The Campbell County High School baseball team is playing so many one-run games that the players are starting to see them in their sleep. They’re usually followed by dreams of winning the 10th Region tournament championship, something no current Camel has experienced as a varsity player.
When the Camels wake up, reality sets in and the scoreboard keeps insisting they earn it the hard way. So back to the ball diamond they go, closing execution gaps and chasing exhales.
Good thing head coach Scott Schweitzer has 10 seniors to steady the ride and keep everything in perspective.
“Most of these guys have been with me four years. They’re seasoned veterans,” the coach said. “You get an attachment to them and there becomes an expectation. They want to get after it and so do the younger guys.”
But they have to keep doing the little things.
“I live on the little things because they are the big things and sometimes, we’re not making that one big play,” Schweitzer said. “But we’ll get there.”
In the meantime, expect more close calls as the Camels chase yet another 20‑win season under Schweitzer. He has won more than 300 games at Campbell County, his alma mater, with an aggressive brand of small ball, augmented by occasional power hitting and power pitching.
“We’re jumping on teams early and things are kind of happening late, but I think playing in a lot of close games can be a good thing,” said senior Camden Tiemeier, a Morehead State commit. “We’ve become a more resilient team and that will help us come tournament time.”
Tiemeier says it with confidence because recent history backs him up. The last time Campbell County fell short of 20 wins, Pharrell was singing “Happy” to the top of the music charts in 2014. Since then, Camels fans have been pretty happy too, enjoying 10 straight seasons of 20 wins or more.
Campbell County, ranked second in the Northern Kentucky Baseball Coaches Association preseason poll, has won the 37th District tournament title four years in a row. The next district crown will be the ninth in Schweitzer’s 16 seasons. The Camels won the region and advanced to state four times in six seasons from 2016-22. They finished state runner-up in 2016 with a 1-0 loss to St. Xavier in the title game.
The Camels know close games like the back of their glove hand, and this season has been no exception. They won seven of their first dozen games. They could have been 11–1 with a little better luck and if a few big moments had broken their way.
The Camels lost four games by a single run. This included back-to-back 2-1 road losses at Simon Kenton and East Jessamine. A 7-3 loss at Loveland in Ohio went nine after the score was tied for several innings. That was easily their worst loss over the first three weeks. Every other loss in that span came by a run.
During a two-week stretch to begin April, the Camels played in six games. Four were decided by a run, another against Conner was decided by two runs, 3-1, in favor of Campbell County. The Camels beat Ryle, 6-5.
Campbell County played in 10 one-run games last season, losing six of them, three in extra innings. The Camels were in 11 one-run games in 2023, winning eight.
But all that is ancient history to these Camels, even though some of it appears to be repeating itself. They’re playing good baseball right now, even if their record doesn’t always reflect it thanks to those pesky one‑run losses. How else can a team hit .330 with nine home runs and post a 2.31 ERA with 105 strikeouts in 78 innings through the first 12 games?
Well, there are good players everywhere you look. And the Camels have also won 22-10, 15-0 and 17-1. They defeated a good Dixie Heights squad, 8-1.
The big bopper is Tyler Schumacher, committed to Marshall University as a hitter and a pitcher. He’s a returning Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association first-team all-state pick and a Northern Kentucky Athletic Conference all-Division I selection.
“Signing was a big weight off my shoulders,” he said. “It helped take a lot of pressure off and I can just go and play baseball.”
Schumacher was batting a team-leading .472 and paced the team with three triples after three weeks of play. He was tied with Tiemeier with three homers. Tiemeier was hitting .452 and led the team in doubles and RBI.
Other seniors swinging hot bats include Nolan Thomas (.375 with a homer), Jackson Bittner (.341), Benton Bowling (.300) and Gino Ramundo (.294). Jeb Kessinger was 8-for-8 on stolen base attempts and Gavin Richardson led the team in bases on balls. Both players had on-base percentages nearing .500. Gavin Kramer, a Wabash Valley College commit, led the juniors with a .410 batting average.
Senior pitchers Lucas Anthrop (2.71 ERA) and William Peed are among four starters along with Schumacher, the ace.
Schumacher, who can throw six different pitches, started 3-0 with a 0.58 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 24 innings. He was 6-0 last year with a 1.40 ERA. He hasn’t lost a game since he was a sophomore and is 19-2 in his career.
“Tyler has a level of composure of what it’s like to play and succeed at a high level,” said Tiemeier, Schumacher’s catcher.
Schumacher also knows how to take pointers from his head coach. Schweitzer hit and pitched at Kentucky Wesleyan College and was a reliever in the St. Louis Cardinals’ minor league system four years.
“He’s helped tremendously. He understands the game and he’s always positive,” Schumacher said. “He preaches establishing the fastball early, getting ahead in the count, eliminating walks and controlling the heart rate.”
There’s also sophomore starter Dennis Mecurio with a 2.15 early-season ERA. Bowling, Richardson and junior Cole Cummins combined on a 2.21 ERA and a pair of saves in relief.
Clearly, the Camels are armed and dangerous, and the bats are there. The coaching is there. They’re just living in tight margins. With a little more flair afield, fewer fluky plays and some better timing, they could time this right.
“We’ve got three regular season district games that really matter,” Schweitzer said. “Then we reset for the district tournament so we can get to the regional and back to state. Everything else is getting us in a position to get there.”