WILLIAMSBURG — According to Williamsburg coach Bryan Hopkins, this year’s version of the Yellow Jackets were “a very special team that probably turned out to be one of the hardest working teams he has had in a while.”
Williamsburg started the season with a 7-2 record and won the 13th Region All ‘A’ Classic championship before finishing with a 13-17 mark. Although the Yellow Jackets hovered around .500 the entire season, they ended the 2013 campaign with a four-game losing streak.
“Our players were eager in the offseason to get started and when we did, they worked extremely hard, whether it be in a hallway or upstairs in a gym, weight room, or whatever,” Hopkins said. “They were able to win the All ‘A’ this season which is something we hadn’t done in a couple of years and at one point, were ranked as the No. 6 team in the 13th Region.”
Hopkins said that the semifinals and finals of the 13th Region All ‘A’ Classic championship were key points and games that highlighted the season for his Yellow Jackets.
“This was kind of a point of inspiration for our kids as we just lost to the same team a couple day’s earlier,” he admitted. “Others would be the games we played in Florida.”
Despite some disappointments throughout the season, Hopkins felt that “that’s baseball.”
“I believe we were better than we performed at times, and we dropped some games that we should have won,” he admitted. “We had some sickness and injuries throughout the season that caused us to have to change our game plans when we really couldn’t afford to. However, at the end of the day, I was proud of them and the way they stepped up each day no matter the situation. I do believe this is a team that can build off last season. If they are willing to put in the work anything is possible.”
Hopkins said that some of the key players returning for the 2024 season are senior Connor Faulkner, juniors John Davis and Bradyn Hopkins, and sophomores Isaiah Sizemore, Henry Bowling, and Hayden Kleinert. “I hope that the loss of our senior group doesn’t affect what we can accomplish next season,” he said. “That talent will be hard to replace for sure but we always try to prepare for moments like this. Seeing kids move on has to be one of the hardest parts of being a coach but it also opens doors and provides opportunities for other players coming up.”
