Impson leads Springfield High baseball's last link to 2021 state champion team
Springfield High pitcher Sam Hartl was in complete command.
But when he ran into trouble in the third inning of his team's recent baseball game against Litchfield, fellow senior Seth Impson sauntered over to the mound and not only assuaged his longtime teammate with a short pep talk, but also relayed the perfect pitch to get out of the jam.
Hartl seamlessly executed the pitch, and the defense turned the double play without a hitch.
“I try to be the best teammate I can be everyday holding each other accountable and just keeping each other focused and locked in,” Impson said. “(Hartl) holds me accountable a lot of the times when I have the ball and I want to be able to treat him the same way and make sure that he knew we had him and to get us a double-play ball and we were going to get out of it for him.”
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Hartl wound up not allowing a hit until the fifth inning and went the distance giving up just one run on two hits and two walks with six strikeouts in a 6-1 nonconference victory at Robin Roberts Stadium.
“I can’t complain about the defense,” Hartl said afterward. “I’m not a big strikeout guy. I’m good at getting weak contact and it’s good that I can I trust the seven guys behind me and the one guy in front of me. I can’t give enough credit to those guys for the work that they’ve done.”
Versatile senior
Impson, Hartl and shortstop Enrico Veach were all freshmen when the Senators dramatically claimed the Class 3A state title in 2021.
They have since carved out their own identity.
Last season, Impson was tabbed all-Central State Eight Conference for a second straight season after winning Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association all-state honors in Class 3A as a sophomore.
Impson can contribute in plenty of ways, even catching.
He came into high school primarily as a catcher before morphing into a premier pitcher, but still served behind the plate this past offseason with Flood City Midwest.
That experience on both sides of the battery allows him to see the game from a different perspective on top of strengthening his body and mindset.
“Being a catcher, you get beat up pretty bad and it’s helped me learn to fight through some adversity physically,” Impson said.
Impson said he pivoted toward pitching not just for the sake of the team but also his own good and surged as a sophomore, to say the least.
He posted a 1.30 ERA and 8-2 record with 75 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 64 2/3 innings. He also turned in a .299 batting average with 29 hits, 31 RBIs and two home runs.
Impson proceeded to furnish a .371 average with 33 hits, 28 RBIs and six home runs the following season, with a 2.36 ERA on the mound.
He plans to do much the same at Lincoln Land Community College.
“It puts a lot of control in my hands,” Impson said of his pitching, “and I like to be able to have everything in control and run things that way.”
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Veach has also performed at a high level over the last three years and appeared as an all-CS8 selection alongside Impson last spring with a .365 average, including 31 hits, 20 RBIs and 40 runs.
Veach, who will play at Wabash Valley College, is currently among the top hitters in the CS8 in 2024, batting .435 with 30 hits 15 RBIs, 27 runs and three home runs in the leadoff spot.
He became fond of baseball through his dad, Jesse, and will throw some innings himself if called upon. He turned up not once but twice in relief against Chatham Glenwood on Thursday and both times escaped without a scratch.
“I have to help the team win,” Veach said, “so I’m down for it.”
Impson also has three long balls to his name this season after reeling off two home runs in a 7-5 nonconference win over Taylorville on Friday. That included the go-ahead three-run home run in the fifth inning, elevating his batting average to .343 with 24 hits, 18 RBIs and 23 runs to complement a glistening 1.50 ERA and 4-1 record as a pitcher.
Impson believes he has especially grown as a player mentally and attributed much of that to his teammates and coaches. That includes assistant coach Brett Troemper for polishing his pitching mechanics stretching back even before high school.
“He’s shaped me into the pitcher and person that I am today,” Impson said of Troemper.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Seth Impson, Springfield High baseball seniors want one final thrill
