King/Drew senior Christopher Petit has been on the Varsity baseball team for four years. His talent and effort helped the Golden Eagles dominate the Coliseum League and reach the semifinals in the Division III City Section Playoffs.
The Golden Eagles earned the top ranking in Division III of the City Section with a 19-4 overall record. They also came in second in the Coliseum League with an 8-2 record.
“It’s actually pretty fun, we got some good teams,” Petit said.
Petit called baseball his “first love,” he started playing the sport at a young age. His experience as a pitcher also started in his formative years.
“In Little League, people used to pitch before me and they weren’t doing so good,” he said. “So, one day I just told the coach ‘give me a shot to pitch’ and he let me pitch and from there, I just kept pitching.”
He went on to be an asset for the Golden Eagles. During his senior season, Petit pitched two no-hitters and one shutout; he also accumulated 100 strikeouts and nine starts. Petit only allowed 29 runs while on the mound. As a batter, he made 30 hits and 35 runs.
As a junior, Petit made 53 strikeouts; he had eight starts and was the sole pitcher for four games. He pitched his first no-hitter that season and only allowed 49 runs.
In the Golden Eagles’ first-round playoff game against the North Valley Military Institute (NVMI) that year, Petit struck out 11 batters. During that postseason, he learned the importance of keeping his team uplifted during games.
“You got to keep the team’s attitude up,” Petit said. “Without the team’s attitude being up, everything could fall apart.”
Before COVID-19 canceled his sophomore season, Petit made 16 strikeouts and allowed 17 hits in a span of five games.
Petit takes pride in being a student athlete, mentioning how it “means everything.” When balancing the two endeavors, he prioritizes his academics before his work with the baseball team.
“The fact that I get to keep my grades up and play, it’s nice,” he said. “Baseball comes later, even though you want it to be the priority, you gotta get your work done first.”
Petit’s favorite class is psychology, he enjoys learning about the state of the mind and decision-making. He noted how good grades are a must to compete.
“They always encouraged me to get my work done first,” Petit said about King/Drew. “You have to have a certain GPA to play.”
In his spare time, Petit plays basketball and football. He mentioned how playing football helped his strength and throwing abilities. Petit aspires to be involved in baseball long after high school.
“If I don’t make it in baseball, I’ll go to physical therapy,” he said. “Just to stay around the sport and help athletes rehab.”
