The Emmett High baseball team has been building for this season for the past couple of years. First-year coach Taylor Nicholson has a solid returning nucleus to build on. Gone is “Swiss-Army knife” Stevie Howe who anchored the pitching staff and the infield when not on the mound, but eight seniors return.
“We aren’t short on experience,” Nicholson says. “There is experience at every position and we have some solid additions from the JV Team.”
Those additions provide some rare depth for the Huskies that is so crucial late in the season when the schedules tend to get crowded — particularly when tournament time rolls around.
High on that depth chart is a pitching staff that Nicholson says can “go ten arms deep if we need to.”
They may not be overpowering on the mound but there is a variety of styles and pitches to call on in different situations. Seniors Bryson Kellam and Jase Bade are likely to be joined in the primary starting rotation by juniors Zach Rolland and Ryder Scheibe.
Senior Shane Daniels returns behind the plate and he has some relief in junior Jackson Simonsen.
Nicholson sees his infield as possibly the team’s greatest strength. That strength comes from the versatility of many of the players — each could be termed as a utility infielder in many cases.
Seniors Carson Alder (third base and short) and Easton White (first base) are joined by Bade, Kellum and Rolland when they aren’t pitching.
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The outfield returns intact with Scheibe and seniors Isaac Brennan and Caden Hinz.
While the Huskies are not likely to be a revived version of the Bronx Bombers of major league lore, Nicholson sees some potential for the long ball. He anticipates that smart, heady play, contact-hitting and intelligent base running will be a bigger factor on the offensive side of the field. That effort will be bolstered by the situational hitting opportunities with the likes of senior Carson Clark and juniors Casey Coburn, Evan Randall, Karsan Kharrl and Logan Curtis. All of them have arms to provide to the pitching arsenal as well.
How far can this veteran group go? Nicholson knows that his team is not considered one of the top two heading into Southern Idaho Conference play. But he thinks come May the depth could give them a shot at breaking through for a State tournament berth run.
“Bishop Kelly and Skyview are certainly the perennial powers,” Nicholson said. “I think we are probably in the next group with Columbia and Ridgevue. Caldwell and Vallivue were very young last year so not sure where they will be. I just know we will have to play consistently in all aspects of the game and if we can nail that third seed who knows what can happen at tournament time.”
The Huskies opened the season last week. A shaky opener against 5A Meridian saw Emmett suffer the consequences of six errors in falling 13-4. They rebounded, however, with a 9-7 win over 5A Capital on the road as Rolland garnered three hits and Bade added a double and single to lead the nine-hit attack.
Saturday in a non-conference home opener against Parma, Bade paired a triple with a single to lead the offensive attack in a 7-5 win.
This week is Spring Break for EHS so they Huskies will not return to the diamond until March 27 for a road game at Boise and then home for their conference opener against Vallivue on March 28.
