Conway baseball is looking for a bounce-back season coming off a five-win campaign with six full-time starters returning.
Caleb Graves, Isaac Freeman and Cade Archer will be team leaders in 2023.
“Caleb Graves, Isaac Freeman, and Cade Archer will serve as our team’s captains this spring,” Conway head coach Clay Bilyeu said. “They are all returning starters from last spring and with only one senior (Caleb) on our roster we will look for them to help guide a young group.”
Conway will have a deep pitching staff.
“We bring back a lot of pitching from last season and I feel like it will be one of our biggest strengths,” Bilyeu said.
The pitching staff will feature Brixon Bilyeu (sophomore), Jake Maxwell (sophomore), Freeman, Archer and Graves.
Coach Bilyeu on Brixon Bilyeu: “He was 2-4 last year in 31.2 innings pitched with a 3.31 ERA and 56 strikeouts. He led our team in innings pitched last season as a freshman and was our No. 1 on the mound. He has worked hard this offseason to increase velocity and command and hopefully will be ready for a big spring.”
Coach Bilyeu on Maxwell: “Jake was our No. 2 last spring as a freshman and finished 1-4 with 41 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched. He has very good command and as he continues to develop, he is going to be a very solid pitcher for us.”
Coach Bilyeu on Freeman: “Isaac had a great year for us last spring on the mound and was 1-2 with a 5.86 ERA and 25 strikeouts through 22.2 innings pitched. He was used as a starter and reliever last spring but will likely see most of his innings this spring as a starter. He is our guy that can really change speeds and move the ball around.”
Coach Bilyeu on Archer: “We anticipated Cade being one of our top guys last spring, but due to injury he was limited to 12 innings pitched. We are really excited about him being back fully healthy this spring and believe that he will really help give us quality depth and a chance to compete every time he takes the mound.”
Coach Bilyeu on Graves: “Caleb threw 6.2 innings last spring but has worked hard to improve his command and will hopefully see more innings this spring in a reliever’s role. He is a hard thrower who can be very effective when he can find the plate.”
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Freshman Gentry Bilyeu and sophomore Mason Miller will round out the varsity pitching staff.
Brixon Bilyeu, Maxwell, Freeman and Graves could all see time at catcher.
Around the infield, Graves and Miller will see time at first base. Gentry Bilyeu, Freeman and Quinton McGuire are all candidates for time at second base. Archer, Brixon Bilyeu and Freeman are in the mix at shortstop. McGuire and Maxwell will hold down third base.
Jackson Gunter, Evan Peters, Tyler Vaughan, Brixon Bilyeu, Freeman, and Maxwell will play in the outfield.
“I feel like we are going to see a lot of improvement from our entire group this year,” Bilyeu said. “We are still going to be young, but they have been working hard in the offseason in the weight room and with their baseball skill and I’m hoping we will see that this spring.”
Pitching will be a strength, but Conway will have to improve at the plate to stack more wins.
“We will have to improve offensively to go from competing in games to winning games,” Bilyeu said. “We do bring back the core of our offense from last year but will need to have some other guys take the next step up for us to really be successful.”
Conway opens the regular season on Mar. 17 at home against Waynesville.
“Even though we have struggled last spring and this fall I want us to be seen as competitors; a team you can’t overlook on your schedule and that you know you have to come ready to play against,” Bilyeu said. “A lot of our guys have had to play at the varsity level too early the last couple of years just due to a lack of upperclassmen above them, and I don’t want them to get trapped in a loser’s mindset. We are close and if they continue to compete in practice and for complete games we will start to see the wins.”
