By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Aurora baseball enjoyed another winning season in head coach Heath Fortson’s rookie campaign.
The Houn’ Dawgs finished with a 16-14 record, falling to Seneca in the district championship.
“The 2025 season was a decent year for our program, but we fell short of a district title which was our main goal,” Fortson said. “We played a lot of good baseball last year, and it will certainly be a foundation for any success we have this season.”
Aurora will look to a pair of all-state honorees to lead the team this season in Memphis Mooneyham and Sean Creasey.
Mooneyham, a sophomore center fielder, hit .494 last season with 1 home run, 25 RBI and 22 stolen bases.
Creasey, a junior utility and pitcher, hit .480 as a sophomore with 5 home runs, 22 RBI and 27 stolen bases. On the mound, the Big 8 Conference Co-Player of the Year compiled a 2.42 ERA with 34 strikeouts.
The duo are joined by senior third baseman Max Holland (.337 AVG, .845 OPS, 33 RBI), senior pitcher Juan Guido (25.2 IP, 2.72 ERA, 23 K) and junior pitcher and shortstop Casen Brown (32.1 IP, 4.11 ERA, 27 K, .237 BAA).
Heading into his second season at the helm, Fortson will also look to a quartet of varsity newcomers to step in and compete for innings, including sophomore pitcher/first baseman Parker Blackburn, senior right fielder Carsen Gillam, sophomore left fielder Cooper Brown, and junior catcher Brennan Diaz.
Fortson on Blackburn: “Gave us quality innings on the mound last year and a quality bat with improved power. Looking for him to contribute more in every facet this season.”
Fortson on Gillam: “DH role last season and continues to improve. Should produce much more all season this year.”
Fortson on Brown: “This will be his first year playing varsity consistently but had a ton of growth throughout his freshman season. Very athletic and smooth outfielder.”
Fortson on Diaz: “Varsity catcher most of the 2025 season and handled the pitching staff well. Gritty, tough and dependable behind the plate; bat has continued to improve throughout the offseason.”
With both talent and experience returning to the lineup, Fortson believes his team will be in an ideal position to improve upon last season’s success.
“This group is excited and bought in to what we’re doing, and the biggest challenge is simply maintaining that momentum throughout the season,” Fortson said. “Our expectations are much the same as last year: win a district championship and be competitive in every game that we play.”
“The pitching staff is young, but we have talented arms throughout our roster that will give us a chance every game,” Fortson said. “Offense should be our strong suit this season. We return six of nine starters in the lineup and most of our top production. We have a good mix of speed and power, which allows us to put pressure on other teams. We defended well last season but are hoping to continue improvement in that area.”
Following a March 14 jamboree at Willard, Aurora opens its season March 19 in the Forsyth Tournament against Bolivar.
