How Ballard alum Sam Petersen fulfilled a dream by being drafted by Washington Nationals

On July 15, Sam Petersen was sitting in the basement of his home in Huxley with close friends and family members glued to the TV and nervously checking his phone.

Petersen, a standout baseball player at Ballard and the University of Iowa, was anxiously awaiting to see if he was going to be selected in the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft. The draft reached the seventh round when, suddenly, Petersen heard a ring on his phone.

He left the room where everyone was watching the draft to take the call. When he came back, the room was filled with excitement.

Petersen had been selected by the Washington Nationals in the eighth round with the 230th overall pick of the draft.

"When I came back in, the pressure in the room changed to excitement," Petersen said. "We waited to hear my name on the TV before starting the celebration. I was so relieved and happy that my closest friends and family were there with me. We celebrated that day, and it's a day I will never forget."

Petersen was an all-state performer at Ballard.

For his high school career, Petersen hit .424 with 21 home runs, 145 runs, 103 steals and 93 RBIs.

"He just did things that you can't teach," said Ballard coach Mike Furlong. "His explosiveness and raw power were always so impressive. I do not think I will ever coach someone again like Sam. He is a special player."

More: Ankeny Centennial's Joey Oakie selected in third round of MLB Draft by Guardians

Petersen's outstanding play at Ballard earned him a scholarship to play Division I baseball at Iowa under coach Rick Heller.

During his time with the Hawkeyes, Petersen appeared in 133 games. He hit .305 with 27 doubles, 22 home runs, 40 steals, 123 runs and 107 RBIs.

In 2024, Petersen hit .333 with 11 doubles, two triples, five homers, 27 RBIs and 18 steals to help Iowa go 31-23.

Ames baseball coach Nick Steenhagen coached Petersen during his first two years at Ballard before taking over for the Little Cyclones before the start of the 2020 season.

He saw Petersen's potential right away.

"I knew as an eighth grader that Sam was special," Steenhagen said. "He is a complete player. I don’t know if I knew he’d get drafted, but definitely saw a high ceiling. He is a game-changer and a team guy. I would have loved to see the rest of his high school career, but have loved seeing him succeed at Iowa."

Furlong felt the same way when he replaced Steenhagen in 2020.

"No one is more deserving of being drafted than Sam Petersen," Furlong said. "He was one of the hardest-working guys I have ever coached. He was always trying to find a way to get better."

Petersen fondly remembers his time playing for Steenhagen.

"My time at Ballard was special because it locked in my love for the game," Petersen said. "My first two years with Steenhagen, he had good energy and I loved showing up to the ballpark to play for him. He was my coach during my recruitment process, and he helped me balance the pressure of that and still being myself and focusing on playing the game that I love for the right reasons.

More: Three area baseball players named to IPSWA all-state teams: Petersen, Faber are first-team picks

He especially enjoyed how Steenhagen shared the same passion he had for the game of baseball.

"Before every practice, he would have us dump the bucket (full of baseballs), which was an exercise to take everything going on in our outside lives, 'put it in a bucket', and dump it, so when we were at the field we were fully at the field, thinking about nothing else," Steenhagen said. "It felt silly at the time, but I believe it truly helped me."

Petersen said Furlong also played a big role in success on the baseball field.

"By the time I met him I was already committed to Iowa," Petersen said. "He helped me continue to grow as a player and prepare for the next level. He was a former collegiate baseball player, so he knew what would be expected of me. He held me to a high standard and helped me develop a mindset so that I was ready for the next level."

But they were not the only baseball coaches to have a major impact on him growing up.

"Another coach I would love to talk about is Tom Shelton," Petersen said. "He was a coach that was there all four years of my career at Ballard voluntarily, and he was also my middle school baseball coach. He has helped me grow as a baseball player and person as much as anyone and I could never thank him enough."

Petersen also thanked Jeremy Hillebrand for opening The Hangar Athlete Factory, a baseball and basketball facility in Huxley. That is where Petersen worked out when he came home from Iowa City, and he even ran a baseball camp there every winter break.

Petersen is currently at the CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches, the Nationals spring training facility in West Palm Beach, Florida.

He is excited to take the next step in pursuit of his dream to become a Major League Baseball player.

"So far, the coaches here have been nothing but great," Petersen said. "It feels good to be back moving and I'm excited to continue to grow as a baseball player and person."

Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com . Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman

This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: How Ballard alum Sam Petersen fulfilled a dream by being drafted by Washington Nationals