Fresh off its first Class 5A state tournament appearance since 2017 Durant had a pair of All-District baseball selections in a vote of 5A-4 coaches.
Junior Cole Robbins was chosen as the All-District third baseman while sophomore Aiden Diviney became a two-time league honoree in the outfield. Four other Lions were honorable mention selections. Those included Ryder Jones, Lucas and Eli McClure as well as Holdan Robinson.
“Cole had another strong season and led us at the plate and Aiden was solid once again and really came on for us on the mound,” said head coach J.W. Parsons. “Those other guys that received honorable mention recognition all had much better averages at the plate for us this year.
“It was a really good season for us. We had a few games cancelled along the way due to various reasons and obstacles or I felt like we would have definitely been a 20-win team once again. Getting back to the state tournament was big for us. The kids really played well at the right time.”
Robbins finished the season with a team-best .410 batting average as well as getting on base at a .526 clip. He tallied five doubles, two triples and four home runs while also leading the squad with 27 runs batted in addition to scoring 24 runs and adding nine stolen bases.
Diviney became a mainstay for the Lions at the top of the batting order, wrapping up the campaign with a .349 batting average and team-leading .540 on base percentage. He also posted seven doubles, two doubles, three homers and 21 RBI while contributing team highs with 42 runs scored and 17 stolen bases.
The southpaw transformed into the team’s mound ace by season’s end, notching a 4-2 pitching record in 34 innings. He yielded 14 hits, struck out 39, walked 26 and ended with a dandy 1.85 earned run average.
Jones posted a .300 batting average in his senior campaign, tossing in a double and 15 driven in. Eli Mc-Clure led the other junior honorable mention trio with a .333 mark at the plate which included two home runs and 20 batted in.
Lucas McClure hit .318 with four doubles and 15 RBI and Robinson added a .316 offensive mark, belting four doubles and four homers to go with 25 runs driven home.
While they return a wealth of experience, the Lions will have a new head coach next year after the resignation of Parsons in order to be able to devote more time to his family. He has accepted another coaching position at nearby Caney for next year.
“It was difficult to leave these guys knowing what we had returning but I needed to do what was best for my family,” he stated. “The drive to games will be much closer and I won’t have to be on the road as much with regular drives to Tulsa. I wanted to be sure and be able to go to my daughter’s games and events more than I was able to the last couple of years.”
