Benny Westcott
Russell Holly took home a plethora of awards at Sweet Home baseball’s end of season banquet at the high school library on May 23.
The program’s senior stud won the Team MVP Award, Pitcher of the Year, and the Slugger Award, which goes to the best offensive player.
“He made an impact this season with his arm, his bat, and the way he carried himself on the field,” Head Coach John Best said of Holly. “He was a true leader of our team. He was great at third base, and was the heart of our order and the heart of our clubhouse. He did an absolutely fantastic job for us.”
Holly was also recognized by opposing coaches in the Oregon West Conference, being named a First Team All-League Infielder and a Second Team All-League Pitcher.
Holly hit .391 on the year, connecting for a team-leading 25 hits, including nine doubles. He also led the team with 13 RBIs and 19 runs scored. On the mound, Holly went 2-4, posting a team-best ERA of 4.33 in 42 innings pitched. He easily led the team in strikeouts, with 54. The next best Husky in that category, Lewis Conn, had 12.
The team’s Gold Glove Award for best defensive player went to center fielder Dylan Luttmer.
“We all know he’s not necessarily the fastest of people, but playing outfield isn’t about speed,” Best said. “It’s about reaction and reads. And there’s a small number of people that I’ve coached that can read a ball quite like Dylan, and he’s gotten better all throughout the season. He started to really show me that he had the ability to really charge in hard on a baseball.”
Conn was named the team’s Rookie of the Year. “He really found a home behind the plate and worked real hard back there,” Assistant Coach Zach Luttmer said. “He was able to do a really good job. And in the second half of the season, he was able to really come alive. He had one game where all of a sudden things just clicked for him, and he started roping baseballs in gaps and being able to really stand out at the plate.”
Conn hit .239 on the year, with 11 hits, three RBIs, and 14 runs scored. On the mound he went 1-0, with an 8.1 ERA in 23 and a third innings.
Alex Kisselburgh was named Most Improved. He was also an Honorable Mention All-League Infielder.
“This kid has a lot of talent,” Best said. “And he came in with super awesome attitude, work ethic, and desire to get better at baseball. Halfway through the season, he started crushing the baseball a little bit, and being comfortable in the batter’s box. And we had some huge offensive games from him. He was just mashing baseballs.”
“This is a kid of character,” Best continued. “He knows how to get what he wants, and it’s not by grumbling and mumbling. It’s about getting his hands dirty and getting after it.”
Kisselburgh hit .246, with 14 hits, 11 RBIs, and nine runs scored.
Hunter Ashby was named Second Team All-League Outfielder.
“He really emerged as our true lead-off hitter this year, and that was awesome,” Luttmer said. “And he would be able to come in and play the outfield really well, and pitch when we needed him to.”
Ashby hit .238 with 10 hits, seven RBIs, and seven runs scored. He also smashed the team’s only home run of the season.
Caleb Christman won the Hustle Award.
Luttmer said Christman sprints to back up first base every time the ball is put in play. “As a catcher, not a lot of people do it,” Luttmer said. “Actually, pretty much no one does it.”
The coach talked of one instance in the team’s extra inning upset of Newport on May 4, when Christman, playing catcher, scooped up a ball that got past Sweet Home’s first baseman and threw a Cub player out at first.
“That was a huge turning point in that game,” Luttmer said.
Despite pulling off that home upset, the Huskies finished last in their league, going 5-17 overall and 3-12 in OWC play. But Best pointed out positives from the year.
“Our season wasn’t exactly where we wanted with wins and losses, but it was still a heck of a year as far as baseball goes,” he said. “This was a great group of young men. They worked hard all year. It was a tough year. It’s always tough when we fall short of our personal and team goals, but these guys did a great job.”
“They worked hard every single day,” the coach continued. “There were some practices where we refocused, but with just a few words of encouragement or a little kick in the rear end, these guys were motivated. They wanted to work for each other. Sometimes we didn’t know how to do that, but I think at the end of the season we started to really figure it out.”
“This was a fun group,” he said. “And then when we came in and really needed to focus and practice, these guys got after it. We had a lot of games that were decided by just a few plays. There was a lot of fight in this group.”
Looking ahead, Best said “I’m very excited for our seniors. I’m really excited to see what you guys are going to accomplish. And I’m really excited to see what our returning student athletes are going to achieve next year.”
And taking one final look back on the rainy year of baseball that was, Best said “This was a frustrating, exciting, amazing, all wrapped in one type of season.”