For many, it would almost be an expectation for a roster that went to semi-state and graduated five starters the year before to struggle in their follow-up campaign. For Twin Lakes varsity baseball, there were struggles to be had early on but in recent weeks have shown that they weren’t just up for the challenge but are also being molded by those challenges.
“We lost five starters and so, we do have a young team. We have five freshmen and a junior who were playing so it was about finding replacements,” Twin Lakes head coach Jake Burton said. “These kids have had to step into big roles and we bolstered our schedule in the process. … We had some injuries early on and we struggled at the beginning. It’s been a tough challenge to replace some of those guys.”
In total, Twin Lakes lost their catcher, second and third baseman along with their left fielder and right fielder to graduation and so, they began the season by dropping their first four games.
But their roster wasn’t only depleted by varsity experience but by injury as well when they faced the likes of Lafayette Central Catholic, Harrison, and Crown Point, all of which are currently sitting in the top 10 of their respective classes.
Now Burton has seen that with time, his squad has taken those lessons of loss in stride.
“I think it’s as much mental as it is physical because some of these kids haven’t faced that kind of competition before but many of our kids have come along pretty well and we’re getting some guys back from injury this week. They’re busting it in practice, making themselves better, and for that reason, we’re having some success now,” he said.
Since that point, Twin Lakes has gone 9-3 and can gain more championship experience when they play No. 3 in Class A Rossville, on May 10, and travel to No. 14 in Class A Tri-County on May 12.
Armed with just one senior along with two juniors, ten sophomores, and six freshmen, they have been led by committee as Cooper Dold, Aidan Holle, and Mason Brummett, all sophmores, have led the team in the batter’s box.
Dold currently has a .500 batting average followed by a team-best 20 runs batted in from Holle.
On the mound, they’ve had several arms pitch but throughout, Brummett and fellow sophomore Austin Robertson have been their most reliable when combining for 60 strikeouts in over 50 innings pitched.
But as Twin Lakes continues to build itself into another championship contender, it’s the foundation of hard work that continues to pay off for their program.
“It’s the fact that these kids understand what it takes to get to that point because they had some success last year. The most important aspect of our program is we rely on our kids working hard, playing every practice like it’s a game, and busting it as much as they can. It’s the little things like that. Last Saturday after we got beat, they went into the weight room and lifted afterward. It’s little things like that are things that they’ve bought into and now the younger kids are seeing it as well,” Burton said.