By Stephen Buus (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Weaubleau Tigers baseball team hopes to improve on what their coach called a disappointing 2017 season.
Coach Chad Foster said, “Last year’s team finished a disappointing 5-17 but gained valuable experience for a really young team. We finished seventh in the conference (1-5 in the Polk County League) and lost in the first round of districts to Halfway 9-1.”
That experience factor is key; as the Tigers have seven lettermen returning including five starters. They will have to replace the graduated Colton Lambeth, who led the team in home runs, doubles, and RBI.
Heading the list of returnees is junior Cameron Ott (6-foot, 153). He hit .368 with a homer, and 15 RBI. Foster said, “Cameron is one our team leaders and our most versatile player. He led our team in offense and split time at catcher and shortstop. Cameron threw out base stealers at a 25% clip. Cameron made first team All-Conference and All-District.”
Tate Dennis (6-1, 139) is Weaubleau’s lone senior who returns as a starter. Dennis hit .345 with 19 RBI and turned in a pitching record of 2-4 with a 4.73 ERA. A hard worker, according to Foster, “we will look for Tate’s experience and leadership to guide our team this year. Tate made second team All-Conference.”
The remaining returning starters are all sophomores: Cadan Kauffman (5-11, 139), Brian Tucker (6-1, 146), and Tucker Hilliard (5-11, 118).
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Kauffman led the Tigers in stolen bases with eight and was named second team All-District. Tucker drove in 20 runs and has an impressive ability to track down balls in the outfield. Hilliard led the team in fielding percentage and showed versatility at several positions.
Other lettermen are senior Owen Lambeth (5-8, 226) and sophomore Tate Burkhart (5-9, 135).
Another senior, Hayden Flagg (5-8, 176), returns to the team after a year off. Foster said, “We are looking to add him to our pitching staff as one of our two lefties. We will expect his knowledge of the game to help lead our team this season.”
Other top newcomers include a pair of transfers: Sam Rutherford (5-11, 146 sophomore) from Fair Grove and Treyton Foster (6-0, 159 freshman) from Skyline. Foster says Rutherford is “extremely athletic with good hands.” Foster “is very knowledgeable, and will be one of our more experienced players even though he is a freshman. He is a well-rounded player that will add much needed depth to our pitching rotation and help us both offensively and defensively.”
Others looking to earn a spot on the team are freshmen Kaiden Gannaway (5-10, 138), Chance Powers (5-9, 171), and Creek Tucker (5-7, 102), along with sophomore Perry Rucker (6-4, 189).
Foster said, “Much like last season, we are a young team. We have several varsity players returning this year and several athletic freshmen joining us this year. We look for this group to improve throughout the season as they become more experienced and hope to be very competitive be season’s end. We have been working to build this program for some time and change the culture as this team works hard to operate as one unit with unselfish play and dedicated attitudes. The conference and district will once again be tough, but playing that level of competition is what our team needs to be more successful year after year.”
Ott said, “I am really looking forward to baseball season. We are going to be a young team but I’m excited about some of our new teammates who are athletic and understand the game of baseball. Last year was a learning year for us but I am excited about achieving some goals we missed last year.”
Dennis said, “Last year was a growing year but this year we will have more experience under our belts, along with some top newcomers that are athletically and mechanically sound. Last year, we had trouble staying healthy and finishing some games, but with the dynamics of this team, I believe we will overcome those obstacles. With new faces and hard work ethic, I believe we can have a successful season.”
Foster counts Walnut Grove and Halfway as the teams to beat in both the PCL and district.
