The Yelm Tornados baseball program started its 2024 season off with a bang, defeating the 3A PCL Lakes Lancers, 12-7, and earning program head coach Dakota Hill his first victory.
The teams traded leads six times throughout the contest, and Yelm’s new coach said he could not have been more proud of his team’s composure throughout the non-conference matchup on Friday, March 8.
“I thought we stayed really even-keeled. There’s times where you can press, try to do too much, and we didn’t do that,” Hill said. “We stayed confident in what we were doing, and these boys should be confident. We’re a good bunch of hitters. I thought we did a really good job sticking to our approach, hunting fastballs in our zone, not expanding, and also not taking what’s not there. A walk, a hit by pitch, that’s a free base, and we’ll take it.”
In his head coaching debut, Hill’s offense started the opening day contest on fire. Shortstop Parker Myers collected Yelm’s first hit of the season with a leadoff single into shallow center field. After Myers stole second base, outfielder Wesley Thompson laid down a picture-perfect bunt and advanced to first, driving in his teammate to collect an RBI and make the score 1-0.
Following Thompson’s bunt, Wyatt Robison, who started on the mound for Yelm, was hit by a pitch (HBP). His teammate, left fielder Barrett Schnetz, reached first base after hitting a single to load the bases for the Tornados. With three base runners, third baseman Jonah Smith smoked a double and scored all of his teammates on base, giving Yelm an early 4-0 lead.
“Hit the ball. That was my mentality at the plate,” Smith said. “It felt great getting that hit. There’s a little more pressure during an at-bat, especially with multiple runners in scoring position. You put that weight on yourself, and the goal is to get them in. You always want to get them in. It feels great to pick up the win, especially with it being coach Dak’s first game and getting that win for him. We’ve been working for this since the start of the season.”
For the first two and two-third innings, Robison collected his first eight outs of the game through strikeouts. After he collected two strikeouts in the third inning, bringing his game total to eight K’s, Lakes loaded the bases through several walks and eventually took a 5-4 lead after the Lancers hit a single and took advantage of a wild throw back to first base.
Robison finished his day with eight strikeouts total.
“I was really proud of Wyatt,” Hill said. “I probably left him in there a little bit too long. His stuff is electric, a really good fastball, a good slider. [He’s] just got to be able to be a little more efficient, and he’ll be a problem. I’m really excited to see what he does for us this season, especially on the mound.”
Relief pitcher Jack Verone replaced Robison on the mound and struck out a Lancers batter to end the frame. Yelm trailed Lakes 5-4 entering the bottom of the third inning but quickly regained the lead.
Tornado designated hitter Ace Youckton reached first base on an error and was sent to second by first baseman Landan Halterman, who laid down a sacrifice bunt. Catcher Jackson Ford tied the contest at 5 after collecting an RBI double and scoring Youckton. Yelm regained the lead, 6-5, after second baseman Lincoln Ramirez hit an RBI single.
The Lancers tied the contest yet again, in the top of the fourth inning, after Verone allowed an RBI double. He ended the inning for the Tornados with a strikeout.
More lead changes took place in the bottom of the fourth inning, starting with Robison reaching second on an error. Schnetz advanced Robison to third base before Lakes’ pitcher balked, sending Robison home to give Yelm a 7-6 lead.
Following a Smith walk and Youckton reaching first on error, Halterman collected his first RBI of the season on a hard-hit ground ball, giving Yelm an 8-6 lead.
The Tornado offense added another run in the bottom of the fifth inning after Myers smoked a triple, deep into center field. The sophomore shortstop stole home, extending Yelm’s lead to 9-6.
In Yelm’s final frame at bat, the bottom of the sixth inning, the Tornados made several quality hits to add to the score even more. Schnetz nearly hit a homerun to lead off the frame, but missed the top of the left field wall by a few feet. He collected a double and stole third base before Youckton drove him in with an RBI single, making the score 10-6.
After a Halterman walk and steal and a Ford HBP, Ramirez added another RBI after he hit a single. Leading 11-6, Myers hit a single and collected an RBI, making the contest 12-6.
In the top of the seventh inning, with Austin Richardson now pitching for Yelm, Lakes hit an RBI triple after an error in an attempt to rally, but trailing 12-7 with one out already, the Lancers comeback hopes ended with a double play, which secured the Tornado victory.
“This win is a testament to the work they’ve put in leading up to it. It gives them some confidence, the feeling that ‘we belong here,’ and a little bit of swagger,” Hill said. “It felt really good to get this win with them, and get some confidence rolling into the season. A confident hitter, a confident ball player, is dangerous.”
Yelm’s next contest was scheduled for Tuesday, March 12, against the 4A Kennedy Catholic Lancers, however results were not available before press time.
“You don’t sharpen your teeth on oatmeal,” Hill said, prior to the matchup with Kennedy Catholic. “We play the game. You need to have over 60% quality ABs (at-bats), execute 66% of your pitches, win the freebie battle, and then the rest will take care of itself. The game will sometimes get you more than your opponent.”
