Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Arcata head coach Troy Ghisetti and senior Will Mager.
By Ray Hamill — The Arcata Tigers will open the new baseball season on their new field next week, but the bigger question is can a young roster defend the Big 5 and Charlie Lakin Tournament championship double they won a year ago?
Last year’s team succeeded in large part thanks to a talented and experienced class of seven seniors, and longtime head coach Troy Ghisetti will need to find a way to fill those shoes.
And he’ll have to do it with a roster that features four sophomores and a freshman, all of whom are expected to play a key role.
“It’s been a great preseason for us,” said Ghisetti, who is the only returning head coach in the Big 5 this spring. “The practices have been going great, but we’re going to be a young team this year.”
The good news is that the Tigers do have a small core group of team leaders that will be expected to lead the way.
That group includes pitcher/infielder Will Mager and outfielder/pitcher Cedar Cline, each of whom are battling injuries right now, although both are expected back early in the season.
According to Ghisetti, Mager already is playing a key role despite not being able to play yet.
“He’s a leader out there at practice every day and he’s getting kids excited to play,” the head coach said. “Everything’s going great with his rehab.”
Senior outfielders Ty Ghisetti and Miles Oliver are both also excepted to play a key role this spring, while senior infielder Noah Waterhouse is “working his butt off” to try and earn a starting role.
Anthony Ebert
Another senior expected to play a big role is Chase Coleman, who returns to the team for the first time since his freshman season after moving out of the area for the past two years.
The team’s league challenge, however, will depend largely on how quickly a talented group of young players can mature.
Sophomore Anthony Ebert will play a key role at the plate after a big freshman campaign, while Ben Lukens and Finn Warner will give the Tigers some depth on the mound.
Wilson Medina rounds out a talented sophomore class and also saw substantial time on the field a year ago.
Freshman Tanner Kees, meanwhile, is expected to make an immediate impact and will start behind the plate.
“His hands are so smooth he could easily play any of the infield spots,” the head coach said of Kees.
The longtime head coach, who enjoys this 400th career win last spring, believes a senior-heavy Fortuna team will be the favorites heading into league play, but says he expects this year’s Big 5 to be wide open.
“It’s going to be very competitive,” he said. “It’s going to be a fun one.”
The Tigers open the new season at home to Hoopa on Friday of next week.
