The Pampa Harvesters (14-11-1, 7-7) wrapped up their regular season on Friday with a loss against West Plains, but that doesn’t change the focus as they prepare for their first playoff appearance in three years against Midland-Greenwood in Lockney.
“We made it a huge goal to come back and play better this year and make the playoffs,” Head Coach Austin Samulowitz said. “And we made it happen. Our kids won the games that we needed to win and found a way to grind some things out. Of our seven district wins, six of them were by one run. If we had lost one more game, we wouldn’t have made the playoffs.”
Playing in so many close games gave the Harvesters the moniker “Heart-Attack Harvesters,” which, while stressful, can be teaching moments for Pampa.
“It’s fun, but it’s also stressful when the games are tight like that,” Samulowitz said. “But our kids found a way to be successful in those tight situations because they refer back to the little things we practice all of the time. They found a way to be successful in those situations, and we know if we pitch well and we play good defense, we are going to be in every game. That’s our mindset going into the playoffs: it all starts on the bump.”
The Harvesters made the playoffs out of one of the toughest districts in the state, featuring three Canyon ISD schools.
“We made the playoffs out of this district, and we earned a lot of respect from that,” Samulowitz said. “I’ve gotten multiple texts from coaches around our area saying, ‘Congratulations, making the playoffs out of that district is tough.’ That’s a testament to our kids and our community for coming together, not giving up, and continuing down the path.”
The Harvesters are very talented, and with seven seniors, sometimes it’s hard to spread playing time around. But the Harvesters have some very selfless players in junior Clayton Rodgers, senior Duncan Gamblin and the injured Jack Dyer.
On Clayton Rodgers
“Clayton is a JV/varsity guy,” Samulowitz said. “He starts on JV but then comes and runs for us either for the catcher or the pitcher. We used this year to get him more experience, but we look forward to him playing more on varsity next year. We’re proud of him.”
On Duncan Gamblin
“Duncan has been a team guy for the past couple of years,” Samulowitz said. “He’s had an important role in the dugout as far as keeping everybody focused and helping me with in-game scouting. Although Duncan’s name isn’t in the papers all of the time, he definitely plays a key role in the things he does for us.”
On Jack Dyer
“He’s been injured most of the year,” Samulowitz said. “But we are looking forward to getting his big bat back in the lineup next year.”
The Harvesters will take on #28 ranked Midland-Greenwood on Thursday night in Lockney at 7 p.m. Game 2 is Friday at 4 p.m. with Game 3 to follow 30 minutes later, if needed.
“They are their district’s District champions,” Samulowitz said. “They are going to be really good. They have a really talented arm with a Texas A&M commit, and their No. 2 is just as good. Their pitching staff is loaded so we are going to have to find ways to get on base and move runners around.”
All games will be livestreamed on Harvester Sports Network on YouTube. They can also be found on the radio dial at 95.9 FM. Stay tuned to Tuesday’s paper for a recap of the playoff series.
