Written by Byron Beers

Brayden Northington is a two-sport standout at Tahlequah High School, excelling in both football and baseball.

As a junior on the gridiron in 2022, Northington hauled in 15 receptions for 411 yards and seven touchdowns as the Tigers’ tight end. His breakout performance came against Sand Springs where he had three catches for 84 yards and a pair of TDs. At linebacker, he tallied 61 total tackles, including nine for losses, had one interception and caused one fumble.

Through the first month of the baseball season, Northington led the Tigers with two wins on the mound and had a 4.00 earned run average. At the plate, he was hitting .300.

“Brayden is a team leader for us, a great example to the younger guys and a fierce competitor,” Tahlequah second-year head coach Sam Nelson said. “He has led us this year on the mound and keeps us in every game he pitches. He is a bulldog!”

Northington, who models his game after Tahlequah native and St. Louis Cardinals’ closer Ryan Helsley, wants to help propel Tahlequah to a Class 6A state tournament berth. The Tigers went 2-11 in March. They snapped a seven-game slide with an 8-4 win over Coweta on April 1.

“My goal athletically this year is to get hot late in the season and win a regional and go to the 6A state tournament,” said Northington, who hit .357 from the middle of the Tahlequah lineup as a sophomore. “I feel like we’ve improved as a team from last year and we’ve fought really hard in all of our games. Individually, I feel like I keep improving, but there’s certain areas where I can be better.”

Northington, who has played baseball since the age of four, recalls a memory from last season when the Tigers stunned Bixby and an outing against Bishop Kelley as a freshman.

“My most memorable sports moment would have to be between upsetting Bixby at home my sophomore year or upsetting Bishop Kelley at home for senior night my freshman year,” he said.

Northington enjoys getting in extra infield work and his biggest strength is with a bat in his hands.

“My favorite drill is doing simple things like infield picks and fielding ground balls because it makes me feel good about the little things, which will help me make the bigger plays later,” he said. “One of my biggest strengths is having good barrel control, and I have bettered that throughout my high school career by working on being good in certain situations at the plate.”

Following high school, Northington wants to play either college football or baseball. During his free time he enjoys going to the gym, playing video games/chess and spending time with his family.