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Tahlequah baseball players are still working to perfect their play, but one aspect has stood out at times: the offense.
This season, the Tigers have proved they can hit, whether it be upperclassmen like Levi Kelly, Synjin Sampson or Cutter Girdner, or with underclassmen like Will Talburt. In the Tigers’ most recent 16-8 win over Fort Gibson, everyone in the lineup reached base in some form.
Yandell sliding play
Tahlequah’s Cruz Yandell slides to his knees to make a play against Fort Gibson Thursday, April 10.
“It’s huge when you can get contributions from one through nine; it makes us tough to pitch to,” THS coach Cody Pair said. “It also takes pressure off the top of the order and gives us more opportunities to string together big innings. That kind of depth is something we’ll keep building on as the season goes.”
After a couple of games without a big offensive boom, the Tigers were back to raking against Fort Gibson. During the game, the Tigers got back to working a count better.
“We had some better approaches overall; guys were more patient early in counts and did a good job attacking pitches they could handle,” Pair said. “We didn’t necessarily square everything up, but we put balls in play and found ways to keep the line moving. We’ve still got room to grow offensively, but there were some good signs today.”
Getting on base all game was key, but so was capitalizing on those base runners. In the first and fourth innings, the Tigers jumped on Fort Gibson, pitching for a combined 11 runs.
In the first inning, the Tigers took advantage of early errors with base hits later in the inning. The Tigers weren’t gifted anything in the fourth but still picked up six runs, despite the first two batters recording outs. Girdner, Sampson and Brayden Carey all drove in runners with base hits during that rally.
Kelly rounds third
Tahlequah’s Levi Kelly rounds third base going home to score a run in the Tigers’ 16-8 win over Fort Gibson.
“I saw a group that came out ready to go and took advantage of some opportunities,” Pair said. “In both innings, we were aggressive but under control, and guys came through with some big swings and smart base running. That kind of energy and execution early on is something we want to build on moving forward.”
This season, Girdner is leading the Tigers with a .613 batting average, with 24 RBIs, with only five strikeouts. Sampson is just behind him with a .476 average and 18 RBIs.
On the mound, the Tigers used pitching by committee to secure the win. Rush Miller (two innings pitched), Girdner (two IPs) and Caleb Lamb (one IPs) combined to secure the win for the Tigers.
Miller earned the start and the win, allowing just one hit and two walks with no earned runs. Girdner picked up two strikeouts, allowing four runs. Lamb rounded out the trio of pitchers with a clean three up and three down fifth inning.
With Kelly as their ace on the rubber, the Tigers rely on bullpen games from time to time.
“I thought our pitchers attacked the zone well and competed with good tempo,” Pair said. “Each guy came in ready to work, and they minimized damage in some tough spots. We didn’t help them defensively at times, but they kept their composure and gave us a chance to stay in control of the game.”
The Tigers continue their district season at 5 p.m. on the road against Pryor Monday, April 14. Tuesday, April 15 PHS travels to Tahlequah for the second game in the district series.
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This season, the Tigers have proved they can hit, whether it be upperclassmen like Levi Kelly, Synjin Sampson or Cutter Girdner, or with underclassmen like Will Talburt. In the Tigers’ most recent 16-8 win over Fort Gibson, everyone in the lineup reached base in some form.
Yandell sliding play
Tahlequah’s Cruz Yandell slides to his knees to make a play against Fort Gibson Thursday, April 10.
“It’s huge when you can get contributions from one through nine; it makes us tough to pitch to,” THS coach Cody Pair said. “It also takes pressure off the top of the order and gives us more opportunities to string together big innings. That kind of depth is something we’ll keep building on as the season goes.”
After a couple of games without a big offensive boom, the Tigers were back to raking against Fort Gibson. During the game, the Tigers got back to working a count better.
“We had some better approaches overall; guys were more patient early in counts and did a good job attacking pitches they could handle,” Pair said. “We didn’t necessarily square everything up, but we put balls in play and found ways to keep the line moving. We’ve still got room to grow offensively, but there were some good signs today.”
Getting on base all game was key, but so was capitalizing on those base runners. In the first and fourth innings, the Tigers jumped on Fort Gibson, pitching for a combined 11 runs.
In the first inning, the Tigers took advantage of early errors with base hits later in the inning. The Tigers weren’t gifted anything in the fourth but still picked up six runs, despite the first two batters recording outs. Girdner, Sampson and Brayden Carey all drove in runners with base hits during that rally.
Kelly rounds third
Tahlequah’s Levi Kelly rounds third base going home to score a run in the Tigers’ 16-8 win over Fort Gibson.
“I saw a group that came out ready to go and took advantage of some opportunities,” Pair said. “In both innings, we were aggressive but under control, and guys came through with some big swings and smart base running. That kind of energy and execution early on is something we want to build on moving forward.”
This season, Girdner is leading the Tigers with a .613 batting average, with 24 RBIs, with only five strikeouts. Sampson is just behind him with a .476 average and 18 RBIs.
On the mound, the Tigers used pitching by committee to secure the win. Rush Miller (two innings pitched), Girdner (two IPs) and Caleb Lamb (one IPs) combined to secure the win for the Tigers.
Miller earned the start and the win, allowing just one hit and two walks with no earned runs. Girdner picked up two strikeouts, allowing four runs. Lamb rounded out the trio of pitchers with a clean three up and three down fifth inning.
With Kelly as their ace on the rubber, the Tigers rely on bullpen games from time to time.
“I thought our pitchers attacked the zone well and competed with good tempo,” Pair said. “Each guy came in ready to work, and they minimized damage in some tough spots. We didn’t help them defensively at times, but they kept their composure and gave us a chance to stay in control of the game.”
The Tigers continue their district season at 5 p.m. on the road against Pryor Monday, April 14. Tuesday, April 15 PHS travels to Tahlequah for the second game in the district series.
Continue reading...
