2022 NORTHEAST BASEBALL SEASON PREVIEW

NORFOLK, Neb. – Enthusiasm around the Northeast Community College baseball team is extremely high for the 2022 season after an incredible spring last year. The Hawks begin what they hope will be yet another successful campaign at 1 p.m. Monday on the road against the Northern Oklahoma College - Enid Jets at David Allen Memorial Ballpark in Enid, Okla.

Head coach Marcus Clapp enters his fifth season at the helm of the Hawks baseball squad, and he's delighted with the progress his program has made.

"I like where we're at," Clapp said. "We've gotten better every year. From year two on we've been in the thick of things conference-wise and conference championship-wise. We've put ourselves in positions to win the conference. That's something that I want to do every year."

The Hawks finished the 2021 baseball season with an overall record of 37-24 and a conference record of 28-14. Clapp hopes the past success will translate to 2022, but he knows that nothing is given in a league as competitive as the ICCAC.

"Every year is different," Clapp said. "For us to win 37 games last year with as many freshmen as we did, I wasn't expecting that. So that was obviously a pleasant surprise."

When Clapp sits and thinks about what excites him most about this year's group of players, there is one thing that jumps off the page.

"The talent," Clapp said with a smile. "We're talented. We return a lot of key guys on offense. Defensively, I think we're going to be pretty solid. We need a guy or two to step up in a couple of spots. Pitching on the mound, we're as old as we've ever been. Eleven of our 14 arms are sophomores. There's talent."

While around his players, Clapp doesn't shy away from the talent this collection of student-athletes have to offer, but he wants to make sure they have an even-keeled approach through the grind a baseball season is bound to offer.

"I tell the guys we have talent, but I also think that this league this year might be as talented as it's ever been," Clapp said while referencing the ICCAC. "Even though we're talented, so is everyone else."

There are 15 individuals who have prior experience playing for the Hawks at Veterans Memorial Field in Norfolk, which gives Clapp the confidence to evaluate his players' talent as high-level.

"We have so many returning guys that played, that have been there, that have been in the battle," Clapp said. "They can get on each other a little bit more. They can pick each other up a little bit more when they need to. I think this group is really close on and off the field."

Clapp knows it could be easy to get trapped in a mindset of believing success will come naturally because of the amount of production returning, but he also knows other programs have worked hard throughout the offseason to improve their respective teams.

"Going into this year you think about that," Clapp said. "You think, 'Man we won 37 games and we return all these guys.' Every year is different. Other teams will bring in guys, and one or two guys could make a difference."

The Hawks currently have two players committed to continue their baseball careers elsewhere once the season is over, with more to come. Left-handed pitcher Matt Dreher (Blair, Neb.) will take the mound at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln next year, while right-handed pitcher Preston Tenney (Parker, Colo.) will take his talents to the University of Nebraska at Omaha for the 2023 season.

Last season Tenney and infielder Zane Zielinski (Chicago, Ill.) were named ICCAC First Team All-Region players. The Hawks also had two Second Team All-Region performers, as infielder Parker Dorrance (Arvada, Colo.) and catcher Samuel Manwarren (Overland Park, Kan.) were honored for their success. Manwarren was also named a NJCAA DII Baseball ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Award winner with a .995 fielding percentage as the starting catcher for the Hawks.

"We had so many guys return that had success as freshmen," Clapp said while thinking back to last season. "That could be scary because I think sometimes, you're like, 'Oh, I've got this. I hit .350 as a freshman so I'm going to hit .350 again.' I think the mindset is just what happened last year was last year. If you want to be as good or better, you've got to keep working."

When Clapp met with his team for the first time in 2022, his message was short and simple.

"Our first team meeting is usually just about making sure that the guys are ready," Clapp said. "Making sure they know that our time is short. That's the biggest thing. When we come back from break there's three-and-a-half weeks, and then it's go time."

The season is indeed quickly approaching, but Clapp hopes that his team will continue to grow throughout the next few months.

"One thing we talk about all the time is one day at a time," Clapp said. "We just have to keep getting better every day. We don't expect to be Feb. 5 where we need to be on March 5. We don't expect to be March 5 where we need to be Apr. 5. We have to get better every day, and make sure that we're playing our best ball at the end of the year."

Despite the large number of guys back for their second season in a Hawks uniform, there are still a handful of freshmen who will need to play a contributing role.

"At second base we need Taylor Gill (Orem, Utah) to step up," Clapp said while evaluating his incoming freshmen class. "We need Darius Hagen (Omaha, Neb.) to step up. We need Harrison Taubert (Casper, Wyo.) in the outfield to step up."

The reason there is a need for numerous newcomers to make an impact this season is five former Hawks have moved on to other programs. Both Alex Potter (Southeastern Louisiana University) and Tanner Olmstead (University of Nebraska at Omaha) will continue their careers at the NCAA DI level, while brothers Cade and Colin Lynam (Wayne State College) and Jeremy Schneider (Missouri Western State University) will play at the NCAA DII level.

The Hawks will have to pull from a plethora of players to replace the level of production that those five contributed.

"We've got Connor Jeffers (Aubrey, Texas) who transferred in from another junior college (Ranger College) in Texas," Clapp said when accessing his current roster. "We're hoping that he can be a piece that we can plug-in and really fill a hole that we might need."

Jeffers joins a large sophomore group who will be leaned on to propel the Hawks forward this season.

"Parker Dorrance (Arvada, Colo.) is probably our most complete hitter," Clapp said. "We need him to continue to hit."

Dorrance tallied 17 doubles, four triples and three home runs in 2021, while hitting for a .333 batting average and a .500 slugging percentage.

"Zane Zielinksi (Chicago, Ill.) at shortstop might be the best defender in the league," Clapp said. "We need him to be consistent offensively. When he's not consistent offensively, we need to make sure he doesn't take that into the field, which he did a good job of last year."

Zielinksi did a little bit of everything for the Hawks in 2021. Not only did he hit for a .383 batting average and a .479 on-base percentage, but he also boasted a .884 fielding percentage defensively.

"Behind the plate Samuel Manwarren won the gold glove as a freshman," Clapp said. "He's back behind the plate leading the guys and being vocal. He caught more games than we probably wanted him to catch last year. We're hoping this year that's not the case so we can give him a break here and there, because we need his bat."

On top of a stellar defensive performance, Manwarren totaled 57 hits, 13 doubles and 38 RBIs. In addition, he carried a .339 batting average and a .469 on-base percentage.

"Cooper Whitt (Knoxville, Tenn.) had a really good year for us last year," Clapp said. "He's going to go back to the outfield. He played first base for us last year, and we're hoping we can keep him in the outfield. We expect him to continue to hit the ball."

Whitt brought a lot of thump to the Hawks lineup in 2021, as his nine home runs were the most of any returning player. In conjunction with his power, he slugged 10 doubles and three triples.

In summation, the Hawks will need a multitude of players to perform to achieve their goals.

"We've had a couple of sophomores that contributed last year, maybe not on a full-time basis, that have to step up on a full-time basis this year," Clapp said. "Again, our pieces are there. Until we start playing and these guys step up and see what they are going to do, those are the unknowns."

For the fourth-straight year, Clapp will be joined on the bench by catching coach Landon Briscoe. Clapp and Briscoe will be accompanied in the dugout by Omaha, Neb., native Pete Sitorius for the first time in 2022. The new infield and hitting coach joins the Hawks after previous stops at Bismarck State College in Bismarck, N.D. and Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla.

"I just liked his energy," Clapp said recalling the process to bring Sitorius on board. "He's really positive. He's really up-beat. I like how he keeps things simple, and that's something that we try and teach here."

There is certainly a detectable buzz around the potential achievements for the 2022 squad, but Clapp is also bullish about future iterations of the Hawks.

"I really like our 2022 class that we've got signed so far," Clapp said. "It's going to be a big one. We're just going to keep bringing good players in. Players that can get it done in the classroom and on the field."

Practices, weightlifting sessions and team meetings aren't the only events that have gone smoothly this offseason. Mother Nature has been a pleasant surprise too, as the Norfolk area has experienced rather unseasonable weather this winter.

"The weather's been good, so we've been getting outside here and there," Clapp said. "Can't complain about that either."

When asked about his eagerness to hit the diamond for live games, Clapp had just three words to sum up his excitement.

"Ready to go."

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