The Lakewood Leopards made sure their final impression at the Jimmy Raynor Tournament was their strongest one yet.
After a challenging start to the week, Lakewood flipped the script on Wednesday, April 8, defeating Pender 10-1 to secure a fifth-place finish and carry momentum into the second half of the season.
Lakewood wasted no time setting the tone, plating runs in each of the first four innings to build early separation. The Leopards pushed across one run in the first, another in the second, then broke things open with a three-run third inning before adding two more in the fourth. They continued to apply pressure late, tacking on runs in the sixth and seventh innings to seal the win.
For head coach Austin Tanner, the result reflected a complete performance — something his team has been striving for all season.
“I feel like we ended it on a good note,” Tanner said. “We pitched very well — Dylan McLaurin and Dylan Drake, two sophomores, threw the ball very well. We had a few little errors here and there, but they ended up not hurting us.”
At the plate, Lakewood saw production throughout the lineup, highlighted by Aden Norton and Dylan Drake, who each delivered perfect nights at the plate. Norton went 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a run scored, while Drake matched him with a 2-for-2 performance, driving in two runs and scoring once.
Sam Johnson added another strong showing, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs, while Reed Ammons contributed a 2-for-3 effort with an RBI. Tyler Tew chipped in with a 1-for-2 day that included an RBI and a run scored, helping Lakewood consistently move runners and capitalize on opportunities.
“I feel like we hit the ball well, got some timely bunts down to move runners over, and just overall did a great job of playing unselfish baseball,” Tanner added.
That approach — what Tanner often describes as playing “complete baseball” — showed up not only offensively, but in high-pressure defensive moments as well.
Even when Pender threatened, Lakewood stayed composed. The Patriots loaded the bases multiple times, but the Leopards responded with key pitches and timely defensive plays to limit the damage to just one run.
“We got bases loaded a couple times, but we pitched our way out of it, made plays when we needed to,” Tanner explained. “We never folded in that game. I think that was a big, big stride for us.”
That composure marked a noticeable shift from earlier in the season, where adversity sometimes derailed momentum. This time, Lakewood responded with poise.
“I’ve told them all year, we have a talented bunch. We’re young, but we’re very talented,” Tanner continued. “We just have to learn that if something bad happens, you’ve got to flush it. I feel like we did a good job of that.”
Reflecting on the full tournament, Tanner pointed to the team’s resilience as the biggest takeaway.
“Out of those games, we had one bad inning of baseball that cost us, but we didn’t quit, not one time,” he said. “That was big for us because we’ve had games this year where when we get down, we quit — we stop playing. In this tournament, we kept the energy. Baseball is a game, it’s fun, and I feel like that’s the best we’ve played.”
The improvement was evident from earlier in the week to the final game.
“We were out there having fun, competing, and just playing the game the right way,” Tanner noted.
Now, Lakewood turns its attention to a critical stretch of games that could define its postseason chances.
“I think we have a good shot going through the second half of this conference,” Tanner said. “We can compete with anybody. We’ve got some tough games, but we’ve got winnable games. We just have to keep that same mindset and keep rolling.”
With RPI playing a major role in playoff positioning, Tanner emphasized the importance of every remaining matchup.
“Right now, as far as playoffs go, RPI is everything,” he said. “Games like Clinton, James Kenan, West Columbus — those are big for us. If we can squeeze those out, it’ll help us come playoff time.”
With a 10-run performance, strong outings from its young pitchers, and a renewed sense of composure, Lakewood appears to be trending upward at the right time.
And if Wednesday’s performance is any indication, the Leopards may be far from finished making noise this season.