Fayetteville Lions Rolling, One Step Away from State Tourney

Amidst all the trucks in the parking lot at the Fayetteville baseball field Wednesday morning, one stuck out.

Jack Schley’s truck had a trailer attached with a horse inside. Over the sounds of bat hitting ball, the horse could be heard, impatiently ready to get to work itself.

“After practice I’ll go work cattle at my grandpa’s ranch,” Schley said.

But it may be a while before Schley can be a fulltime ranchhand this summer.

One season after they were state runner-ups, the Fayetteville baseball team is looking more like a state title contender with every game they play – and we’re honoring the entire Lions team as our Fayette County Athletes of the week.

The Lions are 5-0 this postseason and have outscored their opponents 78-10 in the playoffs.

“I think our team is playing as a whole, we all have the same mindset,” said Schley, a sophomore who has emerged as one of the Lions’ best. “We’re all swinging the bats well, all pitching well and we’re playing as a team so well that we will be tough to beat.”

Next up for the Lions is a date next week in the regional finals against old foe D’Hanis (21-5), who the Lions have played in this round each of the last four years.

“I think it’s the sixth year in the last eight we’ve faced them,” said Fayetteville head coach Clint Jaeger. “We have a long history with them. We’ve been expecting it all year long, as have they.”

That regional final series will be a best-of-three in Kenedy, at 7 p.m. Tuesday May 28 and Wednesday May 29 and if necessary 7 p.m. Thursday May 30.

It may be deep into the playoffs but this baseball season had flown by quickly for the Lions.

They’ve built a 15-4 overall record but have only 19 games because their long march to the state basketball tournament ate up any chance to play in pre-district baseball tournaments.

“We kept riding that success from basketball into this,” said Jaeger.

Fayetteville always seems to have success in baseball, but this year’s been different.

They only have twelve players this season, down a little from usual, and they only have two seniors – but they are prolific ones.

Keagan Supak and Jake Kubala have been four-year starters for the Lions, and were impact players back as freshmen when the Lions won their last state title.

“Feels like a long time ago,” said Supak, who was the state title game MVP that season.

“They’ve had a heck of a career in all sports,” Jaeger said of both Kubala and Supak. “They made it to state in basketball. Keagan has made it to state in every sport he plays. Good leaders. Good baseball people, and we are going to be leaning on their experience.”

Supak and Kubala are also both high school graduates.

They both already have their diplomas, following Fayetteville’s graduation ceremony last Friday.

“Feels a little different but not really,” Supak said of being a graduate. “I’m still hanging out with the same guys ... It’s a good thing playing baseball after you graduate.”

“It’s a little weird because after we’re done with this, we’ll never be with the school again,” Kubala said.

Joining the senior duo is a strong roster of underclassmen. Junior Easton Jaeger is leading the team in hitting with a sparkling .541 average. Supak’s hitting .420.

Kubala, Schley, Chance Konvicka, Lawson Fritsch, Brody Dooley and Kole Schmitt are all starters hitting above .300 as well.

Meanwhile, Schley’s also been a workhorse on the mound, and he even worked in a state-runner-up finish in the triple jump at state in the middle of the postseason.

“Jack’s really grown up a lot this year,” Jaeger said. “Last year as a freshman he contributed but there were some growing pains. He really stepped up this year as our ace. He’s pitched against good teams and shut them down.”

And it doesn’t get any easier for opposing offenses after Schley. In Game 2 of the regional semifinals Supak and Konvicka combined to hurl a no-hitter.

It’s a formidable Fayetteville team all-around – and one that wasn’t satisfied with state silver last year “We come out here working hard every day,” Supak said. “Last year we fell short. It was a little frustrating. We want more.”

But it’s not a team playing tight under the weight of expectations either.

The only thing louder than Schley’s horse Wednesday morning at practice was the laughter coming from Lions players really enjoying themselves.

“It’s a loose team, they play hard and they have a lot of fun out there,” Jaeger said. “That’s what we’re trying to do: stay loose, have fun and let the results speak for themselves.”