There is a huge difference in preparing for the beginning of a new season and preparing to win a championship in that new season, yet it usually is one and the same for the fall sports programs at Oakdale High School.

The Mustangs and Lady Mustangs are in the opening stages of their 2009-2010 seasons and it is obvious that each squad has their mind set on reaching new levels.

Oakdale put together an impressive run through the fall sports season a year ago, finishing with a host of league championships, in the Valley Oak League as well as in the Modesto Metro Conference.

Oakdale fans will follow their particular sports closely, anticipating another strong finish on the courts as well as on the fields in hopes of supporting the championship dreams that each of the fall sports athletes possess.

Every moment of postseason action begins in the grueling heat of the late August workouts … these kids are practicing with a purpose.

They are in the opening stages of a race that they hope ends sometime during early November or even early December in some sports. The practices will be followed by preseason scrimmages and non-league games, only to give way to the tumultuous league schedules that eliminate the haves from the have nots.

It all starts here and you can see it on their faces. The sweat, the pain, the fun and the smiles all reveal the journey that they’re on. No one can guarantee that league championship or that coveted Blue banner, yet they all are out there now, chasing that which they feel they own.

The chase is on.

It’s on at the lovely Oakdale Golf and Country Club practice range, it’s on in the OHS gymnasium, it’s on inside of the Corral, it’s on inside the lines of the soccer complex, it’s on inside the OHS tennis courts and it’s on inside the water of Royse Memorial Pool and, ready or not … it’s time to follow the chase.