With Owensboro Catholic playing their season opener today, all the Owensboro schools are seeing action, and the 2024 baseball season is now in full swing. Here’s what the local coaches had to say about the new season:
What are your expectations/goals for this year?
Apollo head coach Brandon Dennis: As with any season, my expectations or goals are that our team play the game the right way while using each and every game as an opportunity to get better in preparation for the first game of the district tournament.
Daviess County head coach Austin Clay: Our expectations are to compete for a 3rd region championship.
Owensboro head coach Jake Fiorella: Our team is aiming to compete for an opportunity to win the 9th District Championship again and the 3rd Region Championship. The 9th District is such a tough out, as any two of our four teams could advance to the Regional Tournament and potentially win it. We’re working hard to ensure we’ve put ourselves in the best possible position to compete at our highest level when the District and Regional Tournaments roll around.
Owensboro Catholic head coach Jody Hamilton: Goals are the same each year: to develop each individual and team on a daily basis to compete at the highest level possible.
Trinity head coach Ethan Maxey: Expectations for the year are to be complete no matter the other team.
What will be the biggest challenges on the schedule?
AHS: We feel that we have put together an extremely challenging schedule, so each and every day will be a big challenge for us.
DCHS: There are lots of talented teams within the region.
OHS: We have a host of challenges throughout our schedule. We’re taking our Spring Break trip to St. Petersburg, where we’re playing 3 high-quality opponents and obviously the 9th District slate after Spring Break is quite formidable. Who we play isn’t really the biggest focus, it’s how we play.
OCHS: The challenges at a small school are to stay away from injuries or sickness. The 9th District and 3rd region continues to be as good as there is in Kentucky and I believe better than it’s been since I’ve been here.
THS: We okay a lot of games this year so the challenges will be to get through the rough games.
Who are your top returning athletes and why?
AHS: Despite losing six very talented seniors from last season’s team, we return a wealth of experience with 10 returning players with significant experience. Depth is definitely going to be one of our strengths, so we will rely on all of that experience as we work our way through the season.
DCHS: Logan Mewes – very good athlete, pitcher that can throw 4 pitches for a strike, very solid at the plate, one of our better defenders. Carter Nichols – senior that has had success before and someone that a lot of our younger guys look up to. Can play multiple positions well and will help us on the mound. Lucas Ward – very talented with both the bat and the glove. Will play somewhere up the middle of the field for us and can help us out on the mound as well.
OHS: We return pretty much our entire roster from 2023 and are hoping to build off that success. We’re expecting every guy with a uniform to contribute in some way, with the expectation that we’re going to be competing for a 9th District Championship and a 3rd Region Championship.
OCHS: We return about 80% of our offense and 45% of innings pitched.
Brady Atwell (catcher)and Parker Heistand (ss)both are beginning their 3rd year starting varsity baseball. Deuce Sums and Eli Blair both return (of). Barrett Evans(infield,p), Houston Flynn(inf/p), Jaxson White (of/p), Ben Hyland (dh/p), Luke Quinn, Brady Prusz and Lane Hundley all recorded varsity innings on the mound. Mason Moser (utility)and Chris Burns (c) return as second year starters.
THS: Hayden Aull and Brady McBrayer, both of the guys are juniors and can lead us in the field. They have displayed a level on the practice field that I hope carries over to the games.
Who do you expect/need to step up and why?
AHS: We need to get major contributions from a handful of underclassmen who will play a more significant role for us this season.
DCHS: There are a bunch of guys we have that are very talented that just need reps and experience.
OHS: We don’t need anyone in particular to be spectacular. Our best opportunities come with consistency. By the time the postseason comes, we want to ensure every guy on our roster understands his role and is fully committed to being successful in that position on a consistent basis. That could be a number of people doing a multitude of things. We may not be 20 guys deep, but we have 14-15 guys who can help our team achieve its ultimate goal, if they’re fully committed to doing so.
OCHS: We need everyone to just continue to develop and learn at their own pace.
What areas are you hoping to improve on this year and why?
AHS: We expect our pitching and defense to lead the way for us this season, but we really believe that we are prepared to take a major step forward at the plate. We have focused on cutting down strikeouts along with focusing on more productive at-bats, so we hope to see a real jump there this season.
DCHS: Just gaining experience in big game situations.
OHS: Here comes that word consistency again. Our guys do a great job with how they approach the work being done and how they accept being coached hard. The goal for us is to play at a high level in the beginning of the season and continue a steady, positive trajectory throughout the year. Obviously, every team wants to play the best it possibly can when you get to the end of May, so that will be what we’re shooting for. Ebbs and flows are natural, but we want to eliminate giant swings in “feeling” and “momentum” and maintain an even, consistent, keel as much as possible through this long season.
OCHS: I would like to see our total game improve on a daily basis.
THS: We have to be able to pitch, and we are going to have young players with some good talent. If we can just overcome adversity, we will be fine.
