BHS REPORTS: Golfers open season; baseball grabs huge road win; softball takes two
Bartlesville High School’s Kaden Romesburg makes a play during an earlier season game. Romesburg pitched a complete game on Monday, helping the Bruins defeat Norman 5-3 on the road.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
Bartlesville High Schools Paisley Bryant (6) heads back to the dugout during an earlier season game. The Lady Bruins won two games on Monday,
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
By Mike Tupa
April 2, 2025
BARTLESVILLE AREA SPORTS REPORT
Following is a round-up of recent Bartlesville High School athletic competition.
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BOYS GOLF
Individual highlights helped frame the performance of the Bruins in their season opener Monday at the Tulsa Union Invitational/Frontier Valley Conference tournament at the Meadowbrook course in Tulsa.
As a team the Bruins shot 659 for the 36-hole slogfest, landing them in 13th place out of 18 teams, a little lower than that for which veteran head coach Carl Holmes wished.
But considering Bartlesville’s five-man varsity team included two freshmen making their debut, the prognosis for future progress is promising.
Leading the Bruin attack was sophomore Jay Wasemiller, the ninth-place finisher at last season’s state tournament. On Monday, Wasemiller shot 157 (76-81) for 21st place.
“That was a little disappointing for him,” Holmes said. “He had kind of a tough day.”
Freshman Hutson Coats turned in the team’s next-best score (163), followed by freshman Damien Walker (167), junior Lucas Wyatt (172) and senior Nash Zervas (174).
Holmes also entered two other Bruin freshmen in the at-large individuals’ category.
Both sparkled — Carter Sauer shooting 155, good for 17th place overall, and Ethan Phelps registering 170. Sauer shot 76 during the second round.
The Bruins didn’t enjoy a whole lot of rest before their next test.
On Tuesday they return to Tulsa to an 18-hole tournament hosted by Bishop Kelley.
Holmes purposely scheduled the back-to-back tournaments to help prepare the Bruins for the 54-hole state tourney in a few weeks.
In addition to his varsity squad, Holmes has entered a full junior varsity team in the Bishop Kelley competition. Sauer is slated as the one bag and Phelps as the two bag for the jayvee team.
Holmes’ varsity/jayvee roster goes 13 players deep.
“We’re excited about the future and the upcoming season for us,” Holmes said.
Note: The sports report has not been able to get any information about the Lady Bruin golf program.
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Bartlesville High School’s catcher Jaxon Zaun (1) goes after a ball during earlier season action. On Monday, the Bruins defeated Norman 5-3 on the road.
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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BASEBALL
One of the real keys of progress for a high school sports team is winning the 50-50 games — otherwise known as toss-ups where both teams are playing at about the same level.
The Bartlesville Bruins appear to be turning that corner after what was a bumpy, curving ride through March.
In their first 17 games, the Bruins pretty much won the games they were supposed to win and pretty much fell to defeat against their tougher opponents.
But on Monday, Bartlesville (11-7) muscled past the Norman Tigers (9-9), on Norman’s home field, 5-3.
“It’s a good district win for us,” Bruin head coach Cody Price said. “Norman is well-coached. … For us to drive three hours there and come out with a win was big for our program.”
Speaking of big, pitcher Kaden Romesburg cast a giant shadow that engulfed the Norman offense. Romesburg snapped off a complete-game eight-hitter with one walk and two strikeouts.
“They (Norman batters) had a good two-strike approach,” Price said. “Kaden induced a lot of ball contact.”
The Bruin defense played flawless behind him to not give up any cheap scores.
“That’s what I’m most excited about. We played a clean baseball game with our gloves,” Price said.
Romesburg and the defense retired the final six Norman batters in a row.
As a bonus, senior Jaxon Zaun made a rare appearance in the lineup — missing several games due to a pre-season injury. Against Norman, he caught for all seven innings, but Price held him out from the batting lineup as a precaution.
“He’s really a good hitter for us,” Price said. He added that he wants to try to make sure Zaun is completely ready physically to jump back into the offensive side.
It appeared for a while on Monday as if the Bruins could utilize all the firepower they could muster.
Through three innings Norman clung to a 1-0 lead, but in the top of the fourth, Carson Silva drove in Cooper Swaim to tie the score, 1-1.
An inning later, Bartlesville added three more runs, thanks largely to a RBI by Swam, Hunter Shea reaching base as a hit batsman and Silva drawing a walk.
Norman closed the margin to one run, 4-3, in the bottom of the fifth.
Bartlesville added an insurance run in the top of the sixth and then let Romesburg and Zaun and the defense seal up the victory.
For the game, Bartlesville batters drew seven walks — the third game in a row with nearly 10 free passes — and pounded out five hits.
The Bruins play hosted Norman Tuesday, and close out the week with a home game Thursday against Tulsa Washington (5 p.m.) and a trip Friday to Coweta.
Price is just one win shy — it could happen today — to reach 100 career victories as the Bruin head coach.
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Bartlesville HIgh School’s Madie Nachbor (51) bats in an earlier season game. The Lady Bruins won two games on Monday,
BECKY BURCH/Bartlesville Area Sports
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SLOWPITCH SOFTBALL
Bartlesville (11-3) continued its winning ways with a pair of lopsided decisions on Monday at the Lady Bruin Softball Complex.
Kyle Minton coaches the Lady Bruins.
BARTLESVILLE 15, OKTAHA 6
Bartlesville batters popped five balls over the wall and scored in every inning to overwhelm Oktaha.
Savannah Alden crushed two homers and a single and drove in six runs as a one-person wrecking machine.
Jazmine Campbell, Karmandy Marsheck and Erin Bridendolph each pounded one dinger.
Marsheck also singled and recorded three RBI; Bridendolph went 3-for-4 (including a double) with two RBI. Campbell and Lexi Durao also plated two runs apiece.
Isabell Daniels added a double and scored twice.
Marsheck did double duty by pitching the complete-game win with Madie Nachbor as her catcher.
BARTLESVILLE 14, TAHLEQUAH 3
Once again, Bartlesville scored at least one run in every inning.
Durao turned in one of the team’s most powerful-ever showings by belting three homers driving in six runs.
Bridendolph added a homer and a single, and a sacrifice fly, and plated five runs.
Ripping one double apiece for Bartlesville were Daniels, Campbell, Marsheck, Maddie Czaja and Kenzie Denny.
Daniels, Lola Redington and Nachbor drove in one run each.
Other Lady Bruins contributing multiple hits included Chloe Robbins, Czaja and Daniels.
Pitcher Alden snapped off the four-hit gem.