Valley baseball squads hit the local diamond

WASILLA — The main concern for Palmer head coach Dave Combs during the 2007 prep baseball season was his team’s knack for giving opponents extra outs.

“It was my cancer,” Combs said. “I had no way to stop the bleeding.”

But as the Combs-led Moose start the 2008 season, the Palmer head coach has reason to be optimistic.

“The difference between my team last year and this one — almost the entire game, when an out was there, we took care of it,” Combs said after his team’s 9-8 win over Wasilla on Wednesday at the Wasilla Senior Field.

With a mix of youth and veterans, Combs feels he has a group of players who can execute.

“The execution is going to be there for sure,” Combs said. “I think I’m going to get it from this crew.”

Among the leaders on Palmer’s squad are seniors Keith Christopher and Cole Smith.

Christopher who pitched, recorded three hits and drove in two runs in the win over Wasilla, will see most of his time either on the mound or behind the plate, but could also be used in the infield and outfield.

Smith, a lefty, will pitch and play in the infield.

Another senior, T.J. Fullmer will help anchor the infield at shortstop. Although Fullmer is better known for popping three-pointers as a part of the PHS basketball team, Combs is excited about his potential on the diamond.

“He’s such an athlete,” Combs said.

Another versatile player is junior Sterling Nielsen, who can pitch and play in the infield or outfield.

Among the underclassmen Combs is excited about are sophomore Tommy Brown and freshman Tim Rockey.

Overall, Combs said team speed will prove to be key for the Moose.

“The top and bottom of the order is going to be fast,” Combs said. “Even with a quick pitcher, I’m gong to be able to get after it — be aggressive.”

Wasilla Warriors

Young may be the best way to describe the Wasilla Warriors.

“We’re way young right now,” first-year head coach Shane McRee said of his squad.

But that doesn’t mean the Warriors won’t be competitive.

“We will be competitive,” McRee said. “I guarantee.”

McRee, a 1992 graduate of WHS who played college baseball at San Joaquin Delta College in California, said the Warriors will certainly have a few distinctive attributes.

“Very intense, we’ll be solid defensively, we’ll be aggressive at the plate,” McRee said.

Tommy Rodamer, Eric Marshall and Mike Newcome each drove in runs for the Warriors during a 9-8 loss to the Moose on Wednesday.

Seven different players, led by Dusty Wisdom’s two runs, scored in the loss.

Wisdom, who fanned eight Palmer hitters in five innings, could be Wasilla’s go-to guy on the mound.

“He’s highly effective,” McRee said.

Colony Knights

With just a nine-game regular season, Colony coach Jamie Mayo said getting out of the box will be critical to his team’s state tournament chances this season.

“With this short season, you lose two games and you could be done,” Mayo said during practice on Monday.

Colony narrowly missed out on one of the NLC’s two post season bids last year, dropping a pair of close late-season decisions to Homer and Kodiak to finish on the outside looking in. And with majority of last year’s team still intact, Mayo thinks his team is among the ones to beat.

“We’re excited,” he said.

Colony lost just two key players from last season, catcher Wes Smith and outfielder Robert Fitch. Those aren’t small losses, as Smith usually hit third in front of the cleanup-hitting Fitch, but the Knights still have plenty of ammunition remaining.

“We’re going to have a pretty familiar team,” he said.

Baseball fans in the Valley should already familiar with the name Josh Boring, a sophomore shortstop who starred for the Knights and the Valley’s American Legion team last season as just a freshman.

“He’s a very good player,” Mayo said.

Mayo said Boring should help anchor a Colony team that’s both young and experienced, and includes some of the Valley’s top players, including seniors Chris Breck, Cory Cucullu and Blake Huppert; junior Matt Packa; and sophomores Boring, Kody Ziter and Colter Peterson.

Huppert, Boring and Breck all play in the middle infield, while Peterson and Ziter are likely to split time between catching and the outfield. However, Mayo noted that his lineup is still settling out, and many players on his roster can play almost anywhere on the field.

“We’ve probably got eight or nine guys who can play multiple positions,” he said.

Mayo said Breck, Cucullu, Packa and Peterson will be his primary starters, though others will see some time on the hill as well. He said his lineup card is likely to change from day to day, with players having to compete for a spot in the order.

“A lot of it is going to depend on who’s swinging the bat,” he said.

The Knights have 28 players out this season, a couple fewer than last year. Colony will carry 14 varsity players, with the remaining 14 players on the team suiting up for the J.V.

Although he thinks his team could be one of the best in the conference, Mayo said that could be a double-edged sword. The good news is he’s got a strong, veteran team.

“The bad news is we’ll probably face everybody’s number one (starter),” he said.

Still, Mayo is confident about his team’s chances, and said the biggest factor will be getting his players ready to start the season at full

speed.

“That’s very important.”

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.