FAYETTEVILLE -- John Boushelle had just one 7A-West Conference pitching start to his credit as he began his senior season at Fayetteville.
But after a whirlwind summer which turned plenty of heads, there was little hesitation from Bulldogs coaches when the big right-hander was assigned one of the top spots in the rotation this spring.
Profile
John Boushelle
School: Fayetteville
Class: Senior
Position: Pitcher/First Base
Height: 6-5
Notable: In four games, three starts, is 3-0 with a 0.34 earned run average. .. Has allowed just one run in 20 1/3 innings pitched, with six walks and 25 strikeouts. … Made just one 7A-West Conference start prior to this season. … Also starts at first base and is hitting .236. … Has signed with Kansas State.
"I absolutely do have (a bigger role)," Boushelle said. "Losing Kyle Pate from last year, and losing Walker Powell with an injury, I needed to step up.
"We still have other great pitchers, but I just needed to stand up this year and do it."
Powell is sidelined with elbow problems. Cody Davenport, another proven pitcher, has worked well as a starter but is valuable in late innings as well. So with a No. 2 spot in the conference doubleheaders open behind ace Andy Pagnozzi, Boushelle was ready to step up and take the job.
And so far, he's handled a bigger role with the Bulldogs (11-1, 2-0 7A-West) quite well.
"John's a real calm player and he doesn't get up or down," Fayetteville baseball coach Vance Arnold said. "For the most part he's throwing a lot of strikes and that (control) was his problem last year. He's got to get after it and stay after it."
Boushelle worked in limited duty as a junior, mostly seeing action in nonconference games. His one 7A-West pitching start was a 15-3 win at Springdale High, filling in for regular starter Pate who was unavailable that day with family obligations.
Now with Pate in his freshman year at Arkansas, Boushelle is counted on as a top-of-the-rotation arm on Fayetteville's loaded pitching staff. And he's not disappointing, with a 3-0 record in four games this season and a 0.34 ERA with just one run allowed in 20 1/3 innings pitched.
"We're still trying to find ourselves with our two, three and four guys," Arnold said. "Andy has separated himself because he throws so many strikes, but the other guys are right there together.
"But John had a great summer and he understands his role now and he's doing a great job."
The 6-foot-5 Boushelle might be turning some heads early on in this high school season, but he first got people's attention last offseason. After a stellar summer, Kansas State came calling and Boushelle quickly jumped at the offer, signing with the Wildcats in November.
"Over the summer it just clicked," Boushelle said. "I threw a lot more than I had, I learned how to throw strikes and throw a lot of different pitches, and I developed a curveball. So I grew a lot over the summer.
"Colleges started looking at me and I realized, wow, this is going to be my thing."
While Boushelle is a breakout player in many ways for Fayetteville, he still wants to do more. A regular at first base when he's not on the mound, he works tirelessly on his hitting and is focused on improving a batting average that sits at just .236 this year.
More than any single individual numbers, though, Boushelle wants to get Fayetteville back on top with a state championship.
"We are very motivated," Boushelle said. "After last year's state championship we want to come back and show that we are the best team and we just want to go out there and play to the best of our abilities."
Vernon Tarver can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @NWAVernon
Sports on 03/31/2015