With all of last year’s starters returning and just one senior graduating from last year’s roster the Sisseton-Britton-Webster (SBW) high school baseball squad has plenty of reasons for optimism this spring.
Coach Mark Nelson returns to head the program in just its second year and 24 players have reported for preseason practices. The squad is scheduled to kick off its season, weather permitting, with a doubleheader at Warner-Ipswich-Northwestern (WIN) at Northville on Sunday at 1 p.m.
SBW had its share of struggles a year ago, posting a 2-8 record and falling to Madison-Chester 6-0 in the first round of regional play. But Nelson thinks that experience has been a powerful motivator for this year’s team.
“Last year we were very young and inexperienced but we have a really athletic bunch of kids who I think can compete very well,” said Nelson. “I’m very excited about our potential and hopefully we can sort of hit the ground running this season.
“I think last year we saw some pitching that was better than what we had seen in this geographical area that the kids weren’t accustomed to and I think it has pushed our kids to get better and to work harder. They are competitive and don’t like losing. Some of them joined a fall league in Fargo and we were successful up there with a 5-3 record.”
The SBW squad will look a bit different this season with no Webster players on the roster, and the team has adopted “Mallards” as its team mascot.
“Webster is still part of our co-op but we just didn’t have any kids that elected to play from there this year,” noted Nelson. “We would like to keep the door open and hopefully get some kids from Webster in the future.”
The Mallards mascot came about as a result of a team brainstorming session.
“We had a lot of things that didn’t go our way last year, including injuries, and the players thought maybe it was bad luck to not have a mascot. One of them said we have to be the Mallards, and it kind of caught on and the kids rallied around it,” said Nelson. “I think it has helped build team chemistry and given the kids ownership, and that’s what we’re trying to build. The kids even helped design new caps with the mascot on it.”
Some other changes this year include requirements that teams must meet to qualify for postseason play. The Mallards are in District 1 with WIN, Groton, Clark, Redfield, and Miller. The top four teams in the district advance to a regional tourney with the top four teams from District 2 that includes Madison, Milbank, Deuel, Elkton-Lake Benton, Volga, and Flandreau. There are four regions in the state and two teams from each region will advance to the Class B state tournament.
Teams are required to play each team in their district twice during the regular season and must play a minimum of 12 games prior to qualify for postseason play.
Nelson points to team leadership and depth as big positives for his club heading into its second campaign.
“We have four seniors this year and also a talented group of six juniors. I think those kids are a lot more confident knowing what they are getting into and I’m seeing good leadership from that group and a lot of great mentorship happening between them and the younger guys. That’s what we want to see and that’s what it takes to build a program.”
The SBW boss thinks depth may be his team’s biggest attribute.
“I think all of our guys are capable of playing varsity baseball and that should help us in the six doubleheaders we have scheduled. We have depth at pitching and have athletes that can play. Some of the other teams may not be as deep and we’re looking forward to running the wheels off the other team. We also have some freshmen kids that can be immediate contributors which is really rare.”
Fourteen of this year’s roster hails from Britton. They include Will Richter, senior; Nate Schuller, Mitchell Burger, Emmett Symens, Dylan Redler, and Ben Suther, juniors; Colton Chapin, Lincoln Kilker, Jack Teveldal, Kaden Mills, Carter Grobe, and Chaz Vietor, sophomores; and Drew Heitmann and Max Suther, freshmen.
While depth is a key to success it can also be difficult for coaches and players. There are just a limited number of positions and playing time to go around.
“We’re trying to help the kids realize they are on a journey and it’s a marathon,” stressed Nelson. “We don’t want kids to push the panic button if they are not a starter in the first game. Every practice and every game is an opportunity to learn, not just for this spring but for summer and next season. You have to be patient, stick with it, and push the guy in front of you. We’re all on the same team, all working together, and all getting better. That’s how we build the program.”
Nelson is assisted by Leigh Wallenstein, a high school friend of Nelson who recently moved back to the area, along with Adam Suther and BJ Richter of Britton, and Trent Bestland of Sisseton.
“Leigh has been amazing, Adam and BJ are a huge help to us because they know their players so well and have done a great job of developing those players, and Trent has a great baseball mind and is a great resource. I’m sure we’ll also get help from Jeff Mills of Britton and Josh Anderson of Sisseton. We get a lot of good parent help, and that’s what it takes to be successful.”
Despite the fact that the team has not yet been able to step on a diamond due to the lack of cooperation from Mother Nature, Nelson has seen enough to be excited about the year ahead.
“The first time we get on a diamond may be our first game,” said Nelson, “but we’ve had a great community effort in Sisseton to put together an indoor facility and we’ve had tons of inside practice. We have a very deep pitching staff with guys that have matured and really worked on throwing, and they are slinging it. I’ve also seen a lot of maturity from the kids hitting-wise. Overall, we’re way better than we were at this time last year and have depth at every position. We just need to play loose and have fun and I think we’re going to have success.”
Nelson has also seen his players mature mentally.
“Their goals are a little bit loftier this year. They don’t want to just qualify for the region, they want to win it. And these kids are way farther along and way hungrier for success than they were a year ago. It’s a night and day difference,” concluded Nelson. “I think our potential is really high and we’re definitely capable of turning some heads this spring.”
Season Schedule
April
12 – doubleheader at Northville 1 p.m.; 19 – doubleheader at Miller 2 p.m.; 22 – host Groton for doubleheader in Britton 5:30 p.m.; 29 – host Clark for doubleheader in Sisseton 5:30 p.m.
May
2 – host Hot Springs 1 p.m., WIN 5 p.m. in Sisseton; 6 – doubleheader vs. Deuel at Clear Lake 5:30 p.m.; 10 – host Redfield for doubleheader in Sisseton 1 p.m.; 13 – at Milbank 5:30 p.m.
