High school baseball preview: Top teams, players in South Sound in 2022
The high school baseball season is underway, and as usual, there’s plenty of talent in the South Sound this spring. Here’s what to watch for this season, some teams to keep an eye on before the postseason approaches and some of the area’s top players.
4A/3A NPSL
Tahoma is the team to beat, returning a strong core of players from last year’s team, which posted a 16-1 record in the shortened season. Junior pitcher/first baseman Logan Pierce — a first-team selection to The News Tribune’s 2021 All-Area team and the reigning league MVP — dominated at the plate and on the mound for the Bears last spring, hitting .511 with a .911 slugging percentage, nine doubles, three home runs and 19 RBI. On the mound, he compiled a 5-0 record over 33 innings, posting a 1.49 ERA with 27 strikeouts and just four walks. Bears junior catcher Carson Ohland, a UW commit, is a force behind the plate. Last spring, he allowed just eight stolen bases, throwing out four runners attempting to steal. He also hit .396 and drove in 17 runs. Keep an eye on Federal Way, also. The Eagles return a trio of all-league selections in catcher Joseph Krahner, outfielder Isaiah Afework (also a high-level basketball player) and right-handed pitcher Austin Crawford, who led the league in strikeouts last spring. Freshman pitcher Orlando Young, who throws a high-80s fastball and a plus curveball, is already opening eyes. In 3A, could this be Auburn’s year to take the top spot? The Trojans return a handful of all-league players from last spring, including infielders Ethan Emertheram (.346 batting average, 11 RBI in 15 games) and Connor Sloan (.426, four home runs, 30 RBI) as well as first-team outfielders Amari Goodfellow (.431, 23 runs scored) and Jailon Goodfellow (.419, 1.295 OPS). Auburn has raced out to a 5-1 start this season, with its lone loss coming to 4A state title contender Puyallup. Auburn picked up a 3-2 crossover win over 4A NPSL opponent Federal Way on March 15.
4A SPSL
There’s maybe no team in the state as loaded as Puyallup, led by center fielder and WSU commit Donte Grant, a junior who hit .432 with six doubles, a triple, a home run, 11 RBI and 30 runs scored, stealing 17 bases for the Vikings last spring. Puyallup will be without 2021 TNT All-Area first-teamer Wyatt Jones (elbow) this season, but lefties Brett Ellingson (Seattle U commit) and Adam Brooks (Northwest Nazarene) both return. Sophomore catcher Kai Halstead, a Stanford commit, is part of one of the state’s most complete lineups, top to bottom. Freshmen infielders Mason Pike and Gage Thompson, both Oregon State commits, have Puyallup reloading quickly after losing a talented senior class last spring. Keep an eye on Olympia, too. The Bears have the best rotation in the league with a trio of Division I pitching commits in Taber Fast (Texas Tech), Rylan Haider (WSU) and Sax Matson (WSU). Haider was a first-team TNT All-Area selection last spring, topping out at 90 mph with his fastball, posting a 0.93 ERA and 0.87 WHIP with 34 strikeouts. Fast, somehow, has never played high school baseball for the Bears. The run of bad luck is hard to believe — he missed his freshman year because of transfer rules, his sophomore season was canceled because of the pandemic and he broke his wrist the week before his junior season. Perennial contenders Sumner and South Kitsap figure to be in the running in the 4A SPSL, as well, and Rogers has a strong team this season. Where Olympia has top-end pitching, Sumner has the bats, paced by third baseman Aden Dance, who hit .400 last season with two home runs and 15 RBI, striking out just three times in 2021. Designated hitter Mason Kelley hit .467 last season and center fielder and leadoff hitter Jay Mentink — a Princeton commit for both baseball and football — can hit for contact and power. Yakima Valley commit Elijah Higginbottom is the team’s ace. He posted a 0.52 ERA in 27 innings pitched last season, striking out 28. This is one of the deepest and most talented leagues in the state, so we wouldn’t be surprising to see any of these teams make a deep run through the playoffs.
3A PCL
Stadium won the league last year, behind a strong season from league MVP Noah Steele, who played third base and pitched for the Tigers. He has since graduated, though the Tigers return TNT All-Area selection Marcel Mercado, who posted a 1.40 ERA last spring, compiling a 2-1 record with 41 strikeouts. The favorite early on looks like Bonney Lake, which has already beaten Stadium twice this season. The Panthers are led by senior pitcher and first baseman Nic Lewandowski, a first-team all-league selection last spring. Bonney Lake also returns infielder Cameron Duggan, another all-league first-teamer.
3A SSC
Take your pick in this league, which looks a lot more normal this year. Last spring, Gig Harbor and Peninsula played as temporary members in the 4A SPSL, opting to stay in Pierce County during the pandemic-shortened season. Central Kitsap played with Kitsap County schools, leaving the Thurston County schools as the only schools remaining in the 3A SSC. This spring, the gang is back together. Peninsula and Timberline are currently sitting in first place with 3-1 records. After that? Capital, Gig Harbor, North Thurston, Central Kitsap and River Ridge are all 2-2. Yelm (0-4) looks like the only team, at least early on, that isn’t vying for a league title. Peninsula is led by Gonzaga commit and junior shortstop Payton Knowles, a Gig Harbor transfer. Knowles has made a quick impact with the Seahawks, batting around .500 early in the season. Hunter Bennett leads the Seahawks’ pitching staff, posting a 2.07 ERA in the spring. Timberline returns reigning league co-MVP and third baseman Chris Rivera and first-team junior catcher Kaleb McNeely. Capital returns first-team all-league pitcher Kayden Dawson, while River Ridge returns first-team all-league senior outfielder Chanz Doughty Sr., who hit .463 last season with a pair of triples and four home runs. Gig Harbor, which won a state title in 2017, is fielding the youngest team longtime coach Pete Jansen has had in years. Jack McLellan has been hitting well early for the Tides.
2A SPSL
Like the 3A SSC, the 2A SPSL is another one that feels wide open. The best bet early on may be an experienced Enumclaw squad, led by pitchers Dylan Watts (who also plays catcher and third base) and Ethan Thomas (who also plays first base). Steilacoom, which split with Enumclaw in late March, is also in the picture. While Steilacoom — which has students from Steilacoom, DuPont, Anderson Island and parts of Lakewood — is prone to the ebbs of flows of military families moving in and out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the Sentinels have managed to keep this core group together. Eight of the team’s nine starters from last season return, led by brothers Micah and Caleb Bujacich. Micah was a first-team all-league selection at shortstop as a freshman. White River, Fife and Orting are all in the picture, as well.
2A EVCO
We like Tumwater’s chances this year, led by one of the state’s top rotations in WSU commit Ryan Orr, Seattle U commit Blake Smith and TCC commit Jordan Hanson. It’s a hard-throwing trio, with all three hitting 90 mph. Orr and Hanson are topping out at 92 mph for the T-Birds. To nobody’s surprise, W.F. West will be a title contender as well, as the Bearcats are reloading despite losing a lot of talent to graduation. This year’s group is highlighted by junior pitcher Hunter Lutman, pitcher/first baseman Gavin Fugate and senior pitcher and outfielder Logan Moore.
35 PLAYERS TO WATCH
R’Mani Adams, Decatur, sr. (P)
Isaiah Afework, Federal Way, jr. (OF)
Gavin Brubaker, Curtis, jr. (SS/P)
Micah Bujacich, Steilacoom, soph. (SS/P)
Jeremiah Crain, Puyallup (3B/P)
Jon Crawley, Rogers, jr. (P/IF)
Noah Deese, South Kitsap, sr. (P/1B)
Kaden Ecklund, South Kitsap, jr. (C/1B)
Taber Fast, Olympia, sr. (P/OF)
Noah Fields, Puyallup, sr. (UTL)
Amari Goodfellow, Auburn, jr. (OF)
Donte Grant, Puyallup, jr. (OF)
Rylan Haider, Olympia, sr. (P/OF)
Kai Halstead, Puyallup, soph. (C)
Jordan Hanson, Tumwater, sr. (P)
Elijah Higginbottom, Sumner, sr. (P)
Mason Kelly, Sumner, sr. (DH)
Payton Knowles, Peninsula, jr. (SS)
Michael LeJeune, Bellarmine Prep, soph. (P)
Noah Lee, Tahoma, jr. (OF)
Nic Lewandowski, Bonney Lake, sr. (P)
Tyler Logan, Curtis, jr. (P/1B)
Sax Matson, Olympia, jr. (P/OF)
Jay Mentink, Sumner, jr. (OF)
Marcel Mercado, Stadium, jr. (P)
Remington O’Keefe, Emerald Ridge, sr. (C/1B/P)
Carson Ohland, Tahoma, jr. (C)
Ryan Orr, Tumwater, sr. (P)
Logan Pierce, Tahoma, jr. (P/1B)
Mason Pike, Puyallup, fr. (P/SS)
Garrett Ringer, Puyallup, sr. (OF)
Chris Rivera, Timberline, sr. (3B)
Blake Smith, Tumwater, sr. (P)
Jaren Taijeron, Bethel, sr. (SS)
Dylan Watts, Enumclaw, sr. (C)
