Demon seniors bring calm, cool leadership

In baseball, a misplayed ball or poor at-bat can stick out like a sore thumb.

It?s not uncommon for those mistakes to follow a player throughout the game, leading to more mistakes, and eventually a potential loss for your team.

This year, Washington has a pair of seniors who are making sure the team doesn?t allow mistakes to snowball on them.

?It?s going to take the whole team,? Washington senior Michael Ellingson said. ?We all have to stay together. If one person starts to get down, it brings the whole team down. We?ve been trying to pick some people up, and if we can do that, it translates to the whole team and keeps everyone?s attitude up.?

Ellingson and Cole Embree are the two seniors on this year?s Demon baseball squad, which sits at 8-5 on the season and is coming off a victory over No. 1 ranked Pella on Tuesday night.

Those eight wins eclipse the season total from last year, when the Demons went 6-20 on the season.

?(They bring) calmness,? Washington baseball head coach Nathan Miller said. ?They maintain their poise. They might be upset about something, but you can?t tell. From the outward look, they are turning the page. Sure, there might be some frustrations if there?s a strikeout or an error, but when the good happens, they are smiling and giving out fist pumps. In the dugout, they are always giving out words of encouragement and staying positive.?

Embree, who is seeing an expanded role this year, has batted .290 on the year for the Demons, knocking in seven RBIs, with a pair of doubles and four walks, and entering his final year for Washington, said there wasn?t any extra pressure on him.

?I don?t think so,? Embree said. ?Most of our starters are juniors, and they are good and step up. They help everyone out as well. They take the load off of us a lot.?

Miller said Embree?s career should be looked to as an example for all of the other young members of the program.

?He has the work ethic,? Miller said. ?He?s a kid who committed to the program and he?s gone through the steps. He spent several years at the JV level and last year was a part-time player. Now he?s stepped into a pretty large role for us. When we find kids who are good fits in our lineup, we are going to stick with them. That?s how Cole has been. If you put the time in and put the work in, you are going to get an opportunity, and he?s taken advantage.?

Ellingson, who is batting .286 on the season with four RBIs and five runs scored, said the team really jelled during the preseason, and their play so far this season is a result of that.

?Coming out in our preseason, in our spring league games, we started coming together as a team and starting to play as a whole,? the senior said. ?That really impacted us at the beginning, to get off on the right foot forward so we could get a good start to the season.?

With Ellingson?s athleticism helping him be a four-sport athlete (including a state track qualifier in the high jump), leadership has come naturally to the senior, according to his head coach.

?A lot of guys are drawn to him because he?s a four-sport athlete, and a lot of kids on this field have looked at him as a leader in the other three sports he?s been in,? Miller said. ?Last year was his first full year of varsity baseball, and this year he?s taken a big step and has been a solid player for us.?

As the Demon seniors look at their last summer wearing the Washington uniform, the memories they have with their team will stand out, and for Embree, he is looking forward to reliving one of those in July, when the Demons head for St. Louis to play a nonconference game at Busch Stadium.

?My favorite memory would probably be St. Louis (two years ago),? Embree said. ?I?m excited to go back there this year. The first time I got to play on JV, and this time will be a little better, playing in the varsity game.?

Ellingson noted that the team has also helped him love coming to practice every day during the summer, as the team works toward the same goal.

?Hanging out on the field with my friends,? Ellingson said. ?There?s always a time at practice when someone makes a sweet play and we all get excited, and it?s fun to be out here.?

The pair noted that they are looking to translate these wins into postseason success once tournament time rolls around, and with the ?supportive? team chemistry, they just might have the tools to keep the ball rolling.

?It doesn?t matter who it is,? Ellingson said. ?If you are struggling or hitting .500, we all are going to treat everyone like they are the best on the team. For me, I wasn?t hitting very well at the beginning of the season, and now it?s starting to come back. When you have a team that?s uplifting, it helps you through the whole game.?

The Demons will look to keep the momentum going on the road on Thursday night, when they face Mt. Pleasant in a conference doubleheader.