the road.

“We ended up where we wanted to be,” Waguespack said.

Waguespack’s main concern this summer was to see his team’s bats come alive. With his pitching rotation mostly intact from last season, filling gaps to replace three departed starters became the focus.

But the team’s batting production didn’t skip a beat, and in many ways, looks improved.

“We placed an emphasis on getting the job done when we had a chance to strike,” said Waguespack. “Bases loaded, nobody out, you need to get runs across. We were something like 80-percent when we had runners on second and third with no outs. And when you come through in those situations, it just puts pressure on the other team. All of a sudden, you’re getting those hits with two outs, and you’ve got a big inning.

“We cut down on our strikeouts, and increased how we played percentages, getting guys over, making productive outs. I felt like we improved across the board.”

Dylan Martin, Bryant Tassin, Tate Scioneaux and Ritchie Terrio are all key returning starters in Waguespack’s rotation. Ashton Perret and Trevor Kenney turned in strong summers as well, and look to give him options.

“Those two have been here for awhile, and now finally have the opportunity to step up and produce,” said Waguespack. “We’ll need them.”

It all gives Rebel fans major reason for optimism.

Its coaches, too.

“I always expect to go into a season and contend,” said Waguespack. “But this year, with the guys we have coming back, I really think this could be one of our better seasons. I’m looking forward to it.”