Last year’s COVID pause came at a tough time for the Early baseball program.

Off to a solid start with seven returning seniors on the squad, the Longhorns appeared poised to build on the co-district championship they achieved the year before.

Fast forward to this season, and things looked less certain for coach Todd Hatton and his bunch.

With just two seniors, four juniors a slew of sophomores, and a limited number of games last spring through which to gain experience, EHS entered the season as something of a wild card. But sitting at 14-6 overall and 6-1 in league play heading into the second half of District 8-3A action, the youthful Longhorns can’t help but be pleased with their current position — and the rapid progress they made to get here.