Alliance's Holman inks with WNCC baseball

                 Alliance’s Jayden Holman’s goal is to become a better baseball player than he already is. The Alliance senior will get that opportunity after inking with Western Nebraska Community College Thursday morning.

                Holman, who was a four-year starter for the Alliance Spartans Senior American Legion baseball team, said he is looking forward to the opportunity to play college baseball.

                “I have heard about the program and I have always liked it. Plus, Coach [Mike] Jones has always been there for me, checking up on me,” Holman said. “I just want to become the best baseball player that I can be and coming here will help me achieve that goal.”

                WNCC coach Mike Jones is anxious to work with Holman to see him grow even more as a baseball player.

                “Jayden brings a lot to the program,” Jones said. “Number one he brings a solid attitude. We know where he comes from and we have seen him play. We have watched him grow and develop. On top of that he is a solid infielder with a lot of athletic ability. He has enough arm strength that he can play on the left side of the infield, which is always a plus.”

                Jones said he more than likely will be playing either shortstop or third base for the Cougars.

                “We have seen him pitch as well, but our primarily spot for him will be on the infield,” he said. “He also brings a powerful bat and he continues to improve offensively. There is a lot of bat speed and strength in his swing, so the skies the limit for him. We are going to put him to work, grow and watch him develop.”

                Holman was all-conference his sophomore and junior year. He was named the 2013 offensive player of the year, and he also garnered the Star-Herald All-region First Team honors.

                His last two seasons at Alliance, Holman had a .418 batting average with 83 RBIs, 34 doubles, five triples, and 22 walks. On the mound, he struck out 157 and finished with an earned run average of 2.38.

                Holman said since he started playing baseball when he was two, it has become a sport that he fell in love with. He said he works on his baseball skills in his garage to fine tune his game.

                “I started when I was like two years old and I have liked the game ever since,” Holman said. “Last year I started getting serious and working harder and setting more goals.”

                Jones has seen him play for many years when Jones was coach of the Gering American Legion junior and senior teams. That, along with the fact that Holman knows a little about the WNCC baseball program was also another factor in Holman coming to WNCC.

                “Baseball has always been my number one sport. I have loved it ever since I started playing it,” he said. “[Knowing Jones and the WNCC program] is huge plus. I know what I will be going into next year. I have liked everything I seen.”

                Off the baseball field, Holman has a 3.8 grade point average at Alliance High School and ranks 27^th out of 137 seniors. His goal in college is to major in counseling.