By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Last season proved to be another successful campaign for the Kickapoo baseball program.
The Chiefs posted a 24-9 record, falling to Joplin in the district tournament.
For longtime head coach Jason Howser, set to enter his 18th year at the helm (and 50th season of baseball for Kickapoo), that district result is the standard by which his program has come to be measured over the years.
“The 2021 Kickapoo Chiefs had a tremendous regular season,” Howser said. “Finishing 24-9 overall and 9-0 in the Ozark conference was great and winning the Ozark Conference undefeated accomplished a team goal; however, we evaluate ourselves on how we finish the season, and last spring we did not finish like we wanted to by losing in the district.”
A quintet of talented graduates depart the program and move on to further their respective baseball careers at the next level.
Those players include Rhett Hendricks (Johnson County Community College), Carter Vienhage (St. Louis Community College), Boone Shevey (Jefferson City Community College), Zach McKinnis (Drury University) and Ayden Fetters (Southwest Baptist University).
McKinnis received all-state honors in 2021 as a pitcher.
Replacing five collegiate-level players is never easy for a program, but Howser and Kickapoo have always preached the next-man-up mentality.
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This year will be no exception.
“We have several players that have waited their turn to play varsity baseball here at Kickapoo,” Howser said. “These are good players that have been caught behind good players, and now they can prove themselves.”
A quintet of new seniors will step into leadership roles for the team in Cole Murrell, Reed Jensen, Noah Wilkinson, Anderson Underwood and Cross Kubik.
Murrell, a 5-foot-10 outfielder/pitcher, hit .386 last season with 2 home runs, 21 runs batted in and 2 stolen bases.
“Cole is a first team Ozark Conference outfielder and the offensive player of the year in the conference,” Howser said. “He will be in the middle of our order hitting and will expand his role this spring as a pitcher.”
Jensen, a 6-foot-5 first baseman/pitcher, hit .275 with 2 home runs, 18 runs batted in and 6 stolen bases in 2021.
“Reed’s defensive ability at first base saves us one to two errors per game,” Howser said. “Reed will also add depth on the mound this spring, and his bat will be a factor in the lineup.”
Wilkinson, a 5-foot-10 catcher, hit .176 with 13 runs batted in last season.
“Noah will be our everyday catcher,” Howser said. “He works great with the staff and is a tremendous defensive catcher. We are looking for Noah as an on-field leader this spring, and his bat will be depended on”.
Underwood, a 6-foot all-conference pitcher, posted a 7-0-1 record last season with a 1.96 ERA.
“Anderson will be in our starting rotation and we will count on his experience to compete when given the ball,” Howser said. “Anderson will be a utility style player this spring to get his bat in the lineup. He has put in the work and we are excited to see him compete.”
Kubik, a 5-foot-9 pitcher, posted a 4-4-2 record with a 2.37 ERA.
“Cross had a solid season on the bump for us as a junior,” Howser said. “His toughness and leadership will be counted on this spring. We expect Cross to be in our rotation and have a great senior year.”
Junior Evan Vienhage is another returning starter for the Chiefs.
The 5-foot-10 second baseman hit .284 with 10 runs batted in and 2 stolen bases in 2021.
“Evan was a starter as a sophomore for us last spring,” Howser said. “His diverse skill set defensively will allow him to play in middle infield for us this spring. His bat will be counted on in our lineup. Evan will also add his ability to pitch to our staff this spring.”
Senior pitcher Morgan Goss (1-1-0, 3.11 ERA )and junior third baseman Cale McCarville (.175, 6 RBI) also return to Kickapoo’s varsity lineup.
“Morgan earned innings as a junior last spring and did a good job out of the pen,” Howser said. “The big lefty will be utilized as both a starter and out of the pen. Cael has worked very hard in the off season, and we expect him to compete for a starting role this spring and be in the lineup. Cael will also compete to be in the pitching rotation this spring.”
A host of varsity newcomers will compete for playing time this spring, including seniors Trey Hagardt, Sam Snider, Shane Cummings and Clayton Dahl; juniors Brian Wamsher, Landon Keisker, Tyrus Shurtz, Nate Owen and Nathan Vaughan; and sophomores Hayden Strenfel and Rylan Smith.
While Kickapoo will again feature plenty of talent and depth within its lineup, much of that talent is as of yet unproven at the varsity level.
“The 2022 Kickapoo baseball team is largely inexperienced,” Howser said. “There will be several players getting their first varsity action this spring. That is exciting for the players and the coaching staff, as well. This will be a fun team to watch grow with the competition that our challenging schedule will offer.
“Our challenges will be inexperience at the varsity level and the ability of each person to accept their role on the team. We will have a diverse group of players getting innings this spring, in the field defensively, in our lineup and off the bump. If we compete together we will enjoy the spring.”
Following a March 12 jamboree at U.S. Ballpark, Kickapoo will open its 50th season on the road in Arkansas March 18 with a double-header against Bentonville and Conway, Ark.
