2020 Spring Preview: Hollister Baseball

hollister-layton-morgan

By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)

For second-year Hollister High School baseball coach Trent Oxenreider, it won’t be difficult to motivate players.

After all, the Tigers advanced all the way to a district championship game, only to fall to tradition-rich Springfield Catholic.

“That has fueled the returning players,” Oxenreider said. “And with us returning most of the pieces and adding quality players, our kids look to put themselves in position to compete for a district title again.”

A former Strafford High School and College of the Ozarks standout, Oxenreider pushed a lot of the right buttons last year as Hollister finished 17-10.

Nine players from that team are returning. They are Layton Morgan, Landon Richards, Konner Hatfield, Cole Jones, Rylan Newell and Colby Teaster. They are now juniors, and senior Coltin Baur gained valuable experience as a pitcher last season.

“Hatfield (outfielder) is a do-everything kind of player who plays with high energy,” Oxenreider said of a Class 4 All-State honorable mention selection who also was All-Big 8 Conference first team. “If he goes, then we go. And Jones (catcher) is in a natural leadership role. He will be looked at to be more vocal and in control of the game.”

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The pitching staff features Bauer, junior left-handers Richards and Hatfield, sophomore Clay Kemp, and Morgan, Teaster, Jones and Newell.

“We graduated 50 percent of our innings on the mound,” Oxenreider said. “So there are some unknowns.”

The lineup calls for Hatfield in center field, Teaster at second, Morgan in right field, Richards in left field, Jones at catcher, Kemp at third base, Newell at first base, sophomore Isaac Qualls at shortstop and then Baur.

Morgan batted .303 with a .766 slugging percentage. He had a team-best 38 hits, including 12 doubles, five triples and four home runs. Along the way, he compiled 44 RBI and scored 30 runs himself. And he wasn’t simply an all-or-nothing hitter, as his patience led to drawing 11 walks.

Morgan was a Class 4 All-State utility/designated hitter second team selection along with earning All-Big 8 East Division and all-district honors.

Richards drove in 24 runs and scored 18 runs, plus stole 24 bases in a season when he batted .340. He earned All-Class 4 District 11 second team honors along with All-Big 8 East Division second team.

Hatfield drew a team-best 23 walks as he batted .361 with 30 hits, including six doubles and a home run. He drove in 15 runs. He was a Class 4 All-State honorable mention along with earning first team honors on both the All-Big 8 East Division and all-district lists.

Teaster batted .333 with 25 hits, 22 of them singles, and drew 11 walks. He also stole 12 bases. He was an All-Big 8 East Division honorable mention.

Qualls and Kemp could be “sleepers” this season.

“Qualls has put a lot of time in in improving and fine-tuning his craft,” Oxenreider said. “He will compete for the shortstop position. We need to fill shortstop due to graduation. If we can get solid play there, then we should be solid on the infield. Kemp could potentially be one of our top players.

“Our outfield defense will be very athletic and shows good speed,” Oxenreider added.

The Big 8 should be challenging again. A year ago, each team had at least two conference losses. And district won’t be easy, either. But the Tigers hope to be standing at the end.

“All teams return quality players,” Oxenreider said. “But our goal is to win district.”

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