NTL BASEBALL: HORTONS SWEEP NTL'S TOP HONORS; SIX REDSKINS EARN FIRST-TEAM ALL-STAR HONORS (2 PHOTOS) (2021-06-15)
Valley Sports ReportSAYRE "” To the victors go the spoils.
NTL Small School and District 4, Class AA champion Sayre brought home a majority of the NTL's top baseball awards, and had six first-team all-star selections in recent voting by the league's coaches.
Junior Brayden Horton was named the NTL "
Player of the Year," while his cousin, sophomore
Lucas Horton, was voted "
Pitcher of the Year."
Sayre coach
Jamie VanDuzer and his assistant coaches Mike Cron and Joe Wheeler were named the "
Coaching Staff of the Year."
Canton's
Hudson Ward and Wyalusing's
Trehnon Hugo shared "
Rookie of the Year" - given to the league's top freshman, while Wellsboro's
Cam Brought was named the league's "
Newcomer of the Year" - given to the league's top first-year varsity player.
Brayden Horton is a tremendous defensive catcher, with a smooth, but powerful left-handed stroke at the plate.
Brayden Horton led the Redskins with a .457 batting average, with a team-high 32 hits in 70 at-bats. He led not only the Redskins, but the region, with eight home runs and 46 RBI. He also had eight doubles, two triples, seven stolen bases, and 44 runs scored.
Brayden Horton walked 21 times and was hit by pitches five times, and had a .604 on-base percentage, to go along with a .971 slugging percentage, and a mind-boggling 1.576 OPS.
Defensively, he threw out eight would-be base stealers, and committed just three errors, compiling a .982 fielding percentage in 168 defensive chances.
On the mound, Brayden Horton, who had not pitched a varsity inning due to an elbow injury in 8th-grader, made one appearance - a start "” this season. He was 1-0 with a 1.75 ERA, striking out four in four innings.
Lucas Horton burst on to the varsity scene as the Redskins No. 1 starter from Day 1. He was 8-1 with a 1.51 ERA. He struck out 64 and walked 17 in 46 1/3 innings, while allowing just 32 hits. Opponents hit just .184 against him.
VanDuzer and his staff led the Redskins to a 21-2 record, which including an unbeaten mark in NTL play, and the program's second District 4 title in VanDuzer's three years at the helm. They were runner-up the other year.
FIRST TEAM
Brayden Horton, junior, C, Sayre: See above.
Lucas Horton, sophomore, P / 1B / OF: Not only was Lucas Horton "Pitcher of the Year," but he had a very productive season at the plate, hitting .389 (28 hits in 72 ABs) with a team-high 10 doubles, one triple, one home run, 33 RBI and 36 runs scored. He drew 20 walks and had a .516 on-base percentage, to go along with a .596 slugging percentage and a 1.113 OPS.
Jake Burgess, senior, 2B, Sayre: An on-base machine, Burgess led the region with 48 runs scored. He hit .413 (31 hits in 75 ABs) with four doubles, one triple, a team-high 11 stolen bases, and 15 RBI. He walked 19 times for an on-base percentage of .531, and had an OPS of 1.025.
Kannon VanDuzer, junior, 1B / P, Sayre: Perhaps the most-improved player in the area, VanDuzer homered in his first four games this season, and finished the season with four home runs and 40 RBI. He hit .386 (27 hits in 70 ABs) with four doubles and 14 runs scored. He walked 11 times for an on-base percentage of .476, to go along with a .614 slugging percentage, and a 1.090 OPS.
Zach Garrity, sophomore, SS, Sayre: A strong defensive shortstop, Garrity was second on the team with a .422 (27 hits in 64 ABs) batting average. He had five doubles, two home runs, 30 RBI, and 27 runs scored. He walked nine times and was hit by a whopping 13 pitches for a .570 on-base percentage, to go along with a .594 slugging percentage and a 1.164 OPS.
David Northrup, junior, OF / P, Sayre: A strong defensive center fielder, Northrup hit .368 (25 hits in 68 ABs) with five doubles, a team-high three triples and 11 stolen bases, one home run, 23 RBI and 29 runs scored. He walked 13 times for a .460 on-base percentage, to go along with a .574 slugging percentage, and a 1.033 OPS.
Other first-team selections were: Kaden Setzer and Karter Rude - Athens; Weston Bellows, and Cam Bellows "” Canton; Tucker St. Peter - Cowanesque Valley; Noah Spencer, North Penn-Mansfield; Chase Parker - Towanda; Cam Brought and Darryn Callahan - Wellsboro; Gabe Kaufmann - Williamson; Blake Morningstar - Wyalusing.
SECOND TEAMCameron Sullivan - Athens; Hudson Ward and Joel Schoonover - Canton; Maguire Painter and Mike Sipps - Cowanesque Valley; Nick Beers - NEB; Blaze Deitrick and Derek Litzelman - North Penn-Mansfield; Kory Schucker - Troy; Conner Adams, Isaac Keane and Kaeden Mann - Wellsboro; Hunter Miss, Spencer Krewson, and Trehnon Hugo - Wyalusing.
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IN PHOTO 1: Brayden Horton (left) and Lucas Horton. IN PHOTO 2: From left: David Northrup, Kannon VanDuzer, Zach Garrity, and Jake Burgess.
