NORTHEAST BASEBALL READIES FOR THE 2023 CAMPAIGN

NORFOLK, Neb. – It's a brand-new season for the Northeast Community College baseball team as they prepare to load up and head to David Allen Memorial Ballpark in Enid, Oklahoma to battle Northern Oklahoma College-Enid to begin a new season. The 2022 season saw history made with a program record of 39 wins in a season, but the 2023 new-look Hawks are ready to go and make history of their own.

Northeast Head Baseball Coach Marcus Clapp is embarking on his sixth campaign at the helm of the Northeast baseball program, and he knows that this season will bring a new set of challenges.

"It's a completely different team," Clapp said. "For us, last year we kind of knew what we had. That's why we were able to have success early because we were older, we were established and we had a lot of returners."

Putting last season in the past won't be easy as the 2022 group jumped out to a 20-2 start to begin the slate. Last year's team also set program records for hits in a season (583), doubles (122), triples (24), home runs (73), RBIs (441), walks (260), stolen bases (106), on-base percentage (.430), slugging percentage (.544) and a team semester GPA of 3.52.

The focus early will be to get this group acclimated to what it means to dawn a Northeast uniform.

"February is going to be a good learning of where we are at," Clapp said. "Guys need to understand what college baseball is about. Early here we are going to identify ourselves as competitors. Making sure we compete."

Everyone wants to win, and that's a given, but Clapp's main goal is for this group to get better every day.

"I don't know if we can focus so much on the wins and losses early as much as are we getting better?" Clapp said. "Are guys understanding their role? What role are guys even in? We're still trying to figure out what our lineup is going to be, what our rotation is going to be. It's going to be a lot of new learning and to be able to go out and play is going to be great."

In 2022, Nate Brecht, Maximo de Leon, Parker Dorrance, Matt Dreher, Garrett Dudley, Houston Fogelstrom, Maxim Fullerton, Connor Jeffers, Samuel Manwarren, Chris Mazzi, Dylan Rodgers, Creighton Silvain, Preston Tenney, Cooper Whitt and Zane Zielinski all signed to play baseball at other schools after Northeast.

Having to replace everyday starters who found a lot of success with the Hawks isn't always an easy thing, but Clapp and his staff are ready for the challenge.

"Sometimes it's good, sometimes it can be a little hectic," Clapp said of this large group of newcomers. "There's just a lot of uncertainty. Usually, you are going in and know six-to-seven guys in your lineup. Knowing your four-to-five-to-six guys in the rotation. This year is just a lot of we don't know the lineup yet, we don't know where the best guy is going to fit. I think it's exciting, but it's also a little bit of uncertainty, and I don't know if that is good or bad."

Zane Zielinski was named Second Team All-Region while Taylor Gill (Orem, Utah), Samuel Manwarren, Harrison Taubert (Casper, Wyo.) and Preston Tenney all were named Honorable Mention All-Region. Of that group, Gill and Taubert return to Northeast this year. Both are guys that Clapp will lean upon to be leaders of the 2023 squad.

"Those two guys for sure," Clapp said. "We expect Kaden Young (Columbus, Neb.) to be a guy in the infield and a guy at the plate for us. On the mound, Nate Zyzda (Sioux City, Iowa) is back coming off injury. Clay Beaumont (Tekamah, Neb.) is back coming off injury, Christian Carew (Parker, Colo.) is back coming off injury. Gage Ingram (LaVista, Neb.) ate up a lot of innings for us last year and he's back. We really have about three-to-four guys on the mound and three-to-four guys position player-wise that we expect to contribute and be there, but at the same time we have to have a lot of young guys step up."

Kaden Young is a good example of a player who, coming in, had to work hard to crack the starting lineup at the beginning of last season. However, by the time the campaign came to a close, he ended up tallying 38 RBIs.

"You're going to have one or two of those guys who you knew were going to be a good little player but all the sudden, man, they just went off," Clapp said. "Korben Rich (Kearney, Neb.) is a guy that can have a really good year. Grayson Headrick (Littleton, Colo.) is another one. He's just so athletic that if we can get him going offensively that's just going to help our lineup. On the mound, we're excited for guys like Gabe Rodriguez (Thornton, Colo.)."

As is the case every year at a junior college, there will need to be newcomers who come in and make an impact right away.

"Matt Kitzman (Osseo, Minn.) will still be able to hit for us this year and we are hoping to have him back on the mound by the end of the year," Clapp said. "That's going to be a guy that's going to help us down the road. Nick Vilims (Evergreen, Colo.) is a freshman that's going to be a big guy for us. Oliver Ward (Mill Creek, Wash.) is a guy coming off injury."

Finding out how new guys will fit in is all part of the anticipation level that Clapp and his staff feel as a new season rolls around.

"We've got talent," Clapp said. "That's something at the beginning of the year that we were excited about is that we have talent. We have to get some guys healthier. The freshmen that we brought in, we were just going to have to see what happens when the lights are turned on. It's exciting to know that the talent is there, and we just have to see what happens."

Not only will there be fresh faces on the field this year, but the field itself will also be new. In conjunction with the city of Norfolk, artificial turf was installed on the infield in the fall at Veterans Memorial Field in Norfolk. Clapp can hardly contain his joy when speaking about what the turf with bring to Northeast.

"It's huge for our program and it's huge for the community," Clapp said. "With all the snow we always talk about, 'Man, when are we going to get on there?' Well, when the snow melts, we can get on it quickly. In years past it was great when the snow melted, but it took another two weeks after the snow melted for it to thaw. It's huge for us to be able to get out there. It's going to be huge for upkeep, for recruits and for us to be able to get out there sooner. It's just a big addition that's going to help us out."

One talking point that has been engrained into everyone on the team this year has been finishing strong.

"We have to be playing our best ball at the end of the year," Clapp said. "The last couple of years we have had a really good record, and that's great, but at the end of the day you work hard for the postseason. With this group we have really been talking about finding a way to get better. Learn from your mistakes. Learn from your successes. It doesn't matter what happens in February. It doesn't matter what happens in March."

The Hawks last reached the NJCAA DII Baseball World Series in 2019 and know that they will have to fight every day in a league as tough as the ICCAC. Conference foe Kirkwood Community College clocks in at sixth in the 2023 preseason NJCAA DII baseball polls, while Southeastern Community College and Iowa Central Community College are both receiving votes.

"We have to play well enough to make the top six," Clapp said. "At the end of the day, we have to be playing and hitting on all cylinders at the end of the year."

When looking back at the season there are a few things that Clapp wants to see to consider the year a successful one.

"Obviously, you want to go as far as you can," Clapp said. "I think growth is going to be a good thing. For as many guys as we're going to have back next year, to have success this year for them as a team is only going to help us the next year and getting going."

In the offseason Clapp has a tradition of having his group set expectations, and it's something that he strongly believes in.

"We have the guys create the team goals," Clapp said. "They've created some good ones. You obviously want to meet your team goals. Honestly, if you meet 60-percent of those team goals you probably had a good year."

The season is officially here, and Clapp is itching to see his team compete for the ultimate goal of being the last team standing.

"It's time," Clapp said. "The guys are ready to go."

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