Monteagudo enjoying a big season on the diamond for WNCC baseball team

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

There's not much more Aurelio Monteagudo enjoys in life than playing baseball.

"For me, baseball is my life," said Monteagudo, a WNCC sophomore from Miami. "I've been playing baseball for as long as I can remember. It's always been part of my life growing up."
His enjoyment level for the game is at an all-time high this year as he is in the midst of one of his best seasons on the diamond. Monteagudo currently leads the Cougars in six offensive categories, including home runs with eight. He also is tops on the team in batting average, slugging percentage, hits, runs batted in and total bases.

"He's been having a monstrous season for us," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "He has really grown up and matured this year, not only as a ball player but as a person as well. He's really impressed me with his work ethic and his dedication to the game."

As one of just a handful of players back from last year's team that missed out on qualifying for the regional tournament, Monteagudo has proven to be a big reason the 17-17 Cougars have won their last eight conference games heading into Monday's doubleheader at Otero Junior College. WNCC is currently third in the conference standings, just a few games behind front-runner Trinidad State Junior College.

"It definitely has been a good season so far," Monteagudo said. "We have a good group of guys that work hard and train hard. We've been coming together as a team, and that's something we didn't do last year. If we keep working hard, I think we can win a lot more games."

Last season Monteagudo admits he didn't put up the type of numbers he should have. Like many freshmen, he struggled with the speed of the college game. In particular, he had a hard time adjusting to the pitching, specifically the amount of breaking balls he was faced with in the batter's box.

"Last year I wasn't prepared for the pitching," Monteagudo said. "In all of my at-bats I would see a lot of breaking balls, and it was hard for me to adjust."

At the end of the season, Monteagudo went home to Miami and devoted himself to a summer full of training in order to make the adjustment to the pitches he would see at the collegiate level. When he returned to the ball club this year, the hard work he put in was quickly noticed.

"As a hitter, he's really learned a lot about how to take an approach at the plate," Jones said. "He knows what pitches to look for to hit, and he knows how to make the adjustments to what pitchers are doing to him. He's just becoming a real smart ball player.

"He's come up with some huge hits that were very important for us. He's driven in a lot of runs, and he's really our offensive leader right now."

Hitting third in what's become a powerful Cougar lineup, Monteagudo still sees his share of breaking balls. But unlike last year, he's been able to patiently adjust with a hitting style that has him batting .404 with 40 hits and 34 runs batted in.

"I knew this year that I still would see a lot of breaking pitches. But I'm just more relaxed than I was last year," Monteagudo said. "I'm adjusting a lot better. I still need to try and stay back a little bit longer on the ball, but I'm adjusting better than last year. If it's in my zone and I like it, I'm going to swing."

About the only thing that has really been able to slow Monteagudo this season was a recent bout with a chest cold. He didn't make the trip with the team to Colby, Kan., on Wednesday. However, Jones expects him to be back in the lineup when the Cougars head south to take on the Rattlers in La Junta, Colo., on Monday and Tuesday.

As one of the sophomores on an extremely young ball club, Monteagudo has also been trying to help the freshmen on the team by sharing his experiences from a season ago.

"He's sharing his knowledge and letting guys know some of the mistakes he made as a freshman," Jones said. "He's really stepped up and been important in that role."

Monteagudo is also leading the Cougars in slugging percentage at .717. He also has scored 27 runs, hit seven doubles, has 71 total bases and owns an on-base percentage of .521.