With eight sophomores and and two freshmen on its roster, many of whom have been pressed into playing time in prominent roles, the Wylie baseball team was always destined to experience some growing pains in 2019.

That’s the nature of the beast when you have a pitching staff comprised primarily of underclassmen and have a third of your lineup on any given day filled by freshmen or sophomores.

And yet, the Bulldogs entered the playoffs as District 4-5A’s No. 1 seed and brought a 17-8 overall record into this weekend’s Region I-5A area-round series with El Paso Bel Air.

That level of success, while surprising to some perhaps, hasn’t shocked Wylie coach Clay Martin. That’s because as young as his team is, it’s been blessed with a core of seniors that have provided the steady production and leadership necessary to weather any storms that have come.