Lebanon Catholic baseball preview

Lebanon Catholic

Head coach: Glenn Meck, third season

Last year's record: 0-19, 0-16 Section Four

Key returners: Noah Marinkov, Sr., P-INF; Joe Gates, Sr., INF; Greg Morrison, Sr., C; Matt Brennen, Jr., OF; Sam Nye, Sr., INF; Kameron Shott, Sr., INF-P.

Promising newcomers: Matt Reardon, Fr., OF-P; Nick Hartman, Jr., INF-OF.

Outlook: While untold by the win-loss column, serious strides were taken inside the Lebanon Catholic dugout last spring.

The Beavers' goal this year is to now make their progress impossible to ignore.

Led by seniors Joe Gates and Noah Marinkov, Lebanon Catholic opens with five straight Class A opponents, who will be the first outsiders exposed to an improved defense and baseball acumen. Gates missed last season due to injury, while Marinkov returns to again hit in the middle of the Beavers' order and keep opposing bats at bay from the mound. Their leadership figures to play pivotal role in the continuing rebuild on Assumption Hill.

“We’re looking to build on last year," Lebanon Catholic coach Glenn Meck said. "We had a lot of players who had never played baseball before. We saw great strides from start to finish."

Offensively, the Beavers know they'll be forced to manufacture runs through aggression at the plate and on the base paths. In addition to their senior leaders, Matt Brennen returns as a key piece of the lineup, along with Greg Morrison, Sam Nye and Kameron Shott, who are set to form a team Meck figures to be proud of.

“I’m excited about the kids," Meck said. "I’ve got a group of kids who work really hard and faced a lot of adversity last year and always came back with a positive attitude.”