Pictured playing quarterback during his junior season against Norwood, Jake Pfaff (3) has been a key contributor to Westwood High School football and baseball the last four years. Photo by Mike Mao.
By Mike Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
Jake Pfaff has been a key component for Westwood High football and baseball the last four years. In football, Pfaff started each of the last two years at quarterback and led the Wolverines to back-to-back Division IV South playoff trips. During the spring athletic season, Pfaff has served as the starting third baseman and pitched for the Westwood baseball team, last year helping pilot the Wolverines to the Division II South final.
With COVID-19 cancelling the entire 2020 spring athletic season, Pfaff, a senior, saw his high school athletic tenure come to an abrupt end. Despite going out in the strangest manner possible, Pfaff remains in high spirits and says he cherishes every second he spent as a Westwood High athlete.
"It’s been a blast playing for Westwood," said Pfaff. "[I] can’t really speak enough on just how fun it is taking the field with your childhood friends and making so many new ones in the process. From the laughs in the locker room and the dugout to the intense games on the field, I will miss every bit of it."
Asked to reflect on the outlook of the 2020 baseball squad, Pfaff says he and his teammates were confident in their abilities to make some noise and get back to the state tournament.
"I think we had a really good team chemistry this year and a great blend of experienced upperclassmen, along with some really good sophomores," said Pfaff. "We would have had a lot of playmakers this year, which really adds to the pain of not getting a senior season, especially since we were so close to a state tittle last year."
It's often the little things that make an experience special. Simply being able to play alongside his childhood friends and enjoying the "in-between" times are what Jake Pfaff says made his time as a Westwood High athlete so memorable.
"I’ll try and remember the in-between times the most because the things you realize that you truly love are the bus rides to games and team meals and things like that," said Pfaff. "All the friends and important people in my life have given me a great 18 years and I think they have set me up to have an even greater rest of my life. That, more than anything, is why I’m thankful for my four years at WHS and my 18 years as a member of this community."
For funny and incisive sports analysis as well as game highlights, follow Mike Flanagan on his personal Twitter and Instagram @flano0.
