Prep baseball preview: Local teams hit condensed season

May 4, 2007

By MATT TUNSETH/ Frontiersman

WASILLA - The wait is finally over for the boys of summer. Baseball has arrived in Mat-Su.

After spending nearly two agonizing months practicing indoors, in parking lots and on makeshift fields, Valley high school ballplayers are finally set to hit the diamond today.

Action gets underway today at Wasilla, with the Warriors set to host the visiting Homer Mariners. The varsity game is scheduled for 5 p.m., with junior varsity action at 7 p.m.

Also today, Colony visits Valdez for a showdown with the Buccaneers. The first pitch of the J.V. is at 3 p.m., with varsity to follow.

Thanks to Mother Nature, area teams have had scant time to get ready for the season, despite the fact that practice began in early March.

Most have only been on actual fields for a little over a week, as conditions have only recently become dry enough for play. Payers have had to endure endless drills done mainly inside gymnasiums - which means players are more than ready for the season to start.

&#8220Practice indoors for baseball is not fun,” Palmer head coach David Combs said Thursday.

Mat-Su teams play in the Northern Lights Conference, one of four in the state. Joining Colony, Palmer and Wasilla in the conference are teams from Valdez, Soldotna, Homer, Kodiak and Seward.

Kodiak was the conference's lone representative at state last season, but new rules implemented this year allow for two NLC teams to make the big dance.

With only a month-long regular season to prove themselves, local teams don't have much time to get down to business. Because of the condensed nature of the season, each game will be meaningful, and teams will place a premium on getting off to a good start - which should be no problem considering area players have been champing at the bit for almost two months.

&#8220These guys are itching to get out and play,” Combs said.

Palmer Moose

Like most area teams, Palmer likely won't know what kind of team they've got until after play begins.

&#8220The thing about baseball is you have to play the game to understand it,” coach Combs said.

Practice can only do so much for a team, and Combs said he's anxious to see how his team reacts to a game situation. But with 13 returning players - including nine seniors - Combs said he's optimistic about his team's chances.

&#8220I'm excited,” he said.

Palmer gets a chance to find out how it stacks up against Wasilla Saturday, when the teams will square off for a scrimmage. The Moose get their regular season underway Monday, when they'll host the Colony Knights.

Palmer's bench is short, with just 17 players out for the team this season. But Combs said the Moose will likely be able to overcome their depth issues by suiting up a bevy of upperclassmen with extensive varsity experience.

&#8220I've got an old crew and a small team,” Combs said.

Leading the way for the Moose this season will be senior catcher Tanner Grover, a multisport athlete should anchor the lineup with a big bat in the heart of the order.

&#8220He's probably the best athlete I have on the team,” Combs said.

Others likely to key Palmer's offense include seniors Mike Dobson and Tyson Alger. Junior pitcher Cole Smith will anchor a starting rotation that also will include Alger and Casey Smith, among others.

Defensively, Combs said he expects his veteran lineup to be solid, but stressed that his team needs to get into some games in order to find their rhythm.

&#8220Playing in games is different from practice,” he said. &#8220You have to react instead of think.”

Wasilla Warriors

Wasilla coach Gene Sandone thinks the Warriors could make some noise this season.

&#8220I think we're going to be a contender to go to state,” Sandone said.

Wasilla is both strong and deep, with 27 players out for the team, including a group of returnees that includes All-NLC selection Cory Cowgill.

&#8220He was really a star last year,” Sandone said of Cowgill, who likely will see time at a number of different positions this year.

&#8220I asked him where he wanted to play, and he says, ‘anywhere you need me, coach,'” Sandone said.

That attitude, Sandone said, should carry over to the rest of the ballclub.

&#8220He's acting as a superb leader,” he said.

But although he's the team leader, Cowgill won't have to carry all the weight this season. Expected to make big contributions at the plate are senior catcher Carl Brent, senior shortstop Danny Lyles and sophomore third baseman Mike Shaw.

Newcomers Chris Bydlon at second base and Eric Washington in the outfield should also add some pop to the lineup. Sandone also said injured infielder Kenny McLellan could help the squad offensively once he returns to the lineup.

Shaw will likely headline a pitching staff that also includes seniors Cowgill, Brent, Lyles and Ben Briceland, as well as freshmen Tommy Rodamer and Dusty Wisdom.

Sandone said he believes Wasilla should excel both on offense and when the Warriors are in the field.

&#8220Defensively I think we're going to be pretty strong,” he said.

Sandone said team speed will also be a strength, with outfielders Sawyer Graber, Doug Knecht and Washington all able to cover plenty of ground. Strong-armed Demitry Muzechuk will also see time in the outfield and at third base when Shaw is on the mound.

The Warriors get a chance to see how well they stack up against the competition today when they host Homer, which traditionally fields a strong team. Sandone said he has no doubt that Wasilla is up to the challenge.

&#8220Everything's gelling for us this year,” he said.

Colony Knights

What Colony lacks in numbers they make up for in potential.

Head coach Jamie Mayo said this year's team is the smallest he's seen at the school.

&#8220We're very young and this is the smallest team that we've ever fielded,” Mayo said.

Turnout at the start of the year was decent, Mayo said, with 34 players showing up on the first day. But after a couple players were lost to work obligations and grades, Mayo said the Knights' roster is down to just 19.

Despite that, Mayo said he's got a number of young players he expects to step in and make immediate contributions at the varsity level.

&#8220Even if we'd had our normal year there's a couple freshmen that would not have only been on varsity, but would have been contending for starting positions,” he said.

Leading Colony's crop of eight talented freshmen are infielder/outfielder/pitcher Josh Boring and catcher/outfielder Cody Ziter.

Colony isn't devoid of veteran talent, either. Junior infielder/pitcher Chris Breck is back after a solid 2006 campaign, as are senior third baseman/pitcher Chris Comarte, senior outfielder/catcher Robert Fitch, sophomore outfielder/catcher Wesley Smith and junior infielder/pitcher Blake Huppert.

Mayo said many of his players will spend time at a variety of positions, something he believes is one of the club's strengths.

&#8220Even though we are going to be more young than experienced, I think the best attribute I can say about the whole team is we have several young men that can play three or four different positions and can play them well,” Mayo said. &#8220That's one of the exciting things about this team.”

Despite being down on numbers and counting on newcomers to step up, Mayo said he believes the Knights have a chance to make a run at state.

I think we're going to be able to contend for the two berths at state,” he said.

Whether the Knights make a run to state, however, will likely depend on how quickly new players are able to step up and fulfill their potential.

&#8220A lot of it will be how quickly the young guys are able to perform at the level we think they can perform at,” he said.

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com