Shawnee Heights baseball makes state after late-season push

TECUMSEH (KSNT) - Shawnee Heights baseball will compete in the 5A state tournament after going on a late-season rally.

The Thunderbirds finished the regular season 11-11, but won their final two games before making it to regionals. They then took down one-seeded DeSoto 3-0 in the 5A regional final to advance to the state tournament.

"Our season was up and down all season, hovering around .500," head coach Ryan Schmidt said. "And towards the end, as we were coming into regionals, we were talking about putting together five wins in a row. We got the first two out of the way, and made it out of a really tough regional."

Heading into the state tournament on a four-game win streak is a huge confidence booster for this Thunderbird team, Coach Schmidt says. He says his team has been playing much looser over the past few weeks.

"We beat a really good DeSoto team, so we think we can hang with anybody," senior Jordan Armsbruster said. "All throughout the year, we've been playing with all of our opponents, so we have a lot of confidence going in."

Thunderbird baseball has not won a state title since 2011, and did not make the state tournament in 2023. When asked about the goal for the upcoming weekend, senior Deacon Pomeroy was very clear.

"Win the state tournament," Pomeroy said. "One team a year in every class wins a state tournament, and some coaches here haven't won state tournaments, and it's just something people remember for the rest of their lives."

Five-seeded Shawnee Heights plays four-seeded Spring Hill on Friday, May 23 at 1:15 p.m. at Wichita State's Eck Stadium.