From the Campus to the Diamond: Sequoyah Joins the Big Leagues with Introduction of Baseball Program!
Sequoyah vs. Beacon Hill | Photos taken by Matt Hutaff
Take a friend to the ballgame, and buy them a hot dog too—Sequoyah School has officially introduced its baseball program! The high school baseball team began their practice in the spring of 2024, and is now competing in real games. The athletes prepared for the launch of the season over the summer, and the new baseball team is geared up with a diverse group of players in the spring of 2025.
The team is coached by Grant Vogenthaler, who has coached cross country at Sequoyah for the last four years. He also played baseball in college at San Francisco State University.
Coach Vogenthaler explained that the team’s main priority for the season “will be focusing on developing skills, in order to prepare for future seasons.” Considering how new the team is, there will be some necessary adjustments and challenges that they will need to overcome, so luckily Coach Vogenthaler is here for the team while they focus on “advancing [their] abilities every week.” Vogenthaler is motivated and enthusiastic about the team’s path forward, noting, “Because we are a new team, we will have our work cut out for us. It’s a big challenge, but one the team is certainly up for!”
The team is ready to work together as they set goals for the long-awaited and anticipated introduction of baseball at Sequoyah School. AJ Wong ’26, explained that he has been “waiting for Sequoyah to have [more] sports,” and has been practicing with the team to “refresh my skills, and get to know my teammates better so we can practice as proficiently as possible in preparation for the big drop of the season.” Royce Clement ’28 is so far pleased with his experience on the baseball team, explaining, “it gives a lot of kids another option to do something for extracurricular activities. I’m so glad Sequoyah added another sport to their program.” Many other team members felt similarly.
Nico Felch ’26, who has been playing baseball for years, likewise shared his anticipation and excitement when he was told Sequoyah was introducing baseball at the high school. Felch played Little League for five years, though considering the amount of time it has been since he last played with a team, Felch explained that his number one priority with the team is to “improve our game knowledge in terms of offense, and work towards making smart base running decisions as well as optimizing our fielding performances to make quick outs.”
In their one game in the spring of ’24 during their practice season, Sequoyah played and beat Waverly. The first official season of high school baseball at Sequoyah this spring got off to a rocky start because of the rain. Morris Goldman ’27, who has been playing baseball for two years, stated that the team is “a bit behind. If it hadn’t rained, we would have been more prepared for the games,” and noted that the games that were planned in the SNAC didn’t happen because the team “just didn’t have enough practice.” Goldman additionally expressed that the team was challenged because they “share the field with a lot of other baseball teams, which is the biggest roadblock.”
On a brighter note, many players showcased their strengths during games, which is exactly what the new team needs. When asked who they think would receive a medal for being a great role model and player on the team, Royce Clement ’28 and Mateo Martinez’28 agreed on Malick Deighton ’25. As the team captain and one of two seniors on the team, Deighton, according to Clement, “has a great way of bringing the team together, and making sure that he’s a leader.” Just as importantly, the team members are getting to know each other and bonding. Goldman stated, “I don’t really cross paths with a lot of the freshmen during the school day, but during practice it’s a different story,” which shows the team’s teamwork and the community they have formed so early on in their career.
With practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays for roughly two hours at the Blair High School field, the team is bonding and making progress. Felch shared his hopes for the team as a whole, noting that he looks forward to “a great season full of improvement, in order to make ourselves a coherent, well-oiled baseball machine.” It’s clear that the team has been practicing with enthusiasm for the new season, and that everyone is working hard to meet their personal goals. Stay tuned for future baseball Sequoyah high school games, and welcome the Gryphons to the diamond!