Fresh off rare state appearance, Trinity baseball hungry for more
Bret Lentz said though his team played in the second quarterfinal game of last year’s state tournament, he believed it was for the championship.
His Trinity Academy baseball team, juiced off its first regional title since 2014, lost 4-2 to Iola who went on to win the Class 4A-Division II crown. It marked the second straight year the Knights had met Iola in the postseason, and there is little reason to believe 2019 won’t mark three.
Trinity is the No. 1 seed in Class 4A West. The Knights showed why Thursday, sweeping then-undefeated Cheney 1-0 and 11-1. Trinity is 15-1 with four games to play; its only loss came to Clearwater on the road.
Senior Nate Adler said he believes the depth of arms and bats is stronger this year compared to last, and after getting the jitters out at state last year, 2019 could be different.
Iola is on top of 4A East at 12-0, allowing just 1.33 runs per game - the second lowest mark in Kansas’ top three classifications behind Bishop Carroll at 1.29.
Two seasons ago, Trinity played Iola in the first round of the regional tournament. The Knights won 8-2 but sparked a motivation that spurred Iola to its first baseball title in school history.
Now, the script is flipped.
“From the beginning of the year, one of the things we told the guys is, ‘We’re not satisfied,’ ” Lentz said. “If anything, that just set the bar for where we want to go. I expect us now to get there.”
Although the Knights are off to another hot start in 2019, Lentz said they are still a work in progress. Last year’s group had a fortified group of leaders who were put through seemingly unrelenting pressure to match their talent. They finally hit the breakthrough by getting to state.
This year’s group lacks that commanding presence in the clubhouse, Lentz said.
“Trying to encourage guys to speak up can be a little difficult at times because they would rather just go out and play,” Lentz said. “This group is not necessarily a ‘Rah-rah’ team, but when we play with energy, we are a different team.”
Trinity lost a couple of remarkable seniors from 2018. Outfielder Reece Bayliff was the vocal leader, and pitcher and second baseman Andrew Dettwiler was named to the Central Plains League first team.
In last year’s regional semifinal, Trinity trailed Clearwater after the top of the first inning after Bayliff and Mason Matney collided in the outfield. It looked as if Bayliff wouldn’t return.
Instead, in the bottom of the first, he hit a two-out opposite field double that let to an equalizing run and an eventual 6-3 win.
Thursday against Cheney, senior Nate Adler showed that same grit.
In a pitcher’s dual between Cheney’s Dawson Winter and Adler, no runs were scored through five innings. After going up 1-0 in the bottom of the sixth on a passed ball, Adler neared 100 pitches.
Lentz wanted to pull him out, but Adler wanted the ball. He came back out and shut the door, finishing at 101 pitches.
“The one thing about this year’s group is they don’t quit,” Lentz said. “We were trailing in both games late against Kingman and came back to win both. To me, that says a lot about this group.”
This story was originally published April 30, 2019 at 1:33 PM with the headline "Fresh off rare state appearance, Trinity baseball hungry for more."