IVCC baseball has ‘upside’ on offense, more pitching depth

Second-year Illinois Valley Community College baseball coach Nick Harsted said last season was a learning experience for the Eagles as they went 13-24 overall and 4-16 in the Arrowhead Conference.

“Last year was a lesson for our program from the players to the coaching staff,” Harsted said. “Sophomore leadership and run support are a few things we will count on this season. Our freshmen have bought into the work it takes to have success at this level and that started right away with our sophomores. Our offense did a great job scoring runs during our fall season, so we hope to continue that this spring.”

The Eagles will look to a pair of sophomores to get the offense going at the top of the order.

Matt Reksnis will bat leadoff after hitting .313 with a .420 on-base percentage, while Sawyer Laffoon will fill the No. 2 spot after missing all of last season with an injury.

“Coming back 100% this fall, he batted around .400 and shows great ability to work counts and battle with two strikes,” Harsted said.

Jaydon Riggs, Casey Clennon, General Schofield and Nolan VanDuzer will provide pop in the middle of the lineup.

“Batters 3-6 are really interchangeable,” Harsted said. “All showed power and the ability to hit balls into gaps this fall. All are new to the team this season.”

Sophomore Ashton Pecher also will be a key hitter after hitting .298 last spring. Sophomore Max Cook and freshman Brady Romagnoli also were in the opening day lineup as the Nos. 8-9 hitters.

“I’m excited about the upside of our offense,” Harsted said. “We gained more speed and power this offseason. This fall, we saw home runs from six different players, five of whom are new players this season, with multiple guys hitting more than one. Mixing the power with the speed and on-base ability was a pleasant surprise. We averaged roughly six runs per game in the fall. If we can continue to put up runs offensively, we will be in a good spot.”

The Eagles hope to have plenty of run support for a pitching staff that has more arms this season.

Sophomores Ethan Plym, Braden Reilly, Payton Harwood and Bo Thomas will be relied on as starters, while freshmaen Austin Aldridge and Payton Dye also will get starts. Sophomore Connor Price will be a key arm out of the bullpen.

“Gaining pitching depth was a big emphasis for us last offseason,” Harsted said. “In the past, we’ve had a lot of throwers. We needed more pitchers. [Our sophomores] will be leaned on heavily to make sure we start each game in a good spot.

“The bullpen will be led by Connor Price and others who will be given opportunities to gain trust in the late innings.”

With some changes off the field, the Eagles look to improve on the field with their first 20-win season and first postseason appearance in more than 20 years.

“We’ve challenged this group to move the program forward,” Harsted said. “Until the last few years, our program has been missing important recruiting tools. Sharing a field with the Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp, adding scholarships, improvements to the school weight room facility and our partnership with JJR Next Level Fitness have given us everything we need to continue a positive trend. Winning ultimately tells the story. I have high expectations for this group.”