A DAILY DOSE OF REALITY CANYONS PITCHER LEARNING THE LESSONS OF LOSING.Byline: Heather Gripp Staff Writer VALENCIA - Jason Daily is in unfamiliar territory. Not only is the College of the Canyons College of the Canyons is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the state. According to the National Junior College Research Association, College of the Canyons consistently ranks in the top 50 community colleges in the nation. freshman pitcher adjusting to life away from his home in San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo (săn l  `ĭs ōbĭs`pō), city (1990 pop. 41,958), seat of San Luis Obispo co., S Calif., near San Luis Obispo Bay; inc. 1856. , he is learning what it's like to lose a game once in a while. Daily, who had a team-high 10 wins as a senior at San Luis Obispo High, was the winning pitcher against Notre Dame in the Southern Section Division IV championship game last season at Dodger Stadium. This season, he's on a team that went 0-3 in its opening weekend and probably won't win any championships. Daily lost one of the games. ``I'm not used to losing,'' said Daily, who is part of a rotation that also includes sophomore Travis Allen and freshman Seth Epstein. ``I go from winning CIF (1) (Common Intermediate Format) A standard video format used in videoconferencing. CIF formats are defined by their resolution, and standards both above and below the original resolution have been established. The original CIF is also known as Full CIF (FCIF). to being 0-3 in the first week. It's my first loss at a school in a long time. It's tough. I was like, `Oh, man.' But it's all for the good. We'll get better.'' The Cougars compete in the Western State Conference tournament this weekend, and Daily is scheduled to start Saturday against Pierce, a team loaded with quality pitching and ranked in the state's top 20. Canyons coach Chris Cota expects a good performance. ``He's a real competitor on the mound,'' Cota said. `` We were happy with what we saw from him (last weekend).'' Daily had 77 strikeouts in 85 innings in his final high school season. His fastball and slider A block of material that holds the read/write head of a magnetic disk. See flying head. were good enough to prompt the San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California that currently play in the National League West Division. New York Giants history Early days and the John McGraw era to draft him. However, he passed up the chance to sign with his favorite team in part because he loves something else almost as much as he craves winning: He's also an outstanding punter and wasn't ready to give up football. That's why he chose Canyons over baseball-power Cuesta cuesta (kwĕs`tə), asymmetric ridge characterized by a short, steep escarpment on one side, and a long, gentle slope on the other. The steep side exposes the edge of erosion-resistant rock layers that form the cuestas. in his hometown: Cuesta has no football team. He hopes to transfer to USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. and play both baseball and football. However, he knows his future is in baseball. ``That's definitely what I want to do,'' he said. ``I've always wanted to play in the pros, but I didn't sign because I don't think I was ready to go pro. I think I needed a couple years' JC experience. ``I'm looking to become a smarter pitcher and to get my mechanics down so I'm ready when the time comes Adv. 1. when the time comes - at the appropriate time; "we'll get to this question in due course" in due course, in due season, in due time, in good time .'' Daily missed most of the baseball team's fall workouts because of football: He was COC's regular punter this past season. He did not play in scrimmages but kept his arm in shape in bullpen sessions. And the fact he's grown a couple inches in the past year - he's now 6-foot-3 - has made him even more formidable. He can't wait to get back on the mound. ``It's a little bit different,'' Daily said. ``I think the hitters are a little bit smarter, you gotta hit your spots more. It'll make me better.'' On a team that returned just two starters, Daily isn't the only one experiencing growing pains grow·ing pains pl.n. Pains in the limbs and joints of children or adolescents, frequently occurring at night and often attributed to rapid growth but arising from various unrelated causes. . He just hopes he doesn't have to learn to get used to losing. ``We gotta get that win,'' he said. ``Hopefully, we don't have to wait too much longer for that. I'm not used to this.'' CAPTION(S): photo Photo: A successful pitcher in high school, Canyons freshman Jason Daily is learning one can't win all the time. Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer |
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