While there is still plenty of baseball left to be played, it was mission accomplished when it comes to one of the goals for the North Putnam baseball team recently, as it captured the Putnam County championship.
Head coach Chris Geeser admits his team is no different than any other when it comes to wanting to win the county title.
"I think any athletic team in the county would have that as one of the top team goals. A team being the Putnam County champions, in any sport, is a big deal. There is always a lot of focus on the county tournaments and it provides some nice bragging rights for teams," Geeser told The Putnam County Post.
The veteran skipper admits he was "excited and proud" watching his team hold off Greencastle 8-6 to win the title.
"I was excited for my guys in the program. We have been putting in a lot of hard work since off-season workouts, the first couple of weeks of practice, and the first couple of weeks of the season to continue to get better. So to see all of that hard work be rewarded by achieving one of our team goals, it's very exciting. The seniors getting their first baseball county bucket, seeing the excitement on all the players faces, and watching my assistant coaches celebrate just added to the excitement. I am certainly very proud of this program as well. It was a program win for us. We had seniors through freshmen play important roles in this tournament. Even our non-starters made impacts this tournament. Whether it was coming into the game to courtesy run, pitch run, keeping the energy up in the dugout, or picking up our stranded runners gear; everyone played a role for us," Geeser said.
He notes he was proud of how his team competed, especially after falling behind against South Putnam in the first game, before responding and earning a spot in the final.
"We also got down early in the championship game, 3-0 in the first inning. We battled all game long to keep it close and give us a shot in the 7th inning. We trailed 6-4 going into our last at bats. We go on to put up four runs to take our first lead of that game and then hang on for the win in the bottom of the seventh. I am so proud of these kids," he said.
The Cougars got solid production from quite a few players during the county tourney.
Freshman Alec McKenzie was 4-for-7 with three RBI's, four runs, a walk and two stolen bases, while sophomore Braxton Woodall was 3-for-5 with four RBI's, four runs, two walks and was hit by a pitch. Junior Brogan Woodall was 4-for-7 with two RBI's and a walk, while sophomore Kaden Helderman was 3-for-6 with five RBI's, two runs and was hit by a pitch. Senior Brayden Monnett was 4-for-8 with four RBI's and four runs. Senior Ian Patrick was 2-for-4 with an RBI, four runs, a walk and three times he was hit by a pitch. Freshman Jayce Monnett was 2-for-6 with four RBI's, three runs and two walks, while classmate Chase Barber was 2-for-7 with an RBI, two runs and a walk. Senior Jaylen Windmiller was hit twice, had two runs and an RBI.
On the mound, Kaden Helderman went five innings, getting the win after scattering four hits, allowing two runs and striking out seven.
Against Greencastle, Jaylen Windmiller went four innings, giving up six hits, five runs, no earned runs, two walks and struck out eight. Brayden Monnett threw three innings, getting the win after surrendering an earned run, a run, a walk and fanning one.
"Our pitching was excellent all day long," Geeser said.
Heading into this week, North Putnam is 7-3 and has not had any games lost due to weather.
"We have cleaned up some of our sloppy play early and continue to make strides as a team. I would say the only thing that has surprised me a little this season, is how well this young squad has played as a team. I knew that we had a lot of talent with this young squad, but I did not expect them to adjust to the varsity level of play as fast as they have. We have certainly had our moments of growing pains or mistakes, but we have learned from those moments and gotten better from them. All of the guys that I mentioned above have played well for us. If I had to pick a handful, I would say Brayden Monnett, Brogan Woodall, Jaylen Windmiller, Alec Mckenzie, Braxton Woodall, and Kaden Helderman have been our leading guys on the field. I will say that everyone in the program has been playing well this year," Geeser said.
With the backend of the schedule approaching, Geeser is optimistic the county championship win and experience provides valuable experience for his team down the stretch.
"I believe that it definitely adds confidence to our guys from here on out. We beat a really solid Greencastle team, so we should have that extra confidence against anyone we go up against. I also believe that since we were able to comeback in the first game and then again the second game, shows that we aren't going to just give up when we get down. As I said before, I was so proud with my squad with how we never gave up and battled back. We were down two runs in our last at bats and fought our way back, so we should carry that forward with us for the rest of the year. We can come from behind, even if it's our last at bats. We also have Greencastle in our sectional this year, so knowing that we can beat them if we play our game, should also help us come playoff time," Geeser said.
