Viking baseball has five players moving on to four-year programs
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin Herald Big Bend sophomore Tyson Yamane of Warden has settled into the No. 2 starter on the Vikings staff, but has the versatility to work as a middle reliever if needed this season.
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin Herald file photoBig Bend sophomore Cody Banks ended his Vikings career playing in the NWAC Baseball Championships at Longview. Banks was a Gold Glove winner at third base in the East Region and a first-team all-East selection. The Vikings returned to the NWAC tournament for the first time since 2002.
MOSES LAKE — Producing quality young men and quality student-athletes is as much a part of Big Bend baseball tradition and what happens on the field.
First-year Viking coach Jameson Lange did his job. The beat goes on for five Big Bend sophomores that helped the Vikings return to the Northwest Athletic Conference Baseball Championships for the first time in 15 years. Tyson Yamane (University of Dubuque), Cody Banks (Bellevue University), Nick Metcalf (Morningside College), Daulton Kvenvold (University of Dubuque) and Nate English (University of Arkansas-Monticello) will all take their game and their Big Bend Community College experience to the next level.
“The guys have to put in the work to prepare, but that’s my job as a coach, to prepare them for life and the next level of athletic competition,” said Lange, who is headed into his second season as the Vikings head coach. “When we recruit guys here, the No. 1 requirement is that they are coming here to graduate with great marks.
“It’s not just lip service. All five of those kids have a 3.0 (grade point average) and above. Tyson Yamane is a 3.9 student. Nate English is a 3.8.”
The emphasis on student in student-athlete started with long-time Vikings manager Pete Doumit and continues now that Lange, his long-time assistant, has taken over the program. When the grade-point average equals the batting average, it leads to success.
Yamane, who was an NWAC all-East selection, is a right-hander out of Warden who became one of the top starters in the NWAC this season. He took his game from a Washington 1A level to the NWAC, now he’s ready to take on the challenges of NCAA Division III at University of Dubuque in Dubuque, Iowa.
“Tyson had a dozen different schools interested in him and he felt the atmosphere and the academic institution was the right fit for him,” Lange said. “Dubuque is an established DIII program. He’s not a big-arm guy, but his mental makeup and his ability to compete and get the strikeout when he needs gives him great credibility when everybody’s looking for velocity.”
Banks is another NWAC all-East selection. The Vikings third baseman from Duvall is headed to Nebraska.
“He’s going to a school that’s going to compete for a national championship at the NAIA level nest year,” Lange said. “Cody had Division I attention, along with 11 Division II schools interested, but he felt the relationship with Bellevue was the was the right fit.”
Metcalf, Mount Vernon, showed a strong skill set at first base and will be moving on to Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa.
“Their head coach spent some time in the Pittsburgh organization and knows Ryan (Doumit) fairly well. They were looking for an all-around defensive guy at first base,” Lange said. “Nic has the (left-handed) power with good defensive skills. It’s a nice fit for him”
Kvenvold is as guy from West Jordan, Utah, with the skill set to play anywhere from left field to catcher. He’s a utility player and will step up his game at University of Dubuque with Yamane.
“Dalton is a spark plug and he’s going to make a team better being on the field,” the Vikings skipper said. “He’s not a huge impact guy, but they’re going to find out very quickly his value. They have to find a place on the field for him, because he’ll make them better.”