New coach, same standards
· Yahoo Sports
Mar. 6—EPHRATA — After a strong 2025 season that saw the Ephrata Tigers make a state appearance, they are back under new Head Coach Lesa Trevino. Despite the changes, their goals remain the same.
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"The last few years with the program, they have been phenomenal," Trevino said. "With a lot of these underclassmen coming in, we've got to develop those fundamentals first and make sure that we're going in with that team first mentality. Making sure that we're taking those small steps of fundamentals first, the rest is going to fall into place as soon as we get those fundamentals going."
The Tigers had a strong showing in the 2A state tournament last season, coming just short of placing in the top four. In between now and then, former Head Coach Heather Wood stepped down, and Trevino was later named the new head coach of the team in October.
In a previous interview, Trevino spoke to what drew her into coaching.
"I've always had a deep love for the game and (for) the coaches that pushed me to be better," said Trevino. "I always wanted to do that for another athlete, I wanted to push them to be their best and so they knew that they could do it in their potential."
The Tigers first practice was Monday, which Trevino said went well as the team got refamiliarized with each other. Each player took to the diamond with a positive attitude, which gave the coach a positive feeling about how this season may go.
"All the girls have had amazing attitudes, which is not something you typically get. I will thrive on that, and we'll go from there. These girls are ready to work, and it's been pretty cool to see," she said.
As she observes this new team, Trevino is focused on bringing the underclassmen along. So far, experienced players like Dakota Durfee, Bailey Falconer and Bayleigh French have bought into her philosophy and seem eager to take on leadership roles this season. Having them step in and help establish a new culture has been huge for the underclassmen, Trevino said.
"Those girls don't know what to expect at that varsity level yet, and so having those girls be able to show them the ropes and show them like, 'Hey, this is, this is what we're going to do, and this is how we're going to succeed,' I think is incredible and already incredible to see within the first three days of practice," Trevino said.
As she installs her system and teaches her players the fundamentals, Trevino sees a few elements of the game as keys to success this season. In addition to disciplined defense, she wants her players confident they can contribute to the team's success even in the smallest ways.
For instance, she preaches quality at-bats over stats. From her perspective, players can do their job as a batter without even reaching first base.
"If you're taking a pitcher to a 10 to 12 pitch count, and we're seeing everything that they can throw, but yet, you don't get on base, you still did your job. You still did what you could for your team, so I think that's pretty huge, and that's our mindset going in this year," she said.
At the end of the day, she is eager to help her players become well-rounded athletes.
"We're going to center on developing disciplined and confident athletes who understand that success is earned through preparation, effort and accountability," Trevino said.
As she looks at the landscape of the Central Washington Athletic Conference, Trevino sees a tough league to navigate, but she remains confident her team will be competitive with any of them.
"I'm hoping that we're competing with them and just digging in and putting in work and getting stuff done day to day. I think all of our work and effort is going to show in those games," she said.
The Tigers open their season on the road against Eastmont in a doubleheader on March 12 at 4 p.m. Their first home game is March 17 where they host the Wenatchee Panthers at 4 p.m.
"I think this year is going to be fun. All the girls that have shown up lately are hard workers, and they want to be there. That's what you want as a coach. You want players that want to be on the field and compete. It'll be exciting to see," Trevino said.
Stay tuned for additional previews of Ephrata High Schools sports in our upcoming Spring Sports Guide on March 12.