In recent weeks, South Arkansas College’s outfield has undergone a transformation.
With Kyle Tolley sidelined with an injury and others not performing well, the Stars have turned to redshirt freshman Alton Gatson and freshman Tanner Powell to provide a spark.
So far, both have delivered.
Gatson, who is hitting .267 with one home run and five RBIs in 30 at-bats, takes a four-game hitting streak into this weekend’s Region 2 series against National Park.
Gatson hit his first home run of the season against SAU Tech, and he has also stolen five bases in six tries.
“He’s found his way in there a little bit, and when he gets in there, he’s tough,” SouthArk coach Cannon Lester said. “We moved him back to the infield and he was stuck at third base behind Gabe (Kuttenkuler). Gabe probably has been our best offensive player so far, so there wasn’t going to be a whole of at-bats there.
“We’ve struggled a little bit in the corner outfield spots. We moved Tanner to center with Tolley out, and its like, ‘Well, there’s some guys not getting it done out there right now, who could we plug in there?’ We put Al out there a couple of times in practice, and he’s a good athlete, and he went and got it. Honestly, it was something he didn’t do in the fall. We had him out there in the fall, and he didn’t really track it down much in the outfield, but he has so far.
“He’s played well out there. He’s had some tough at-bats in the nine-hole. He’ll get hit, he can run a little bit, he ran a ball out of the yard the other day and gave us a chance there. I think Al can hit good pitching. He’s got a shot to hit a good fastball and an OK breaking ball. I can see him definitely getting some starts this weekend. He hasn’t done anything for us to take him out of the lineup, that’s for sure.”
Through March 15, Powell had gotten only 31 at-bats in 17 games, but he had made an impact, picking up a hit in nine games along with six stolen bases.
Since March 19 when he went 3-for-3 and scored four runs and stole six bases in the second game of a doubleheader sweep of Champion Baptist, Powell has played in each of the last 11 games.
He presently is playing in center field with Tolley injured, but he has made the most of the opportunity.
Powell has at least one hit in seven of the 11 games, which included a four-game hitting streak that ended in the finale of the SAU Tech series.
The freshman went 3-for-4 with three doubles with the last driving in two runs that made the final margin in a 6-3 win in Game 2.
Powell is hitting .338 with one home run and 13 RBIs while ranking second behind Tolley in stolen bases with 15 in 16 attempts.
“Tanner on the offensive side is a game-changer when it comes to scoring runs,” Lester said. “He’s a tall kid, 6-6, left-handed, but he can really run. I think he really surprises people with how well he runs. He puts a lot of pressure on the defense. He needs to put the ball in play a little bit more, but that could probably be said about our entire team right now. He’s done really well. He’s gotten a lot of at-bats here lately, and he’s starting to make the most of it.
“He’s kind of got that freshman vibe right now where if his first at-bat is pretty good, he’s about to have a day, but if his first at-bat is bad, it might be, ‘Hey man, we’re going to have to battle through this one.’ Hopefully, he can get over that, but I think that’s a lot of people in regards to baseball. He’s played a really good outfield. He’s starting to really learn his swing and run into some balls.
“I think there’s some power potential in there too. It hasn’t really showed up yet, but I’m honestly glad he’s getting some AB’s because he’s probably deserved more than what he’s got. I don’t like how he’s getting them by injury necessity, but he’s done really good so far.”
On the recruiting front, a pair of SouthArk players recently finalized their plans to move on to four-year schools.
Sophomore catcher Jacob Ambriz, an All-Region performer last year, has committed to Arkansas-Little Rock.
Ambriz, who is hitting .277 with three home runs and 21 RBIs, is the second SouthArk player to head to UALR after Hunter Royal signed with the Trojans last year.
“We are excited for Jake and his recent commitment,” Lester said. “Coach (Chris) Curry at UALR has a good thing going and I can’t wait to watch Jake thrive as a Trojan.”
The University of Central Oklahoma will hold a special place in the hearts of Stars fans as that was the site where SouthArk won the Plains District Tournament and clinched a spot in the NJCAA Division II World Series last year.
A member from that squad will be continuing his career there with sophomore pitcher John Demcher committing to play for the Bronchos, who are 30-9 and ranked No. 18 in this week’s NCBWA Division II poll.
“We are ecstatic for Johnny as he continues his baseball career at a top 25 D-II school,” Lester said. “He has huge upside and he has been the epitome of a professional worker since the day he arrived at SouthArk.”
Demcher has a 1-2 record over seven appearances spanning 10 2/3 innings this season.