Speed, power, pitching; Owls have solid lineup

TULSA—It’s hard not to get a bit excited when Elgin baseball coach Levi Garrett starts talking about the components that have molded together to form a very competitive Class 5A team that will go against the best in the state beginning tonight at Jenks High School.

The Owls sure didn’t get a great time slot, drawing the late game at 6:30 p.m. against Sapulpa, but that hasn’t bothered this core group of athletes in football, wrestling and now baseball.

And, Garrett knows something about good baseball because his 2018 team won the 4A State title, but this bunch seems even stronger.

“We have 7 or 8 guys who have pitched for me, we have stolen 130 bases and have great speed, our lineup is spread throughout with dangerous hitters; I think all those things together make us a unique bunch,” Garrett said. “And this bunch has more power hitters than our 2018 team.”

Garrett also says this team loves to practice.

“This bunch is so good to coach, you can’t give them too much work because they’ll just keep going,” he said. “While I wasn’t sure how good we might be, from Day 1 these guys were on a mission. They went out there and won games and learned a great deal and just kept getting better.”

The Owls come in at 29-8 and were 13-1 in District 5A-2. Sapulpa is 28-9 and was second in District 5A-3 behind Bishop Kelley.

“We went to the Tuttle Tournament during spring break and didn’t play well and lost to Dale (8-5) and I didn’t think we played very well,” he said. “We challenged the guys to come back the next day and we almost beat a really good Tuttle (3-2) team but we made one mistake and that cost us. But after that the players and coaches knew we could be special and from that point we just got better each week. Now we are up here and these guys think they can win this thing.”

The offense is what has really stepped up with the speed, good patience at the plate and power as well as line-drive hitters.

“The speed is really great and we have two guys — Damien Callagy and Mason Thornton — who both have stolen more than 30 each,” Garrett said. “(James) Vanderpool has six homers and 30 RBIs and Ritson (Meyer) is just an RBI machine and he can play so many positions for us. He’s played all three outfield positions, he’s played in the infield and he’s a pretty good catcher.”

While Meyer has proven himself as a freshman running back/linebacker and he’s won a state wrestling title, Vanderpool may be an even bigger surprise.

“Vanderpool was a sophomore last year and it never really clicked for him,” Garrett said. “But this year he’s hitting .375 with those six homers and he’s driven in 30. He just worked hard and made steady improvement. He’s very selective at the plate and stays within himself and doesn’t try to do too much.

“We just have good kids and many of them are young. Brody Morrision, Mason Thornton, Tres Lorah, I had seen all those guys in middle school so what they are doing at this level hasn’t surprised me.”

The pitching staff may not have a pitcher like Noble’s Colin Fisher or Carl Albert’s Cash Ferris but they’ve done the job all season.

“Ritson, Morrison, Lorah, (Jake) Thomas, Damien (Callagy), Nocona (Tahdooanippah), all of those guys can go out there and throw strikes for us,” he said. “Jake normally pitches on Monday and then catches on Tuesday, so that gives him a break from behind the plate. His brother Grady catches when Jake is pitching.”

There is a different strategy calling pitches this season.

“When we won it in 2018 we had a four-year starter at catcher and we let him call the pitches,” Garrett said. “We liked the pace and the flow with that and it worked. This season in the scrimmages and first games we changed out attack and will do a little more planning with our pitchers and that allows us to change strategy when we think we need it’s a good time for it.”

So, what about Sapulpa?

“It’s not like football where you can get video but I was able to see them play Shawnee on UTube plus I have some connections over that way and we managed to get some video,” he said. “They really are a lot like us. They are very prepared, they have an athletic bunch and their pitchers will just pound the strike zone, change speeds and try to keep you guessing. They don’t have an arm like Fisher or Ferris but they are very well coached. Their coach (Steve Irvine) played some minor league ball and does a good job with them.”

Is there a clear-cut favorite?

“Collinsville has the most wins with 32 but they have to go against Carl Albert in the first round (4 p.m.) and that should be a great matchup,” Garrett said. “We know Noble is very scrappy and with Fisher on the mound they are really tough but they have Bishop Kelly (1:30 p.m.) and they will both probably have to throw their best. I don’t know much about the east side schools but it should be an interesting tournament.”

Piedmont and Grove begin the day at 11 a.m.

Garrett and assistants Eric Garza and Joe Thomas will get their Owls up early today, go eat breakfast, rest some at their hotel and then go hit at Bixby’s indoor practice facility.

“One of my former assistants—Kevin Adler—is coaching there now and he’s helped hook us up so the guys can hit and get ready,” he said. “Then it’s just a matter of waiting around and being ready when it’s time.”