FEATURE
Story & Photos By Keven Scrutchins S
pring is in full bloom and if you’re hungry for baseball then look no further than Pottawatomie County to satisfy that appetite. A half hour drive east of the Oklahoma City metro sits a gold mine of small school baseball rich in history.
A 26-mile radius around the city of Shawnee will lead you to legendary programs such Asher and Dale who have a combined 27 state spring titles and another 29 titles in fall ball and some up- and-coming programs that have their sights set on some hardware. In 2007 and 2010 Bethel High School earned Class 3A spring titles while the Tecumseh Savages are gaining momentum towards Class 4A prominence.
Any discussion of current small ball dominance has to begin in Dale. The Pirates possess nine spring titles and another six fall ball crowns. Dale lapped the field in the fall of 2011, capturing the win with a 3-1 decision over the Byng Pirates in the Bricktown Ballpark.
This spring looks to be more of the same for the loaded Pirates as they finish March with a 10-2 mark and are currently perched atop the Class 2A standings. “We don’t worry about our record – we
worry about how well we are playing,” said Dale head coach Jerry Sanford. “We have been hit and miss so far.”
The Pirates appear to have it all; pitching, defense and hitting. Throw those factors in with a history-rich program then all other Class 2A opponents know their title hopes hinge on getting past Dale.
Pitchers Taylor Smith (3-0) and Evan Anderson (1-0) anchor the Pirates pitching staff. “Taylor and Evan are two good arms, but we have others that can throw it pretty well too,” said Sanford. “Along with our pitching, we play really good defense to support them.”
The Dale bats are equally impressive. “We swing it well all up and down the line,” said Sanford. The Pirates main threats on offense are Landon Coon, Asa Manship and Kyle Lemmings who are all capable of making opposing pitchers pay for their mistakes. “All of these kids work their tail ends off to become better players and teammates,” said Sanford. “We are just looking to play, play, and play to gain momentum. We missed some games to weather and Spring Break so we are looking to get out there as much as we can.”
The Pirates completed March with an impressive 4-0 stint at the McLoud Tournament. They defeated Class 4A Tecumseh 2-1 to earn
the crown. They also beat the likes of host McLoud, Perkins-Tryon (ranked 4th
in Class 4A), and Blanchard.
The Tecumseh Savages are currently looking to make a name for themselves in Class 4A. ‘We don’t have the tradition that some of the other schools have, so we will always have to go out and prove ourselves,” said Tecumseh head coach Quinton Nichols. His squad finished March with a 10-5 record including a split with 4A’s top- ranked Byng and a narrow miss against Dale in the championship game of the McLoud Tournament.
“This team is different than the ones I have coached in the past here,” said Nichols. “We can go 13-15 kids deep and feel very comfortable doing it. We are young overall but are experienced with a lot of kids that can play multiple spots.”
Tecumseh pitcher Gage Trahan. Photo by Wallace “Mike” Crouch, Property of Anchor Bay Films
Nichols, in his seventh year at the Tecumseh helm, relies heavily on three of his starting pitchers to carry the load. ‘We don’t have an ace, we have more like a 1-A, 1-B and 1-C.” Connor Patton, Gage
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VYPEOK.COM | APRIL 2012
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