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Tigers make late push, sign HHS standout Rule
8/18/2009
By CONOR NICHOLL
cnicholl@dailynews.net
In 2008, Kelton Rule delivered a strong junior year for Hays High School baseball team and the Hays Legion baseball team. Rule batted .385 for HHS in the spring and carried a .395 summer average. The performances helped Rule sign a letter of intent with Barton County Community College in the winter.
Rule, though, elevated his game several levels his senior season. This spring, Rule and catcher Jay Sanders broke nearly every single-season hitting record in Frank Leo's 29-year tenure. Rule batted .514 in the spring and hit .424 overall with the Legion. Rule also collected 11 homers, nine more than his junior season, and played a strong shortstop.
The talent impressed the Fort Hays State University coaches, who made a late push to sign Rule. The Tigers picked up Rule in late summer, one of 17 players that formed the 2009 Signing Day class announced last Friday.
"It got to the point where Kelton had developed to a point where we really needed to make a push, and we did that, and we were lucky to get him," Tiger coach Rick Sabath said. "There were a number of factors that went into it, but we just really felt like he has been a good player all year long and was a good player last summer, too. But as the days kept going by here this summer, it really became apparent that we felt like he could play right away. I felt that was really the deciding factor."
Rule is one of six first team all-state players and one of four that played in the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches All-Star Game this summer.
He could start at shortstop immediately for a Tiger team that went 30-26 last spring and often started Chase Schippers, usually an outfielder, at shortstop because of injuries.
"Obviously, he is going to have to earn everything, but we feel like he is to the point where he can do some things and provide an opportunity to play right away for us," Sabath said.
The 2009 class includes three former Hays High players: Rule, Sanders and utilityman Logan Downing, a late signee. Rule, Sanders, Salina-Sacred Heart's Conner Martin and Lyons' Brett Bieberle all played in the KABC All-Star Game. Bieberle joined the Hays Legion team this summer before he suffered an arm injury.
"He is going to have surgery (today)," Sabath said. "He is not going to have Tommy John, but they are moving the ulnar collateral around a little bit and they are saying three months for him to be out. We are just going to wait and see. We talked about him being behind the plate and some potential first base. Depending on how his rehab goes, a redshirt could be a possibility."
Six players were listed as infielders, an area that Fort Hays will need to add new starters and depth. The Tigers lost their starting first baseman and third baseman and often had to use players out of position because of injuries. Chris Santoscoy, a four-time all-state player from New Mexico, will be a freshman this fall with the Tigers, while sophomore Jacob Lopez and junior Joe Ray could immediately help Fort Hays.
"We really needed to add depth in our middle," Sabath said, "and we felt like the people that we brought in, Kelton Rule, Conner Martin from Salina, who just had a stellar, stellar prep career at Sacred Heart. ... All those guys are infielders that we feel like have a lot of versatility that we can put in a lot of different spots."
The coaching staff also went through several changes. Jason Plourde has left the program and has been replaced by Jesse Kapellusch and former Tigers Ben Tinius and Eric Gilliland. Kapellusch, who helped recruit for Lynn (Fla.) University's 2009 national championship team, will serve as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. Tinius, hitting and infield coach, was a 2003 All-American for the Tigers. Gilliland was the Fort Hays ace and two-time all-conference pitcher who graduated this spring. He played independent baseball this summer.
The pitching staff has as newcomers: junior right-handers Andrew Hawkins and Bud Greve and junior left-hander Kyle Oestreicher, a Garden City Community College transfer. "We all have guys that have consistently won at a high level and I'm real excited about that," Sabath said.
They'll join a staff that includes Andy Lewton, a former HHS player who redshirted this spring because of injury. Lewton pitched in relief for the Hays Larks this summer and will move into a starter's role for Fort Hays.
The three former Hays High players made one trip to state with spring baseball and two more in the summer. Downing can play multiple positions, while Sanders hit .522, the best single-season average in the Leo era. Sanders could start at catcher for Fort Hays, while Rule might play shortstop immediately.
"Overall, his physicality, his power, the home runs and then just his overall physique change, he matured, got a lot stronger," Sabath said of Rule. "That was very evident with his arm strength. As his arm strength improved, his overall strength improved and then his power came with it. Anytime you see a high school kid putting up the home run totals that Kelton did, that is usually the sign of a very good player."
| Scoreboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Score |
| TS | 04/06 | Emporia State | L 8-1 |
| SB | 03/30 | Panhandle State | W 10-2 (5 inn.) |
| SB | 03/30 | Panhandle State | W 13-3 (5 inn.) |
| BB | 03/30 | Washburn | W 3-1 |
| BB | 03/30 | Washburn | W 3-1 |
| TS | 03/23 | Kansas Wesleyan | L 6-3 |
| BB | 03/23 | Metro State | W 20-8 |
| BB | 03/23 | Metro State | W 6-5 |
| SB | 03/19 | Nebraska-Omaha | L 4-2 |
| SB | 03/19 | Truman State | W 4-1 |
| SB | 03/18 | Mo. Western | L 6-2 |
| BB | 03/17 | Missouri S&T | W 2-1 (10) |
| SB | 03/17 | Bethany | W 6-1 |
| SB | 03/17 | Bethany | W 8-1 |
| BB | 03/16 | Misosuri S&T | L 13-4 |
| MB | 03/14 | Central Missouri | L 80-73 |
| BB | 3/13 | NW Missouri | W 13-10 |
| BB | 03/13 | NW Missouri | W 4-3 |
| MB | 03/13 | Central Oklahoma | W 80-64 |
| SB | 03/08 | Fort Lewis | W 5-4 |