Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
The Clay baseball team, which returns nearly its entire pitching staff and features several talented sophomores, is expecting big things this year on the heels of a regional final appearance.
“My hope is that just with the experience and the year of growth and maturity, I'm expecting most of our guys to take some strides forward,” Clay’s 13th-year head coach Jim Phillips said. “That's really my expectation. If we can just kind of progress at a decent rate across the board, we got a chance to do some really great things this year if we can stay healthy.”
The Eagles, who finished 19-10 overall and won an NLL Cardinal Division title last year with an 11-4 league record, will have to replace guys like two-way star Landon Eversman, who was the co-player of the year in the Cardinal Division and a Second Team All-Ohio honoree. Also graduated are Jacob Weseman, who was a Second Team All-NLL selection at first base, and Ian DeWitt.
At the same time, aside from Eversman, Clay returns its entire pitching staff while adding two-way transfer sophomore Landon Echelberry, who earned First Team All-NLL recognition at Findlay High School last year.
“Pitching will definitely be our biggest strength by far,” Phillips said. “We’ll be able to hold teams to a few runs a game, hopefully, and if we're able to do that, obviously it'll take some pressure off our offense, especially early on in the season as we're kind of finding our footing from that standpoint.”
In addition to Echelberry, the rotation returns seniors Darin Fussell and George Edwards, as well as sophomore Bryce Besgrove, who is also a highly rated player that made First Team All-NLL in the outfield last year.
Echelberry, who was a First Team All-NLL selection at third base last year, joins Besgrove in the offensive lineup, as well. Another talented sophomore will be in there, too, as catcher Brannan Vargas returns after earning First Team All-NLL honors last year.
Besgrove will see time in the outfield and at first base when he’s not pitching, and senior Alex Goetz will roam centerfield for the Eagles.
Overall, Clay returns seven of nine starters in the lineup. The roster also features 15 upperclassmen.
“With last year's group, we were a relatively young team with a lot of underclassmen starting,” Phillips said. “Obviously, the experience of going to a regional final and winning a league championship in the NLL is going to be huge for us as we move forward this year.
“Most of those guys are back and that experience should make us prepared for the schedule that we'll be playing.”
With a solid mix of veterans and young guys, along with a veteran pitching staff, Clay looks to make another postseason run.
“Our focus, if we can stay healthy, is obviously to challenge for another league championship in the Cardinal,” Phillips said. “This would be the third in a row and our fifth in six years counting the TRAC and the NLL. (We’d also like) to get to a district championship and hopefully have the opportunity to advance again to another regional.”
