Batesville football finishes with a winning record for the first time since 2018
BATESVILLE, Ind. — The Batesville Bulldogs had their work cut out for them as they came off back-to-back losing records for the first time in a decade, but the team delivered. They ended the season 6-5 overall and 2-1 in their league.
This season, the Bulldogs were seeking redemption, especially with 14 seniors on the team.
“They are focused on bouncing back after two subpar seasons,” head coach Evan Ulery told TriStateFootball.com prior to the season opener.
From the get-go, the team shined in a 35-13 win against the Indian Creek Braves and a 12-3 win against the Milan Indians for their first games of the season. After losing to the South Dearborn Knights, the Bulldogs got their first conference win, shutting out the Rushville Lions 44-0.
They were then handed two big losses: a 44-13 loss by the East Central Trojans and a 34-13 conference loss at the Lawrenceburg Tigers. Their next conference win came on a visit to the Greensburg Pirates, despite late efforts from the Pirates to come back. After a loss to the Franklin County Wildcats and a win against the Connersville Spartans, the Bulldogs made their way to the playoffs.
Batesville hosted Rushville and took the lead early on. The Bulldogs ended the night with their first playoff win in three years, beating the Lions 48-26. Following their win, they hosted the Brownstown Central Braves for the next round of playoffs. Their 28-14 loss brought their season to a close.
The team was led by the senior captain and three-year starter Travis Lecher as the quarterback. He threw for 1,763 yards and 17 touchdowns and ran for 613 yards and 11 touchdowns this season.
Lecher cherishes his time as a Bulldog and attributes much of his success to his team.
“You need the whole team to do well if you want to succeed, you can’t just look towards one person to help the team win all the games,” Lecher said in the podcast ‘From the Sidelines.”
Junior Bryson Bonelli was Lecher’s go-to receiver, connecting on 53 receptions for 1,067 yards and 11 touchdowns for the year. He set the record for total receiving yards in a season at Batesville High School.
On the other side of the field, senior lineman Chase Hamilton racked up 56 tackles and received the Bill Gardner Award which is given to someone who plays with courage, loyalty and fairness. Junior linebacker Trenton Roell totaled 97 tackles in the season. Junior Nick McConnell has also proven valuable as a guard and defensive tackle.
Lecher, Bonelli, Hamilton, Roell and McConnell were all named to the Eastern Indiana Athletic Conference All-Conference team.
Last year, Batesville graduated a lot of their top performers, like receivers Kurt Siefert and Trey Peters. Even so, the team was able to carve out a winning season this year. With even more seniors graduating this year, only time will tell if the Bulldogs can continue to rely on their young players to bring them their 10th sectional championship.
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