Four Steers named to all-district baseball teams

• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Graham’s Tate Loesch connects with a pitch and drives it for a hit during one of the team’s games this past season. Loesch primarily handled second base and earned Second Team All-District honors for his play.
• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Ty Thompson follows through on a swing during one of Graham’s games this past season. Thompson was named Second Team All-District as an outfielder for his work in the team’s district schedule.
• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Graham catcher Tripp Mahaney was the team’s lone First Team All-District selection for his work behind the plate during the district schedule. Mahaney improved throughout the year at the position and was a force offensively.
• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Ryder Taylor fires a pitch home from the mound earlier this season. Taylor started 10 games for the Steers this past year and earned Second Team All-District as a pitcher.

The Graham Steers went through a rollercoaster of a baseball season, with ups and downs all along the way and an unfortunate downward slide at the end. However, four players stood out during district play and earned selections to all-district teams chosen by the coaches of District 6-4A.

Then sophomore and now junior Tripp Mahaney was named First Team All-District at the catcher position. Graduate Tate Loesch earned Second Team infielder while seniors Ryder Taylor and Ty Thompson were named Second Team pitcher and outfielder, respectively.

This past season, the Steers finished the year with an 11-14 record overall while the team went 4-8 in district play. Graham missed the playoffs with a fifth place finish but managed to beat each district opponent one time.

Mahaney moved around the diamond a bit, as he started the season at shortstop before moving to catcher where he played the bulk of his innings. He was an offensive force at the position, finishing the year with a .342 batting average, second highest on the team. Mahaney often batted at or near the top of the lineup and had a .407 on-base percentage to help set the offense in motion for the team.

Behind the plate, Mahaney logged nearly 100 innings at the catcher position and improved throughout the year. He only allowed four passed balls all season and threw out a team-high seven base runners while picking off two runners, as well.

Throughout the season, Loesch primarily locked down second base for the Steers. Loesch had a .261 batting average and led the team in triples with three and RBIs with 13. He was also one of two players to play in all 25 games for Graham.

Loesch provided steady defense at second base while helping to anchor the infield. He helped the team record five of the nine double plays they turned all year.

On the pitcher’s mound, Taylor was the No. 1 guy on the team as he started all 10 games he pitched in and threw 48 2/3 innings, highest on the team. Taylor finished the year with an even 3-3 record and a 2.59 ERA.

In addition to his work on the mound, Taylor made a difference with a bat in his hand, as well. He hit .299 on the year with the third most hits on the team and tied for the second highest in RBIs.

Thompson did most of his work as Graham’s starting right fielder this year. At the plate he hit .358 and had the second most hits on the team with 24. He drove in 11 runs, tied for second on the team, and he tied for the second most doubles and triples.

In the field, Thompson had a perfecting fielding percentage as he recorded 31 putouts and had one assist on 32 chances. He didn’t commit any errors and played solid defense all around.

While it was an overall difficult year for Graham’s baseball program, these four players made their marks during district play and the three that are returning will look to help the team turn things around next season.

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