T-burg baseball wins long-awaited Section IV crown

Trumansburg baseball won the Section IV Championship game on Saturday for the first time since 1999 in an instant classic against Lansing. Down to their final out, the Blue Raiders strung together three consecutive hits to score two runs and win the game by a score of 4-3.

Senior Tanner Potter was the hero, driving the first pitch he saw back up the middle with runners on first and second. Lucas Taves scored easily from second base, and an overthrow at third base brought home Jamie Schappi to give Trumansburg the victory in dramatic fashion. Potter talked about the final at-bat in his high school career.

“I had to take a moment before I went up to home plate,” he said. “I had to tell myself that I wanted to be up in that situation. I came through. I saw the first pitch and I drove it right back up where it came from. It’s crazy. I was celebrating. After I hit first, I think I knew what was going down. I just had to take it all in.”

Head coach Scott Voorhees was the third base coach at the time, emphatically sending Schappi home from third after the ball went out of play on the throwing error. He discussed the magical final inning.

“That’s a testament to them not giving up,” he said. “Perseverance was the word of the day. We were just hanging in there. We were facing a really good team and a really good pitcher and [had] to just stick to it and not give up because it’s easy to be down with two outs and then let up a little bit. They just never gave up. That’s really what this team is. The hallmark for this team is just never giving up and keep grinding. And that’s what they did.”

Trumansburg had found its rhythm in the postseason. The Blue Raiders started the season 5-0 despite teamwide struggles at the plate. They ended the regular season losing two of their last three games, including a loss to their championship opponent Lansing. The bats then woke up in the postseason, scoring over nine runs in the IAC Semifinals and the first two rounds of the Section IV Tournament.

“We felt like we were hitting our stride right now, playing the best games we had played all year long,” Voorhees said. “It was going to be what it was going to be. And it wasn’t going be because of anything that [the coaches] did. It was going to be everything on the field. We had our top pitcher on the mound, who battled, and I think was maybe a little tired from earlier in the week. But still, again, perseverance.”

It was Ethan Fulton who pitched the complete game, capping off a season in which he had an ERA below 1.00. Fulton and Potter went back and forth with complete game efforts throughout the season, and Potter discussed his fellow pitcher’s performance.

“It’s crazy,” Potter said. “He’s been doing it all season. We had three pitchers go all season, which is wild. We just got it done each and every day, just kept it going. Hopefully, they can do it next season.”

Trumansburg certainly has the potential to do it again next season despite losing Potter and four other seniors from this championship team. The team’s top hitter, Lucas Taves, and top pitcher, Ethan Fulton, will both be back for their senior campaigns next year.

Voorhees discussed the direction of the program after winning a championship just one season removed from missing the Section IV tournament.

“I think we’re pleased with what we have coming back, obviously, and we’ll have some good players up from JV,” Voorhees said. “Depending on how things are aligned next year, if it’s the same way, it’s always going to be a challenge. [Thomas A.] Edison, Tioga and Lansing are always going to be tough games. I think we’d like to soak this in a little bit right here, but we certainly will be eager to have the players back that we have next year. It’s a good foundation.”

The championship victory came during a shortened season due to the pandemic, which made this year, obviously, more challenging for student-athletes. Potter reflected on winning the Section IV title after last year’s season was canceled.

“There was a lot you had to do, especially this year,” he said. “Make sure your grades are all good to keep pushing. Last year, I thought we were going to have a great team also. But it got cut short. We only had a week of practice. We came back this year ready to win a sectional chip and we got it done.”

Due to the shortened season, there is no state tournament this year, ending the Blue Raiders’ season with a Section IV Championship victory. After 21 years and a canceled season, Trumansburg baseball is back on top.