The lone state qualifier in The Times’ coverage area, Omaha Gross, loses 11 seniors but returns their outfield and three pitchers. Bellevue West and Papillion-La Vista South aim to make it at least one game further after losing in district finals last year. Although weather froze Opening Day back an extra few days, the ‘ping’ of the bat and ‘pop’ of the glove will soon be heard again.
Mike Patterson from the Omaha World Herald compiled all you need to know about each team in Sarpy and Cass counties. Additional reporting by Peter Burtnett.
CLASS A
Bellevue East
Coach: Ian DeLaet, 5th year. 2022: 15-12.
Returning starters: Seniors: Landen Johnson, SS/P. Juniors: AJ Lucas, C/3B/P; Austin Pavon, 1B/P; Cole Holbrook, P; Mason Chandler, 3B/P.
People are also reading…
Outlook: Chieftains welcome back Chandler and Jacob Perrin, who were both slated to start last season but were sidelined by injury.
Bellevue West
Coach: Jason Shockey, 9th year. 2022: 17-12.
Returning starters: Seniors: Tyler Jeffus, OF/P; Jackson Steele, INF; Jackson Frill, OF; Logan Toman, P/UTIL; Bryce Woodard, P. Juniors: Nick Riggs, P/1B; Tanner Hosick, P/UTIL; Cade Zavala, C; Colin Flores, P/OF. Sophomores: Drew Grego, INF.
Outlook: Always-tough Thunderbirds should be in the thick of the Class A race again this season; Grego is a Nebraska recruit. Woodard is committed to York.
“We are extremely excited for this year to begin,” Shockey wrote to The Times. “We have several guys that put in a lot of time in the off-season to get physically stronger and also improve their overall skill-set. We’ve got quite a few position players and pitchers that are back from last year’s legion team that went 40-13 and earned a berth in the state tournament.”
Shockey also expects “lots of new faces” from last year to step into larger roles this year.
“We are hopeful that the experience that many of our players gained last year will help us reach our 2023 goals.”
That growth will be accelerated for the T-Birds with an “extremely difficult schedule” to start the season.
“In the first nine days, we play seven games against presumably 5-6 preseason Top 10 opponents. From a pitching standpoint, we will have a couple of arms that will need to step up and take on a larger role.”
Gretna
Coach: Jake Wolf, 13th year. 2022: 16-13.
Returning starters: Seniors: Jeff Miller, P; Chuck Thomas, P; Skylar Graham, P/UTIL; Caleb Schnell, INF/P. Juniors: Ty Smolinski, INF; Connor Cole, OF/P.
Outlook: Pitching depth will be a strength for the Dragons; Miller, Thomas and Cole combined to pitch 84 innings last season.
Omaha Bryan
Coach: David Ashby, 2nd year. 2022: 1-22.
Returning starters: Seniors: Kaiden Dollard, SS/P; Ricky Rodriguez, UTIL; Jack McGill, C/P; Cooper Robinson, 1B/OF. Juniors: Omar Ramirez, UTIL/P; John Clemons, OF.
Outlook: Bears hope to show progress for second-year coach Ashby; Ramirez batted .293 last season.
“We expect to make huge strides from last year’s 1-22 season,” Ashby wrote to The Times. “We’ve set goals to reach a certain mark and our kids have worked hard all off season to try and reach those goals.”
A hurdle to making those strides will be “very low” participation numbers, which Ashby aims to fix in the long run. In the meantime, he admitted the Bears will “struggle with depth.”
Along with the four seniors and two juniors returning as starters, Ashby said Ben Greenwell and Kaleb Rodriguez will be at the core for Bryan.
“These kids make up the core of our team. They contribute on the field, and most importantly, they maintain a strong culture of our program.”
Papillion-La Vista
Coach: Nate McCabe, 11th year. 2022: 10-18.
Returning starters: Seniors: Brayden Jones, P/1B; Jake Franks, OF; Jayden Mecseji, C; Zak Reyes, C/INF; Sebastian Noto, P; Hunter Jones, P/OF. Juniors: Tanner Apgar, P/INF.
Outlook: The Monarchs’ pitchers gained valuable experience last summer during the American Legion season; Jones batted .319 last season and struck out 21 on the mound.
“We want to be a team who focuses on doing the little things the right way EACH DAY,” McCabe wrote to The Times. “EACH DAY we want to have effort, energy, and enthusiasm. If we can control those things the wins will take care of themselves.”
New faces on the roster will leave the Monarchs to depend on returning guys like Apgar, Franks, Reyes, Jones and Noto to “help get the younger guys on board.”
Papillion-La Vista South
Coach: Bill Lynam, 20th year. 2022: 16-12.
Returning starters: Seniors: Brice Wallar, P/OF; Riley Schrader, INF; Trenton Andringa, INF/P; Johnny Vallinch, INF/P; Brady Fitzpatrick, OF/C; Brett Siemsen, C; Xander Doble, P. Sophomores: Danny Wallace, P/OF.
Outlook: Titans appear to have one of their best teams in recent years for veteran coach Lynam; sophomore Wallace is weighing several Division I offers, including one from Nebraska.
“Outfield, infield and catcher return from last summer’s Legion season,” Lynam wrote to The Times. “We have some pitchers returning, but will need to compete and throw strikes with more consistency. We will be improved on defense and will hit better than last year. Experience, work ethic and team culture are some of the assets I like about the Titans.”
Challenges to the Titans this year? Weather and a deepening pool of talent in the state.
“The weather, let’s hope for some good weather this spring,” Lynam said. “(And) the talent in the state. There are some really good baseball players and the quality of the game is growing.”
Team Leaders:
“We are looking for Brice to have a big year this season. Powerful at the plate and has a big arm with a tight breaking ball. (Wallace) started as a freshman last year. He will get more mound duty this year. (Schrader) had a big summer at the plate during the Legion season. (Vallinch is an) excellent defender and pitcher with a big breaking ball. Fitzpatrick (was) hurt all last year. Football injury sidelined the whole year. Left Handed hitter will bring some pop to the lineup. Doble worked very hard this fall and winter and has made a huge jump in velocity. Look for Xander to be a regular part of the rotation.”
Andringa and Siemsen, meanwhile, are the Titans’ glue guys.
“”Andringa is an) excellent player and hitter. Competes at a high level. Keeps his composure, very bright and works, the players respect his game. He holds everything together. (Siemsen) made tremendous progress last year. Just keeps getting better. He is like a coach on the field.”
CLASS B
Omaha Gross
Coach: Jim Hempel, 3rd year. 2022: 18-9, state qualifier.
Returning starters: Seniors: Connor Capece, C/P; Owen Brennan, C/CF; Alex Kosse, P/RF; Joseph Rempe, 3B/P. Juniors: Colby Duncan, 2B/SS; Nate Pechar, CF.
Outlook: Cougars graduated 11 from last year but return a speedy outfield and three key pitchers; Capece is a Creighton recruit.
CLASS C
Platteview
Coach: Bryan Dutcher, 10th year. 2022: 13-8.
Returning starters: Seniors: Alex Draper, CF; Gage Ryba, LF; Austin Krenzer, P/3B. Juniors: Nathan Thomas, SS; Keegan Stobbe, 2B.
Outlook: The Trojans won 13 in Class B last year and should be even better this season with a great mix of returning starters and newcomers; another team to watch.
Plattsmouth
Coach: Jim Olsen, 10th year. 2022: 10-10.
Returning starters: Seniors: Drew Iverson, P; TJ Fitzpatrick, OF; Clayton Mayfield, C/P. Juniors: Gage Olsen, SS/P; Gabe Villamonte, P. Sophomore: Henry Loontjer, UTIL.
Outlook: The Blue Devils should be competitive after winning 10 in Class B last season; Iverson is a Wichita State commit.
“Our players help set our expectations,” Olsen wrote to The Times. “These are a few key expectations we have: Always compete no matter what. Trust our process and play baseball the right way. We want to get better as the season progresses and put ourselves in a position to compete for a district championship.”
Like Lynam at Papio South, Olsen expects weather and number of games per week while still excelling in school to continue to be the challenges.
“The season requires us to be intentional with what we do. We need to take care of ourselves and make sure we’re good mentally as well as physically.”
The six returning starters will bring a “lot of experience” back to the Titans, along with Eli Horner, Kyler Lamb, Ben Laney, Seth Thompson, and Ethan Walker.
“These 11 are the players will lead our team.”
