picture courtesy of Brad Anderson
The Abilene Cowboy baseball program punched their ticket to the 4A State baseball tournament on Tuesday. Abilene was the #1 seed in the 4A West standings and hosted a regional for the first time in school history. (1) Abilene defeated (16) Winfield 12-2 in the semifinals and then defeated (8) Mulvane 12-5 in the championship.
In the victory over Winfield, Senior, Kyson Becker went the distance. He struck out 8 and allowed 1 earned run. He improved to 6-0 with the victory. Becker got the run support he needed from Senior, Zach Miller and Sophomore Heath Hoekman. Miller went 2-2 and scored 4 runs. Hoekman, went 2-3 with 3 runs and 3 RBIs against the Vikings. Senior, Stocton Timbrook also was impressive. He finished 2-3 with 4 RBIs.
In the night cap against Mulvane, Timbrook pitched 5 innings, struck out 8 and allowed 1 earned run. He improved to 6-0 with the victory. Freshman, Jake Bartley pitched the final 2 innings to earn the save.
Miller and Hoekman again helped carry the offensive load. Miller went 2-3 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBIs. Hoekman finished 3-3 with 2 RBI. Miller entered postseason batting .468 and lead the team in 6 offensive categories. Hoekman entered the night batting .381. As a team the Cowboys had no one batting lower than .304 as they entered the postseason.
Abilene earned their third straight State birth, with their victories on Tuesday. The Cowboys before 2022 had never made it to State in baseball for a program that started in 2000. The program has continued to improve under 12th year Head Coach, Travis Bartley. Bartley, a 2001 graduated of A.H.S. went on to pitch at Emporia State University and competed in the 2006 Division II World Series.
The expectations were high for Abilene as they entered this season. The Cowboys brought back every starter from last season’s 15-8 State team. Abilene lost 3-2 in the first round to Ft. Scott last year. This year the Cowboys are currently 22-2. It is their most victories in school history. Abilene also won the NCKL for just the second time in school history and first time since 2017. Their only losses are to Rock Creek and Beloit. Abilene handed Rock Creek their only loss of the season on April 2, 12-4 in the first game of the double-header. The Mustangs came back to win the second game 5-2. The Cowboys only other loss came on April 26, 9-8 to Beloit. Abilene came back to win the second game 19-4 against the Trojans.
The Cowboys will likely be the #2 seed at the 4A State Tournament on Thursday. Abilene has the second most wins out of the field of teams. You can listen to live coverage of Cowboy State baseball on AM 1560 KABI and 95.9 FM.
