Thank you to Sports Editor Andy Stine and the Herald for recognizing our youth.

By MICHAEL STONER Sports Writer Tyrone Herald 3/30/21

The years of 2020 and 2021 have been like no other for high school athletes, but that hasn’t changed the mindset of the Tyrone baseball team. They come into this season fueled by the goal of bringing a state title back to Tyrone for the first time in program history.

The Eagles success over the last three years can be contributed to a strong pitching staff backed up by a solid defense and an even better lineup with batters 1-9 always a threat to get on base. Do not expect to see any difference from this year’s team as they bring the same attitude and intensity we are used to seeing.

“We have improved on our pitching. It was already good but we are much more matured about how we approach it. We have basically gotten better at understanding the importance of each at-bat and what all it affects. This team has much more depth than previous years and that will help us as the season goes on,” said head coach Kevin Soellner about the upcoming season.

The Golden Eagles will be led into the season with a plethora of talent across all grades. They will be led by senior Rodney Shultz, who will be looking to add to an already impressive high school resume, both on the mound and at shortstop along with his partner-in-crime Brandon Lucas, who looks to cement his name among Golden Eagle tri-athletes.

Tyrone’s pitching staff may have weakened with the loss of 2020 graduate Kevin Lehner, but still will be anchored by Shultz and Junior Aiden Coleman. They will be backed by a stable of strong arms capable of coming in and shutting down opposing teams.

After Tyrone graduated starters and offensive production from the 2020 team that never got a chance to show what they could do, they have underclassmen that waited their turn to show what they can do. Sophomores Ross Gampe and Zach LeGars will get the chance to showcase their talents.

The Golden Eagle defense has an arsenal of production at all positions. Seniors Mike Buck and Bryce Hunter will take on the role of every day starters at the catcher and center field positions. The rest of the outfield is loaded with speed as LeGars and Coleman will cover what little ground Hunter cannot cover.

The infield will not see many new faces as Lucas will retain his spot at the hot corner. The middle infield will be held down by the duo of Shultz and David Lang with Blaine Hoover and others filling in when Shultz or Lang are on the mound. First base is going to be a rotation of senior Brendan Grazier and sophomore Ross Gampe, with the other holding the duties of designated hitter.

The last time the Golden Eagles hit the field, they started off the season red hot with a 10-0 start before dropping games to Bellefonte, Penns Valley and Mount Union in the regular season. They finished the regular season an impressive 17-3 and locked up the No. 1 seed in the state for Class AAA. They blew through their first playoff game against Penns Valley getting revenge for the loss earlier in the season. Unfortunately in the district semis, they lost a heartbreaker to the eventual state champions in Mount Union.

The late season loss to the Trojans will be used as fuel for this team to do everything they can to ensure they do not have another early exit in this season’s playoffs.

The Golden Eagles will look to open their season with a win as they will travel to Penns Valley and take on the Rams on Thursday. This game will give them the opportunity to avenge one of the three regular season losses they suffered the last time they played a high school game back in 2019.

ROSTER

Seniors: Michael Buck, Cameron Geisler, Brendan Grazier, Blaine Hoover, Bryce Hunter, Brandon Lucas, Rodney Shultz, Dylan Vipond. Juniors: Luke Brooks, Aiden Coleman, Keegan Gwinn, David Lang, Nick Lehner, Wilson O’Shell, Cortlynd Rhoades, Zachary Shetler, Jesse Yingling. Sophomores: Cyrus Ahlert, Deegan Baldauf, Caden Bonsell, Ross Gampe, Balin Hand, Zach LeGars, Austin McClellan, Joshua Patterson, Nathaniel Patterson, Ryan Seeger.

SCHEDULE

April

1 — at Penns Valley; 6 — vs. Philipsburg-Osceola; 8 — vs. Central at Altoona Curve Classic, 3 p.m.; 9 — vs. TBA, at Altoona Curve Classic; 12 — at Bald Eagle Area; 15 — vs. Huntingdon; 16 — at Juniata Valley; 20 — at Bellefonte; 23 — at Central; 24 — vs. Bellwood-Antis, noon; 26 — at Philipsburg-Osceola; 27 — at Clearfield; 29 — vs. Penns Valley; 30 — vs. West Branch.

May

4 — vs. Clearfield; 6 — at Somerset; 7 — at Huntingdon; 10 — vs. Bald Eagle Area; 13 — vs. Bellefonte.

All games begin at 4:30 p.m. unless noted.