No home runs? No problem. York baseball hopes to continue success down final stretch

The York Cougars are enjoying a very successful baseball season to date. They are 12-5 overall after splitting a two-game series with the Northwestern Trojans earlier in the week. Their 5-1 region mark puts them at the top of the Region 3-4A standings.

York swept a three-game set from the Indian Land Warriors to open the region campaign and followed by claiming two wins in the three game series with the Catawba Ridge Copperheads.

Head coach Tripper Crisson likes where his team is right now.

“This is not a surprise,” Crisson said. “York won the American Legion junior state championship two years ago, and many of the players from that team are on our varsity right now. They have played together for quite a while.”

Leadership is also a key for their success, Crisson said.

“Our seniors have given us great leadership,” he added. “They lead by example on and off the field, and the rest of the team follows.”

Meet the York baseball team

Crisson, who is in his third season as head coach at York, feels like he has a team and not just one or two players that carry the load.

The Cougars have four pitchers who Crisson can count on to perform well: Britton Adams, Landon Sexton and Damien Callagy are being used as starters thus far. Adams has an ERA of .21, while Sexton and Callagy check in at 2.05 and 2.54 respectively. Hunter Latham is the closer for the Cougars.

All four of them can play other positions when they are not on the mound. Sexton and Adams play third, Latham catches, and Callagy is the designated hitter. That versatility gives Crisson plenty of options when making out his lineup card each game, he said.

The Cougars have played well on defense all year, and that has been yet another key to the success. York is solid up the middle with Cooper Parks and Hudson Robinson at shortstop and second respectively.

Trace Thompson patrols centerfield with Anderson Fulk in right. Ashton Edington and Alex Morrison rotate in left. Jack Peeler and Andrew Kinsey work at first, while Ryley Stout sees some time at third.

The Cougars’ most recent game against Northwestern illustrates their consistency on offense: Two players — Parks and Sexton — hit doubles, and three different players notched runs batted in to contribute to the team’s six-run total.

“We do not have a home run this season,” added Crisson, “but we put the ball in play.”

‘Gaining confidence with each game’

York plays a crucial three-game series against the Lancaster Bruins beginning Monday, and the team then goes against the South Pointe Stallions the following week. The Cougars close out the regular season with a pair of contests against rival Clover.

“We can not take anything for granted,” he added. “This is a tough region, and we still have two tough region series left. In addition our non-region games are against a very good 5A team.”

The success thus far has given the Cougars lots of confidence, Crisson said.

“We are gaining confidence with each game, and we are having fun,” he added. “These kids love to compete. We just need to stay focused and continue to improve every day.”

This story was originally published April 19, 2021 at 8:00 AM.