Jenks Trojans in national high school baseball tourney
BY Staff Reports
Wednesday, January 02, 2013
1/02/13 at 2:16 PM
The Jenks baseball program is going national this spring.
The Trojans are one of 16 teams in the field of the second annual USA Baseball National High School Invitational. The tournament will be played March 27-30 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C.
“I think it’s a tremendous opportunity for our kids and we’re excited about being able to play,” Jenks coach Dennis Keeley said.
The field includes defending champion (Mater Dei of Santa Ana, Calif.) and nine of Baseball America’s top-100 draft-eligible prospects in 2013.
Jenks returns heavily from last year’s 28-14, state-qualifying team, led by Division I signees Thomas Hatch (Oklahoma State), Trey Michalczewski and Grant Maxey (Central Arkansas).
Keeley said he wants to see where the Trojans rank on a national level.
“When you get an opportunity to compete against the best high school programs in the nation, you want to represent your state well," he said. "I’m extremely partial to Oklahoma baseball. I think we have the best programs in the nation right here when you talk about Owasso, Union, Broken Arrow and the like. So we want to find out where we stack up,” he said.
The remainder of the field includes: South Jordan (Utah) Bingham; San Diego (Calif.) Cathedral Catholic; Memphis (Tenn.) Christian Brothers; Eustis (Fla.); Miami (Fla.) Florida Christian School; Loganville (Ga.) Grayson; Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton; Studio City (Calif.) Harvard-Westlake; Lexington (S.C.); Milton (Ga.); Asheville (N.C.) T.C. Roberson; The Woodlands (Texas); Tullahoma (Tenn.); and Venice (Fla.).
USA Baseball is the national governing body for the sports of baseball in the United State and is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Associated Images:
In this May 10 file photo, Jenks' pitcher Thomas Hatch throws against Yukon during their first round game in the OSSAA 6A State Baseball Championship in Claremore. MICHAEL WYKE/Tulsa World File
Jenks Trojans No.27 Trey Michalczewski, taken before the Drillers High School Showcase baseball game against the Union Redskins in April at ONEOK Field in Tulsa. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World File
In this May 12 file photo, Jenks pitcher Grant Maxey delivers against Broken Arrow during a baseball game at Bixby High School. MATT BARNARD/Tulsa World File
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