Baseball preview: A look at the seasons ahead for Seneca, Sandwich, Fieldcrest and our teams in the Little Ten

Here is a team-by-team season preview for baseball teams across The Times coverage area.

Editor’s note: Team previews for Ottawa, Streator, Marquette and Woodland/Flanagan-Cornell have already run in previous print editions and online at https://www.shawlocal.com/illinois-valley.

Newark

Coach: Josh Cooper (6th season)

Last season’s record: 10-22 (7-5 Little Ten)

Top returning players: Landon Begovac, C/OF, sr.; Payton Wills, IF, sr.; Toby Steffen, IF, jr.

Top newcomers: Eastin McBroom, IF/P, fr.; Jimmy Kath, IF/P, fr.

Worth noting: The Norsemen are returning core players such as Begovac (.320, .416 OBP) and Wills (.340, .415 OBP), as well as Steffen (.290, 436 OBP), who is back after missing much of last season with a fractured hand. Cooper feels McBroom and Kath will “likely make an immediate impact on the team’s depth and overall competitiveness. With a solid group of experienced upperclassmen, the team is well-positioned to make a deep run in both conference play and the postseason,” Cooper said. “Their success will likely hinge on staying healthy and making key adjustments. The team’s ability to perform in key matchups and handle the pressure of conference play will determine whether they can secure a top finish.”

Earlville co-op

Coach: Dillon Reel (7th season)

Last season’s record: 4-16 (4-11 Little Ten)

Top returning players: Easton Fruit, P/OF, sr.; James Henne, P/1B, sr.; Joe Clifford, C/UTL, sr.; Grady Harp, OF, sr.; Noah Schultz, OF, sr.; Austin Todd, IF/P, sr.; CJ Fuller, OF, sr.; Adam Waite, UTL/P, sr.; Landen Tirevold, UTL, jr.; Scott Brandt, UTL, jr.; Diego Sanxhez, 2B, so.

Top newcomers: Lane Rohrer, OF/P, fr.

Worth noting: Earlville and Leland have combined forces on the diamond again this spring, and Reel is excited to see how the experience many players gained last season translates into more consistent competitive. “Looking to be a solid year with a good class of senior experience along with our younger sophomore guys stepping up after getting their first year under their belt,” Reel said. “Last year we battled and were young; we were able to walk away with some big wins against Somonauk and Newark last year hoping that the sophomores this year can continue the progress from last year. We have some good senior leaders who can take these younger guys under their wings this season. Hoping for a good year overall.”

Somonauk

Coach: Troy Felton (9th season)

Last season’s record: 6-15 (6-6 Little Ten)

Top returning players: Silas Johnson, P/IF, sr.; Noah Brandt, IF/OF/P/C, sr.; Aldo Resendez, P/IF, sr.; Tristan Reed, P/IF/OF, so.; Kaden Geers-Clason, P/IF, so.; Landon Johnson, P/IF/OF, so.; Brady Andrews, P/IF/OF, so.; Alex Barnes, C, so.

Top newcomers: Luke Hartsell, P/IF/OF, so.; Connor Knutson, P/OF, fr.; Landon Barry, IF/OF, fr.

Worth noting: Felton not only has a solid mix of experience and youth back this season, but Bobcats players with versatility. “We have a group of sophomores this season that all saw considerable playing time at the varsity level last year,” Felton said. “I believe this year with them and our senior leadership and talent we should have a very solid varsity team. We have had a very nice addition of some other players that moved in as well as freshmen that will help to complement the talent we already have. This should be a very exciting season for the Bobcats.”

Serena

Coach: Jeremy Foreman (1st season)

Last season’s record: 14-13 (11-1 Little Ten champions)

Top returning players: Beau Raikes, P/SS, sr.; Payton Twait, C/P, jr.; Ian Watkins, OF, jr.; Carter Meyer, P/1B, so.; Wesley Hendricks, OF, so.; Nolan Muffler, 3B/OF, so.

Top newcomers: Ethan Stark, so.; Tucker Whiteaker, fr.; Nate Kelley, fr.; Ryne DeBernardi, fr.

Worth noting: Foreman takes over as Serena skipper after 10 years as an assistant under longtime coach/now athletic director Chad Baker. Raikes (.405, 27 RBI; 5-3, 2.90 ERA, 50 2/3 IP, 80 Ks, All-LTC), Twait (.299, 20 RBI), Watkins (3.00 ERA), Meyer (.281), Hendricks (.250, 15 SB) and Muffler all return with at least a year of experience but will have more significant roles. “We are a very young team this year,” Foreman said. “We return our best pitcher and one of our best hitters from last season in Beau, who will look to have a stellar senior season. We are asking some of our underclassmen to step up and play a much bigger role this year. I am excited about the youth that we have on this team, and we are looking to compete in every game this spring.”

Seneca

Coach: Tim Brungard (6th season)

Last season’s record: 20-8 (11-5 Tri-County)

Top returning players: Paxton Giertz, P/OF, sr.; Keagan Murphy, INF, sr.; Casey Klicker, OF, sr.; Brody Rademacher, P/INF, sr.; Carter Clouse, P/OF, sr.; Cam Shriey, P/INF

Top newcomers: Grant Siegel, P/INF, sr.; Jace Mitchell, P/INF, jr.; Cody Clennon, INF, jr.; Brady Haines, P/OF, jr.; Ethan Othon, C/INF, jr.; Ebyn Moore, OF, jr.; Griffin Hougas, C/INF, jr.; Landyn Ramsey, P/INF, jr.; Vinny Corrado, P/OF, jr.; Joey Arnold, C/INF, so.; Brant Roe, P/OF, so.

Worth noting: The Fighting Irish lost eight everyday players to graduation, so will be looking for Giertz (.422, .523 OBP; 3.09 ERA, 43 IP, 70 Ks, TCC first team last season) and Cam Shriey (.250 BA, .364 OBP; 2.10 ERA) to help lead the way. “Our pitching staff will be led by Giertz and Shriey and the remainder of the rotation will be filled in with our young players who have a ton of talent,” Brungard said. ”Our goal is going to be to compete every day and try guys at different spots until we find the main core for a starting lineup."

Sandwich

Coach: Jason VanPelt (14th season)

Last season’s record: 17-15 (9-5 Kishwaukee River)

Top returning players: Alex Hernandez, OF, sr.; Diego Corral, IF/OF, sr.; Brady Behringer, P/IF, jr.; Nick Michalek, P/IF, jr.; Jeffrey Ashley, C, jr.; Chase Clark, C, so.

Top newcomers: Griffin Somlock, P/OF, jr.; Cash White, P/IF, OF, so.; Anthony Wade, P/IF/OF, so.

Worth noting: The Indians are expected to be led by Behringer (.341; 3.35 ERA, All-KRC), Michalek (.253; 2.17 ERA) and Ashley (.293), all of whom were key members of last season’s team that contended for a league title. “We will have a fairly inexperienced team this season,” VanPelt said, “but we are expecting great leadership from Behringer, Michalek and Ashley. This group is working very hard with great attitudes. We will get better each day as the season goes on and we will see where we are at the end of May.”

Fieldcrest

Coach: Mark Brown (24th season)

Last season’s record: 11-13 (7-4 Heart of Illinois)

Top returning players: Zach Johnson, IF, sr.; Carter Lenhausen, OF, sr.; Cooper Haugens, OF/IF, sr.; Jordan Heider, IF, sr.; Tyler Serna, C, sr.; Eli Gerdes, OF, jr.; Lucas Anson, IF/OF/C, jr.; Layten Gerdes, IF, jr.; Lucas May, OF, jr.; Drew Overocker, IF, so.

Top newcomers: Maddux McDonough, IF, fr.; Noah Anson, OF/IF, fr.; Brysen Hochecker, IF, fr.; Nick Monti, Of, fr.

Worth noting: The Knights return eight starters from last year, including Heider (.427, 8 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 13 SB), Serna (.301, 13 RBI; 4-3, 4.12 ERA, 35 2/3 IP, 36 Ks), Layten Gerdes (.286, 9 2B, 18 RBI; 2-4, 2.63 ERA, 37 1/3 IP, 55 Ks) and Eli Gerdes (.283, 8 RBI). “There should be very little that they haven’t seen,” Brown said. “Not that this guarantees more wins, by any means, but they will be prepared for what the season brings. Layten Gerdes and Tyler Serna are probably the top two guys in the rotation. We have been talking this entire offseason about an all-in approach to the game.”