BRAND NEW INDIAN BASEBALL TEAM HAS PLENTY OF QUESTIONS TO ANSWER FOR 2000

The initial Waukon Indian baseball season of the new millennium would best be described as a "work-in-progress" for veteran head coach Paul Norton and his 2000 Indian diamond charges. After back-to-back appearances in the Class 3A State Baseball Tournament in Carroll, this year's team doesn't return a single varsity starter from last year's squad, making for an uncertain early part of the high school baseball season for the Tribe.
As if the uncertainty of having to fill an entire starting line-up is not enough, Coach Norton has also had to deal with a variety of other early-season situations that have severely limited the possibilities of sorting out a starting line-up. Injuries, illness, the overlapping golf season and extended track season, among other things, have all combined to result in a patchwork starting line-up for the Tribe's first games of the season this week.
"I would have to say that I am cautiously optimistic," Coach Norton said. "We could have a very solid nine or 10 guys who will consistently make up the starting line-up, or we could have 15 or 16 guys who can contribute, and five or six of those rotating in and out on a consistent basis. It's early in the season, and with a new group of faces, some of whom haven't been to practice consistently for one reason or another, that makes it that much tougher to piece things together. May is a tough month for us."
The Indians do return five players from last year's team who were mainstays in varsity uniforms, but who were also never consistent members of the Tribe's starting line-up last season. Seniors Craig Stott and Brian Swenson, and juniors Heath Hesse, Chris Kamm and Andy Snitker provide a majority of that limited varsity experience for this year's baseball Tribe. Between the five of them, they bring to the plate a total of nine varsity at-bats from previous years, making an offensive projection for this year's squad nearly impossible.
"This is the first year in a long time that I didn't have a single returning starter," Coach Norton said. "The last two seasons, we have been senior dominated, so I guess that would explain our situation this year. Last year, we didn't have a lot of returning starters, but we had some good depth from the previous year. This year, we don't even have that to fall back on."
All is not gloom and doom for the baseball Indians, however. Even with the limited varsity experience of this year's club, there is success to build upon.
The two programs under the Indian varsity last year that were comprised of a majority of this year's varsity candidates both sported winning records. The Indian junior varsity compiled an 18-10 record last season, with the JJV team of last year's eighth and ninth graders finishing with a 16-6 record.
"I would say we have a good nucleus of good players this year," Coach Norton said. "I just haven't had much of a chance to see what they can offer. We've been pretty successful in our under programs, and we are also getting some guys out this year who haven't been out for a year or two. That should all help. One thing is for sure, we have a number of kids to choose from. We just have to find the right fit."
Whether the experience is abundant or not, the success of every team lies heavily with its pitching. For the Indians, that includes just a bit more experience than the nine at-bats mentioned before.
Hesse brings back the lone varsity pitching arm from last year, but logged only two and one-third innings on the mound for the varsity Tribe. Building around that bit of experience will be seniors Josh Tweedy and Eddie Frick, both of whom are out once again after a year's absence, but both of whom will not be available until after this upcoming weekend's state track meet in Des Moines.
Juniors Jared Jones and Billy Van Gorp, as well as sophomores Seth Kelly and Bobby Benzing have all put in mound time in previous years, and all could be looked to for help at the varsity level this year.
"We'll look to build a competitive, deep pitching staff," Coach Norton said. "The way our schedule is, you have to have five or six guys who can throw for you, and probably one or two more."
On the receiving end of those pitches will be another well-represented position, as several candidates are also vying for time behind the plate. Juniors Andy Snitker, Mike Searcy and Josh Johnson, sophomore Chad Bakkum, and even eighth grader Shawn Cunningham have spent the early weeks of this season proving themselves behind the dish.
The Indian infield is just as well represented, with several candidates at each position. "We should have a pretty solid infield defense, and some pretty good depth at each position," Coach Norton said. "We'll just have to wait for the top person to emerge at each spot."
Competing for first base duties will be junior Chris Kamm and sophomore Tony Beneke, with other pitching candidates also filling in there from time to time. Van Gorp and Jones have second base well covered, with Jones also a candidate for the third base bag, along with sophomore Tyson Farley. Filling in the hole at shortstop will be Bakkum, Hesse and senior Jason Manning, another senior returning to the mix after a brief absence from the program.
The outfield positions could be covered by each end of the grade spectrum, with seniors Stott, Swenson and Frick being looked to, as well as junior Brandon Wilder and freshmen Mitch Roe and Kenny Hansmeier. A collection of other pitching candidates may also see time out there, if not on the mound or needed elsewhere.
"As we get into the season, we plan on trying a number of different combinations, both offensively and defensively," Coach Norton said. "We'll give everyone a chance to prove themselves, and it may take some time before we get it completely figured out."
Also making things tougher for the Indians this year is the absence of assistant coach Jerry Keenan, who resigned his position after last year, leaving Coach Norton and fellow assistant coach Andy Sires to overlook the program this year. Help has been found in the volunteer assistance of Aaron Braund, who came from Winona State University to teach at Waukon Senior High and assume head coaching duties for Indian girls basketball this past season. Braund has an extensive baseball background at Winona State, earning All-America honors in the sport and laying claim to an abundance of school records for the program.
"Aaron has been a big help to us," Coach Norton said. "He has brought an abundance of new ideas to us, and we really appreciate what he's done."
Coach Norton sees Oelwein and New Hampton as heading this year's race for supremacy in the Northeast Iowa Conference. Both teams return three All-Conference selections from last year's clubs, Oelwein winning the NEIC with a record of 15-3 and playing to a 31-6 overall record before being eliminated in substate play by the Indians. New Hampton played to a 12-6 NEIC mark and a 21-12 overall record last season.
The Indians will open their 2000 season Tuesday, May 23 at North Fayette of West Union before taking part in the annual Shooky Fink Tournament Saturday, May 27. The Indians will open that tournament at 11 a.m. against Starmont in Lansing, with Kee High opening with Crestwood in New Albin. The two losing teams from the first round will battle in the consolation contest later that afternoon, with the two winning teams facing off in the championship game after that. Both those final contests will also be held in New Albin.
The Indians will then play at Turkey Valley Tuesday, May 30 before opening their home season Wednesday, May 31 with a varsity/varsity reserve affair against Central Elkader that begins at 4 p.m.