Dartyn Meeks helps lead Wister baseball to state title game

Dartyn Meeks will always have very fond memories of his senior season playing baseball for Wister. Even if the ending wasn’t quite what he wanted.

Meeks, who was primarily a pitcher at Wister but was also a versatile player that could play any position, helped lead the Wildcats to a 27-4 season. Along the way, they won the LeFlore County Baseball Tournament for the fourth time in the past five seasons.

Wister also reached the Class A-I state championship game against Wright City. Though the Wildcats jumped out to an early lead, Wright City eventually rallied for a 6-5 win.

“We had a great season as a team; we always fought until the end no matter what, which made it fun when everyone was competing,” Meeks said. “Our goal was to make it to the last Saturday (for the title game) and we did that; we just didn’t come out on top.”

But Meeks was still grateful for experiencing his senior season and the terrific chemistry the team displayed.

“Playing for Wister was awesome; I wouldn’t be the player I am today without my coach, Ryan Tucker. And being a part of the teams over the four years was awesome.”

Meeks started all four seasons on the varsity, moving around each year. He was the starting shortstop his freshman season, then became the starting third baseman as a sophomore. As a junior, he moved back to shortstop, but remarked for his senior season, he “played every position on the field.”

However, one position was a constant, and it was on the mound. A right-hander, Meeks stood out this past season. In five starts covering 28 innings, his earned run average was an absolutely perfect 0.00, with Meeks’ best pitch being his fastball, able to throw it as fast as 94 miles per hour.

“Mixing up my pitches and getting ahead in counts early and having seven different pitches I could throw helped a lot when I got late in games so I could show them something different,” Meeks said.

An injury while playing basketball may have helped Meeks even more with his pitching.

“I played basketball for three years and played four games of this season, and I found out I had torn two ligaments in my ankle,” Meeks said. “So I had to quit (playing basketball) and let that heal up for baseball season.”

Plus, not being able to play any more basketball prepared Meeks even more for his senior season on the diamond.

“In offseason baseball, we all got after it and worked on my pitching, but the biggest thing that helped me was just competing every time I got on the mound,” he said. “I was pounding the zone. (With my) hitting, I just changed my approach to simple as it can be and just put the bat on the ball.”

And Meeks was completely satisfied with the results; though again, he wished the Wildcats had won that final game.

Meeks will get to play one more game at the high school level. He was chosen to compete to play in the Oklahoma Baseball Coaches Association’s All-State games on June 8 in Enid. Meeks will be on the small-school East squad, which plays at 2:30 p.m. He will also get to play one more time with his Wister teammate, Kord Fenton.

“I only got to play with Kord for two years but it was amazing,” Meeks said. “The kid could swing it and was a dang good southpaw (left-handed pitcher) and he would always pick you up no matter the reason and he never let anything get in the way of baseball.”

Meeks will also be playing next season at Connors State College in Warner, Okla. The Cowboys are one of the perennial top teams in junior college baseball. But Meeks still vividly remembers his time at Wister, especially his senior season.

“It was amazing getting to be a leader this year; it was kind of hard at times, but if you have the right people that will be willing to be led and listen, it’s pretty easy,” he said. “But it’s all about picking them up and not letting them get down on themselves so easy, especially on the younger guys.”