By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
For the Camdenton High School baseball team, culture is everything.
They even have a slogan for it.
“We use the term ‘Lakeboys’, which describes a culture of joy, love for the game and being from the lake,” said Camdenton coach Bryce Durnin. “We have a lot of players who like to play the game the right way and just have fun.”
Under Durnin, the Lakers have built a winning culture. That figures to continue in 2023.
Camdenton welcomes back most of its starting infield, led by two-time all-state selection and Wichita State signee Kam Durnin.
He’s a two-year starter at shortstop (playing every inning in that span) and sets the tone for Camdenton’s lineup. Durnin comes off a junior season where he hit .424 with 24 extra-base hits (four homers), 21 RBIs and 13 steals.
According to the team, Kam Durnin is the first Camdenton High School baseball player to sign with a Division 1 college program.
“We go as Kam goes,” Coach Durnin said.
Cole Hilton (1B/P) and Jase Nickels (OF) join Kam Durnin as returning seniors.
Hilton will again hit in the middle of Camdenton’s batting order, and could see more innings on the mound this season. He earned all-conference honors after hitting .343 with six doubles and 21 RBIs last season.
“I love how much Cole cares about baseball and all the other guys,” Coach Durnin said. “Cole’s leadership and example will continue to be key in addition to his performance on the field.”
Coach Durnin describes Nickels as an “energy guy” who will contend for an outfield spot.
“Jase is a team favorite and has a lot of trust from our other players,” Coach Durnin said.
Kade Durnin (P/IF) will be a key two-way player for the Lakers.
At the plate, Kade hit .361 with 12 extra-base hits, 35 RBIs and 10 steals last season. On the mound, he went 6-1 with a 2.35 ERA.
With the breakout season, he landed all-state honors for the first time. Kade recently committed to play at Wichita State alongside his older brother, Kam.
“Kade’s one of the best athletes on our team and in the school,” Coach Durnin said. “He will need to protect Kam in the lineup and be our pitching ace.”
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Junior centerfielder Jackson Basham fuels Camdenton’s lineup as the leadoff hitter. He hit .317 last season, highlighted by no strikeouts in 130 at-bats.
Basham will anchor Camdenton’s outfield and can pitch when needed.
“Jackson is one of the most important pieces to our team,” Coach Durnin said. “He can do so many different things.”
The Lakers will have good depth at catcher. Junior Blake Ford was in line to take over the starting spot after last season.
He’ll contend with senior transfer Tobyn Dudley for playing time at catcher.
“Either way we go, these two guys will make our team better,” Coach Durnin said.
Junior Spencer Mellencamp was one of the team’s surprise players in 2022, earning a starting spot midway through the season and keeping it the rest of the way. Mellencamp, who normally plays in right field, will also look to fill the pitching gaps caused by graduation.
The Lakers are counting on another junior, Zayne Fry, to contribute significant innings as well.
“We need Zayne to pitch 40-50 innings this spring,” Coach Durnin said. “He needs to have a breakout season.
Karson Durnin, the third of the Durnin siblings in Camdenton’s lineup, was the team’s rookie of the year in 2022.
The 6’3” sophomore was one of the team’s best defensive players from his second base position. He’ll have an increased role on the mound this season, too, after shining as a reliever last spring.
“Karson’s biggest strength is that he can play anywhere on the infield,” Coach Durnin said. “We’ll need him to contribute more offensively this season no matter where we put him.”
Camdenton enters this spring with unfinished business.
The Lakers won the most games (24) in program history last season, but had their postseason run cut short with a loss in the district tournament semifinals.
“Once we started getting mentioned and eventually ranked in the state, we went from a team that was used to being the hunter and the underdog, to the team that was being hunted,” Coach Durnin said. “It was a different feeling for us and something I even had to get used to.”
One of the biggest tasks for Camdenton this season: Reshuffling its pitching staff.
The Lakers graduated over 150 innings on the mound last season. Only one pitcher with significant innings returns to the rotation.
Pitching stalwarts Conner Miller and Mitch Orozco, who both earned all-state honors in Class 5, have graduated.
Miller went 5-1 on the mound with a 2.43 ERA and hit .370 with 18 extra-base hits and 26 RBIs. Orozco went 4-2 with a 3.47 ERA and two saves.
Also gone are catcher Landon Thomas, who started every game behind the plate, and pitcher Noah Normand (5-1 in 50 innings last season).
Camdenton’s 2022 seniors helped the program rise to new heights.
Over the past four seasons, Camdenton has won 73 games and one district championship.
“I continue to think of being in the district championship game as a measure of success,” Coach Durnin said. “I think that should be the minimum expectation every year.”
Several newcomers will try to help the Lakers secure their fifth straight winning season and a second district championship.
Juniors Payton Hinton, Nick McNerney, Dylan Kerr and Gavin Marlowe are looking to make an impact on the varsity squad. All played JV as sophomores.
Levi Layman, a sophomore, could also see the varsity field as a left-handed batter or pitcher.
As they turn the page to 2023, Camdenton will use the sour ending to 2022 as motivation.
“I’m really excited about our guys. They are all friends and compete together in other sports,” Coach Durnin said. “Last year one of our goals was to win 20 games. We did that and I think all of us still have an empty feeling because we didn’t finish the season playing our best baseball.”
Camdenton will host a jamboree on March 9. The Lakers begin the regular season March 17 at home against Eldon.
