Central Oregonian

Queen having stellar season

Former CCHS baseball star helps lead University of Portland to great season

Lon Austin

It’s always nice to be able to write something positive about a CCHS athlete who makes good after high school.

This year, Garrett Queen, a 2007 CCHS graduate, is having a breakout baseball season at the University of Portland.

Queen, who redshirted in 2008, started 19 games a year ago for the Pilots, hitting .277 with eight doubles, three triples, and three homeruns.

This season, Queen, a sophomore, has started 23 games and is batting .330 with 16 runs batted in. He is third on the team in batting average, and has committed only one error so far this season while playing outfield.

Queen, who recently hit home runs in three consecutive league games, has helped lead the Pilots to an 11-1 start to their league season. The Pilots trail only No. 24 ranked San Diego in the West Coast Conference standings, and have a 27-9 overall record.

Midway through the league season, the Pilots already have more wins than any year since they won 31 games in 1991.

The team is now ranked 26th in the nation — the first time they have been nationally ranked since 1980.

This past weekend, the Pilots swept a three-game series from the Pepperdine Waves. The three wins are especially impressive since the University of Portland was 1-31 at the University of Pepperdine prior to the series sweep.

The team currently looks like they will reach the NCAA playoffs for the first time since the 1980 season.

Here’s hoping Queen and the Pilots continue their great season.