Carmen Liberto is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Chaparral High School for AZPreps365.com 

When Troy Gerlach got to Chaparral’s baseball program as the head coach in 2019, it had been seven years since they won a state championship. 

“Everybody knows Chaparral’s history, but when I got here the program was for whatever reason in turmoil,” Gerlach said.

Chaparral won 10 state titles dating back to 1994. Now, thanks to Gerlach’s leadership, the team is finding its way back to the top. 

The team’s current record is 9-4 and they are ranked 5th in the East Sky Region, but just one game out of first.

Gerlach was the head coach at Arcadia High School from 2012 to May 2019, when he moved onto coaching at Chaparral. 

Besides high school, Gerlach was an assistant coach for the 12U National Team in 2022, contributing to its undefeated run and gold medal victory. In 2023, he was appointed as the team’s manager, leading it in the World Baseball Softball Confederation U12 Baseball World Cup in Taiwan.

With all that, he was trying to rebuild Chaparral’s championship status. When Gerlach came to the school, he said he saw that the talent was there.

“With a little discipline and structure it helped shift them back to where they needed to be,” Gerlach said. 

The program went through four different coaches in four years until Gerlach was brought in. 

Gerlach said he learned a lot from Jerry Dawson, the head coach from 1973 until he retired in 2010, in order to know what he was getting into. 

Gerlach played against Dawson in the 2000s before he came to Chaparral. 

Because Chaparral has the reputation of being a state championship school, the parents can be demanding, so coming in with those high standards for the team, Gerlach said he knew what to expect. 

“The parents and the kids who didn’t like it moved on, and now we’ve got a program full of great kids who want to be here,” Gerlach said. “I love coming to the field every day with these guys, and they do a really good job.”

Senior pitcher James Rule has been playing baseball at Chaparral since he was a freshman, and moved up to the varsity team with the help of Gerlach’s coaching. 

“He was just getting used to it here,” Rule said. “But now that it’s been a few years he’s definitely settled in now and is making the team better.” 

Rule’s been able to experience first hand the legacy Gerlach is trying to build for the program. 

Rule said he believes Geralch is building a legacy based on excellence, hard work and getting the work done.

In order to help his coach continue building a good legacy, Rule said he wants him and the rest of his senior class to end their year on top. 

“If we left a safe record behind, by the end a lot of kids would think ‘If they can do it why can’t we?’” Rule said. “I hope we can leave a good legacy behind.” 

Sophomore shortstop/second baseman Reece Solar has been playing at Chaparral since he was a freshman, and has moved up to varsity under the coaching of Gerlach. 

“Coach has really helped me with my mindset and helped me get through some mental battles last year,” Solar said. “It helped me improve and I feel like I’m a part of something great from coach.”