Sandpoint baseball aims for back-to-back state berths

For the first time in over a decade, the wait for Sandpoint baseball to get back to state has been a little bit shorter.

Led by nine seniors and the 4A IEL Newcomer of the Year, the Bulldogs snapped its decade-long state tournament drought by posting a 12-8 record in Chase Tigert’s third season at the helm. But if Sandpoint wants to make it back to state, then it’ll have to do so without the said nine-man senior class, which boasted four all-league selections and five players whom are playing collegiately.

One would think that the pressure would be on Sandpoint to make another state run. But third-year head coach Chase Tigert doesn’t see it that way.

“I tell my guys, ‘There’s no pressure when you’re prepared,’” Sandpoint head coach Chase Tigert said. “That’s what we do: We prepare every single day. We’re rolling into Lewiston tomorrow and I feel great. I know the kids feel great because they know they’ve prepared. As far as any pressure to go to state again this year, there’s no pressure. We’re gonna do it. We’re gonna win the IEL again.”

Several years ago, this confidence would seem out of place, yet the Bulldogs have plenty of reasons to have their heads high coming into the 2019 season — especially in a league with so much parity year in and year out.

For starters, there’s starting pitcher and five-tool player Tyler Lehman, the reigning IEL Newcomer of the Year who Tigert calls “a special player.” Pick a category, and Lehman excelled. He hit .361, drove in seven runs and went 17-20 in stolen base attempts as a batter last season. On the mound, the sophomore rode a nasty slider and sound pitch placement to a 3.80 ERA and six starts — none bigger than his three-strikeout, five-inning performance in Sandpoint’s state-clinching 5-2 win.

Yet most importantly, Tigert believes that Lehman’s mentality and work ethic will drive him to greater heights this season; any pressure to repeat last season’s feats won’t be an issue for the junior lefty. And in Tigert’s eyes, scouting Lehman after three seasons won’t be an issue either when all is said and done. He believes Lehman will constantly adapt and improve.

“I don’t foresee any challenges [for Lehman],” Tigert said. “Really and truly, the sky is the limit for him. He’s just that kind of player.”

Aside from Lehman, the Bulldogs return all-league outfielder Alex Stockton, pitcher Tristan Authier and Billy Brackett, the latter of whom has been sidelined after having shoulder surgery in the offseason. Nevertheless, the starters from last season have enough talent to make Sandpoint competitive until the entire team is at full-strength again.

“Pitching-wise, we’re already so much better than we were last season,” Senior pitcher Tristan Authier said. “In that aspect alone, we’re going to win more games. We’re all more solid and we’re going to hit like crazy.”

Stockton will be the head of the snake on offense. The senior leads all returners in batting average (.371) and home runs (2), while also bringing speed and good instincts on defense.

“He’s going to be a guy we can always go to because he just gets the job done,” Tigert said. “I’m really excited that we have him back for one more year because he’s going to be a huge contributor for sure.”

Stockton, a three-sport athlete in football, basketball and baseball, might not have as much of an offseason as athletes whom specialize in baseball, yet he had already retooled his swing and his pitching form in what little time he has.

“I’ve definitely changed a lot of stuff about my swing,” Stockton said. “I use a lot of my lower half now, which is new for me. Pitching-wise, I have a slider now.”

As far as newcomers go, the Bulldogs have plenty of youth. Five sophomores and a freshman — Auggie Lehman, Tyler’s younger brother — highlight an intriguing group of fresh faces who, despite not playing with each other for too long, have already adapted well as a unit so far.

“They’re all here for a reason,” Tigert said. “This team has more buy-in than any team I’ve ever coached. They’re a unit. They understand the importance of every single role, and how every role is equal no matter how big or small it is.”

Some of those players, like Anthony Arroyo, could have larger roles than others by the time the season ends. His teammates have already singled him out as a player who can step in and contribute right away.

“He’s going to have a really good season,” Stockton said. “I thought he should have been on varsity last year. In JV he hit .600, so I was excited to see him on the team this year.”

Sandpoint’s young team will have to hit the ground running this time around. Thanks to weather-related cancellations so far, the Bulldogs won’t have a lot of innings to work with before taking on high-level competition. On the plus side, this means the team has had more practice time albeit on the blacktop behind Sandpoint Middle School. The flip-side, however, is getting the team in the right mindset. After two weeks of “iffy” practices, the team had to re-center itself.

“We had a two weeks of iffy practices and then we had a talk last Friday about why we’re here and how to focus while being laid-back at the same time,” Stockton said. “I feel like this week we clicked. Our practices have been amazing. I feel like what we did [last season] doesn’t apply anymore. We’re ready to easily take districts and go win one or a few games at state.”

Next week, Sandpoint has a rematch with Vallivue — the team that eliminated the Bulldogs from state — before competing in the Bucks Bags Tournament against fellow 4A schools Jerome, Minico and Mountain Home await, which will give the Bulldogs a good preview for the level of competition that they’ll find in the state tournament.

In the interim, Sandpoint kicks off its season in Lewiston today against Genesee and the host team Tigers. First pitch is at noon.