While the 2019 Cowboy baseball team did have their struggles at times, they still pulled things together enough to win eight games. The team is now a year older and wiser, and with a nice cast of returners should be more than capable of building on that number this time around.
“We have 28 players out, with 13 returning letterwinners,” stated fifth-year head coach Nick Willwerth. “We return a lot of offense with two all-conference performers back. We showed a lot of growth at the plate as the year progressed, and I expect that growth to continue. We are also very deep at nearly every position, and so we will have a lot of options both in terms of our depth chart and in defensive positioning. This is a luxury we have not had in the past, and I am excited to see who can perform when the lights are on.”
He sees the potential weakness as the pitching staff, where he faces a nearly total rebuilding after Brier Boyd, Bryce Brinkman and Nate Rapp took eight total wins with them. “We lost a lot of innings on the mound, so I’m challenging a few of our potential starters to step up and take the reins of the ace on the staff,” said the skipper. “We will need multiple guys who can command the zone and get outs on the mound. Strike percentage and efficiency will be crucial given the non-existent preseason and shortened practice time.” He feels the keys to the season will be being able to command the strike zone for his pitchers, being able to work into hitter’s counts and hit the fastball in those counts and minimize or eliminate free 90’s on defense.
Seniors include Tyler Stein, Caleb Krueger, Christian Tamayo, Ben Oehlert and Andrew Bell. Stein returns a .364 average which as second on the team, and was also second in hits (28) and in runs scored (20). He’s complimented by Krueger, who is capable of swinging a big stick as well. “Tyler is a returning first team all-conference outfielder,” said Willwerth. “This will be his fifth year as a starting outfielder, and he has gotten consistently better each year. That is a testament to his work ethic and ability to make continuous adjustments. He is a student of the game, and has been the cornerstone of this program the last few years.”
“Caleb has been a stalwart in the lineup the last couple of years, and really started to gain confidence this past season,” continued Willwerth. “He started to figure things out as a junior in terms of dedicating himself to his craft and saw good results on the field because of it. I look for each of them to lead this team both in terms of production and emotionally. Christian, Ben and Andrew all have an opportunity to showcase what they can do under the lights.”
The junior class is headed by Reed Abbas, a two-time all-NCC performer. Abbas blasted a .413 average to lead the team, and was tops in hits (31) with eight of those doubles. “The junior class is the most talented group we have on the roster, and Abbas will man the helm of our infield at shortstop,” said the skipper. “Reed has done a great job improving his game each year after starting as an eighth grader, and I expect him to provide consistency and power in the middle of our lineup.”
Others in that class on the roster include Mateo Martinez, Damien Bjorkland-Strong, Bryce Allen, Kain Nelson and Christian Gaytan. “Mateo (.246 retuning average) will join Reed up the middle of our infield, and made tremendous strides last year both in terms of production and leadership,” said Willwerth. “Damien will be our potential ace on the staff, and we will lean on him to eat up a lot of innings on the mound. Bryce will work third base after an injury-shortened season a year ago, and as hard as he works I expect his growth to continue. Kain and Christian are back with us after hiatuses, and we are glad to welcome them back.”
The sophomore class is spearheaded by Cael Chase, who will be back behind the dish after a year off from catching due to an injury. “Cael is a tireless worker and another student of the game,” said Willwerth. “I have high expectations for him, and will demand a lot out of him.” Others are Thane Jackson, Nick Carpenter, Jacob Moore and Coady Olson. “Thane and Nick will be called upon to provide leadership for our JV squad, but could also see varsity time,” said the skipper. “They both love the game and work very hard at their craft. They have improved tremendously since joining the program as eighth graders. Jacob and Coady will provide good production for us at the JV level.”
Willwerth feels the freshmen are the hardest working group on the team, and have a great blend of work ethic and talent among them. Those include Nevan Foss, Preston Gardner, Kaleb King, Porter Chase and Tristan Fletcher. “Nevan and Preston will both see plenty of varsity time after getting intermittent starting nods as eighth graders,” said Willwerth. “I look for them to play well above their age level ythis year. Kaleb, Porter and Tristan are all grinders who love the game. They are a joy to coach, and will provide great production for us at the JV level. I expect big things out of this freshman class in the future.”
Assistants this year are Chris Allen as the head JV coach and Adam Vorrie as the defensive coordinator. Managers are Olivia Olson and Emma Fishburn. “This is their second year with the club and they do a great job for us,” said Willwerth.
When asked for his opinion on the conference race, the head coach feels that Webster City is the team to beat. “They return most of their team that won last year, and will have hands down the best pitcher in the area in Tyler Olson,” said Willwerth. “I think Hampton-Dumont-CAL could make a run, as they have a lot of talent back and had a good JV squad a year ago.”
