Champion Rewind Series - Pitkin Baseball

Pitkin, LA (KPLC) - The Pitkin Tigers are still taking it all in after bringing home the state title, 7 Sports had the chance to catch up with the team to find out what this championship meant to them.

“We showed up a year earlier than I expected they grew up fast right in front of my eyes I was super proud of them I was super emotional because you’re going through those champion growing pains and you’ve won it as a coach and you’re trying to get them there and they haven’t got to win it as players yet and you’re trying to show them how to do that but what I was so proud of is that they kept their head down and just bought into everything the coaching staff had to tell them,” Pitkin head coach, J.C. Holt said.

The game’s Most Outstanding Player Lincon Stephens was on the mound for the Championship Game vs the Anacoco Indians but he also delivered at the plate with four RBIs that led the Tigers to their 8-4 victory.

”I’ve never been in a situation like that before so I mean of course nerves, adrenaline running through me I really wasn’t thinking I was just up there trying to pass it onto the next guy like coach has been preaching to us all year about,” Pitkin player, Lincon Stephens said.

Holt says Stephens’ performance put the game out of reach and it was an opportunity he’s been waiting for.

“You know the funny thing is when we played Anacoco in district he actually had a chance to win the game early on in the year and it didn’t work out for us and it came back to him in the championship game and I told him I said look you’ve been waiting 2.5 months for this moment right here and he got up there and he came through he got the pitch he wanted and drove it up the middle, it was big,” Holt said.

The Tigers stayed ready for anything thrown their way but they had some luck along the way.

“We got hot at the right time and we started playing well you know you gotta have some luck bounce your way and we did that in the playoffs we had some things go are way and the boys capitalized on it,” Holt said.

Stephens said what separates his squad from other teams is the bond that they share

“We have no problems with anybody on the team we’re all very tight so it’s hard to beat on us when we’re on our game because we’re close,” Stephens said.

This championship marks the 13th in school history and the second for coach Holt who won it all back in 2019, and the Tigers who are less than a month removed from State Championship number 13, are already ready to bring home number 14.

“We’re coming for it next year too,” Stephens said.

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