By Chris Neyenhouse
Hurley return seven starters from a squad who had their highest win total since 2018.
Head coach Quinn Appletoft says it’s time for his Tigers to compete for hardware this season, like they did a handful of years ago.
“This season I expect for us to be a district contender,” said Appletoft. “We have had early exits in the first round the last few years and I know we are all tired of it. This group will be working hard to be the team that brings another district title back to Hurley.”
To do it, the team will rely on their battery to get it done.
“The leaders of our team this year will be our key seniors Cannon Keithley and Shawn Whitlatch,” Appletoft said. “They both play a big role in our offense as they both hit for a high average with good power. Cannon is also our ace on the mound coming off a spring season in which he struck out 102 batters in 50 innings pitched. Shawn is our everyday catcher and the anchor of our defense.”
Withlach will also be a key part of the pitching staff. Juniors Caysen Youngblood, Mason Dunn, and Jordan Cloud, also figure heavily into the rotation.
“I have seen improvement out of many of my athletes, especially Shawn Whitlatch and Jordan Cloud,” Appletoft said. “Shawn has become a big part of our offense after having struggles much of his career. He is now a hitter that pitchers must be wary of. Jordan has shown huge improvement defensively but more importantly on the pitching side of things. Jordan went from throwing only three innings last spring to becoming a pitcher who can be competitive for multiple innings each outing this fall. He will be a huge help to our pitching staff this spring.”
Youngblood, an all district selection will anchor the diamond from the shortstop position. Noah Powell at second base, Jordan Cloud at third, and Keithley at first when he isn’t pitching, will round out the infield.
Hurley features several players who can play multiple positions. Dunn returns as an all-district outfield selection from a year ago. Fellow junior Alex Medlin and sophomore Danial Keithley and Andrew Escobar will also play key roles in the outfield.
Offensively, Appletoft is expecting big improvements.
“Our team will need to grow in the area of consistent run production,” he said. “Our pitching will be able to keep us in games as long as our offense can do its part and score runs. We had stretches last season when we could not support our pitchers well enough and struggled. When our offense was firing on all cylinders, we were tough to beat.”
Anthony Smith, Charles Ross, Noah Powell, Jameson King, Wyatt Gold, and Calvin Bennett are also in the mix for playing time this season.
Hurley begins their season March 15 at Norwood.
