Last season, Waynesville entered the district tournament on a nine-game losing streak. Expectations were not very high for a young team which featured only one senior and which started as many as four freshman.
However, the Tigers caught lightning in a bottle and won three straight contests to capture the Class 5 District 10 championship. It was just the second district title in school history, and the first in 38 years.
“We were super young with only one senior,” said head coach Scott Turner, who is entering his eighth season at Waynesville. “At times we had as many as four freshmen start. Through the season they gained the necessary experience to help us compete in the district tournament.”
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With only one senior on last year’s roster, that means that the Tigers return virtually every player from last year’s district champions. Departed senior Philip Holmes saw spot duty in right field for Waynesville, and was one of four Tigers to earn academic honors for his work in the classroom.
A quartet of seniors will lead the Tigers this spring—both on and off the diamond. That includes the Tigers’ ace on the mound in Trey Simpson, who has anchored the pitching staff the past two seasons. Simpson tossed a pair of complete game gems in the district tournament, including a seven-inning effort against Willard in the district title game.
Simpson, who plays shortstop for the Tigers when not pitching, earned second team All-Ozark Conference honors as a pitcher and honorable mention all-conference accolades for his play at shortstop.
The Tigers’ top hitter, senior Ryan Pendleton, also returns after a season in which he hit .345 at the plate. Another of the Tigers’ returning pitchers, Pendleton earned first team All-OC honors as an infielder a year ago.
Waynesville’s top power hitter, senior Seth Hedrick, returns after going yard six times last year. The speedy Hedrick also swiped 10 bases last year. Hedrick, another of the Tigers stable of pitchers, has played centerfield for the Tigers the past two seasons, and was a second team All-OC outfielder last season. Senior left fielder Jacob Saylor also returns for Waynesville.
“Our strengths are that we return all but 12 innings on the mound and essentially our whole line-up and defense,” said Turner. “We should be strong on the mound and defensively. We will have varsity level experience of at least one year for all but one player. Our weakness from last year that we are working on making a strength is our ability to hit extra base hits. The key to our success will be our hitting. Our offense was our weak spot last year. We hit just .233 as a team.”
The season started with a bit of a bump, as Waynesville dropped a 2-1 contest to visiting Willard in a rematch of last year’s district title game. The Tigers bounced back with an 8-4 home win over Marshfield on Tuesday.
Another key game includes an Apr. 20 game against Lebanon that will carry with it both conference and district implications. The Tigers hope that a May 5 trip to Class 5 No. 4-ranked Kickapoo in the conference finale is for an Ozark Conference title.
“We look to defend our district title, as well as compete for the Ozark Conference championship,” said Turner. “Our goals are to win conference and districts and make a Final Four run. We have a tough district. Last year’s #1 seed Lebanon returns most of their players as well as the #2 Willlard, but so do we. It will come down to who can find a way to score on the other team’s aces.”
