By Derek Shore (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
A young Hillcrest baseball team looks for continued improvement coming off its most successful season since 2017.
The Hornets, led by veteran coach Ryan Schaffitzel, return three starters from last season in seniors Holten Pyle (infielder/pitcher) and Ethan Lewis (outfielder/pitcher) as well as junior Leighton Herrmann (infielder/pitcher).
“Holten is a steady leader, who we will not only look to for leadership but also for production,” Schaffitzel said. “This will be his third year as a starter. He will play somewhere on the infield as well as make several appearances on the mound. Holten is a very smart player who is also one of our hardest workers. This will be Ethan’s second year as a starter in the outfield and his third as a varsity pitcher for us. He is a steady strike thrower, who we will look to for a lot of innings on the mound. We will also count on Ethan to get on base and move runners up. Ethan’s unselfishness should be a model for our younger players.
“Leighton has a ton of natural baseball ability. We need him to do big things for us this spring both on the mound and at the plate. He should hit in the middle of the order and be our number one pitcher. We need Leighton to become someone that we can look to for not only his baseball ability but also his leadership.”
Junior Austin Miller (infielder/pitcher) rounds out Hillcrest’s returnees. Miller is expected to step into a major varsity role after being a late game defensive substitution in the infield last year.
Senior Eric Kepler (first baseman) and sophomore Colton O’Neil (utility/pitcher) were set to make big varsity contributions, but will miss the spring season due to season-ending labrum surgeries.
The Hornets have a wealth of young talent looking to emerge. It starts with junior Jesse Askin (infielder/pitcher).
“Jesse has had a great offseason both in the weight room and on the field,” Schaffitzel said. “He will get an opportunity to play somewhere this spring. His versatility will help us. He is also in the running for some innings on the mound.”
Sophomores Jackson Miller (outfielder/pitcher), Harrison Parkin (outfielder), Kasen Delong (infielder/pitcher), Jayden Brown (infielder/pitcher), Hunter Bussard (utility/pitcher) and Gunnar Sanchez (infielder) will compete for varsity time.
“Jackson is a left-handed pitcher and outfielder that will get an opportunity at both places,” Schaffitzel said. “He is a strike thrower with good movement. He is also a solid outfielder. We are expecting good things from Jackson over the next three years. Harrison made huge improvements in his game last spring and during the summer. He made himself into a steady defensive outfielder. He also works hard to improve his offense. Kasen is a second baseman
and pitcher that will get an opportunity to earn playing time at both places this spring. He has worked very hard to get stronger and improve his speed and skill this winter.
“Jayden is another infielder who will have an opportunity to compete for varsity innings this spring. He is another hard worker who we are expecting to help us over the next three years. Hunter is a utility player and pitcher with a great deal of natural ability. He has been blessed with a good arm and comes from a baseball family. Hunter will have an opportunity to win a position this spring at several different positions. Gunnar is a multi-sport athlete who has not played a great deal of baseball but his work ethic allowed him to improve a great deal last year. He will be given a chance to win a spot in the infield this spring.”
After graduating six starters and already two players down due to injury, Schaffitzel knows the 2024 campaign will bring challenges. However, the coach stressed this young group is ready to show up everyday and work hard.
“We have the players with the potential to step in and fill those spots,” Schaffitzel said. “We will use the first few weeks of the regular season to figure out who will win the spots. The guys on this year’s team are a lot of fun to coach because of their attitudes and work ethics. Like last year’s team, they show up when they’re supposed to and work hard.”
Hillcrest hosts a jamboree with Glendale, Parkview and Fair Grove on March 8. The Hornets play at Republic on March 15 to open the season.
“With so many unproven players in the lineup, we will need to focus on offensive execution more than ever,” Schaffitzel said. “We will have to learn to be as efficient as possible on offense to take advantage of scoring opportunities. As always, pitching and defense will determine how successful we are. We try hard to teach our players that those two areas of the game are the most important because teams that do those things will always have a chance to win. We will have several pitchers who will be counted on to throw a lot of strikes, while moving the ball around and changing speeds.”
