By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
While Forsyth baseball finished the 2021 campaign with a 13-13 record, the Panthers caught fire late in the season and rolled to a district championship.
Head coach Byron Richardson was pleased with his young team’s solid finish.
“We had a fairly inexperienced varsity team last season,” Richardson said. “Most of the older guys missed the junior season to Covid. Our sophomores and some of the freshmen also got their first taste of varsity baseball. It was a learning year with several ups and downs, but we finished very strong.”
Forsyth graduated a quartet of seniors in Buck Sanders, Parker Gillman, Keith Young and Hayden Day.
Sanders was named to all-conference and all-district teams in 2021. He is now playing baseball at College of the Ozarks.
The Panthers return a solid core of starters in Keegan Etheridge, Zack Strahan, Aaron Gross, Tristan Hunter and Phoenix Maloney.
Etheridge, a senior infielder/outfielder, hit .200 last season with 9 runs batted in and 9 stolen bases. On the mound, he posted a 1-2-0 record with a 3.81 ERA.
“Keegan will take on a larger pitching role this spring,” Richardson said. “He is always calm and collected and I look for him to make big strides in the box.”
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Strahan, a junior center fielder, hit .194 with 8 runs batted in and 8 stolen bases.
“Zack is a speedy player that keeps getting stronger and more athletic,” Richardson said. “He has great instincts and I look for him to be a big part of getting our offense started.”
Gross, a junior catcher/infielder/pitcher, hit .167 with 6 runs batted in and 1 stolen base. On the mound, he finished with a record of 3-1-0 and an ERA of 3.64.
“Aaron is going to be one of the main arms and bats in the lineup,” Richardson said. “I look for him to turn some heads with the strides he has made in the weight room. He will be an impact player.”
Hunter, a sophomore pitcher/shortstop, hit .317 with 1 home run, 15 runs batted in and 7 stolen bases as a freshman. In addition, he recorded a 5-5-0 record on the mound with a 3.69 ERA.
“Tristan is coming in as a sophomore after a great freshman year,” Richardson said. “He is an impact player with a power arm and bat. Tristan also runs well and is one of the top young talents in the area.”
The sophomore Maloney returns to the outfield for the Panthers.
“Phoenix was our left fielder last season,” Richardson said. “He did a great job defensively for us. He is capable of playing multiple positions and I look for him to compete to get his bat in the lineup this year.”
Varsity newcomers to the lineup include sophomores Easton Day, Nick Guy, Colton Whisenhunt and Dylan Jennings, along with freshmen Braxton Gross, Aiden Cleveringa and Tyler Strahan.
“We are excited for the season after playing for two straight district championships and winning it last season,” Richardson said. “We return a very young, but talented team. We will once again have some learning curves with several new faces getting their varsity debuts and playing a tough schedule.”
Richardson believes Forsyth’s pitching staff and supporting defense will allow the Panthers to compete while the offensive production develops throughout the season.
“Our focus this season will be getting our offensive production up and continuing to play great defense,” Richardson said. “We have several strong arms along with our defense that should keep us in most games. How quickly players adjust to the speed of the varsity level will determine our success early on. Practices will be very competitive with several players fighting for playing time.”
Forsyth opens its season March 18 on the road at Reeds Spring.
