Ohio Locker Room - VW-Area spring sports previews: Wayne Trace Baseball

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VW-Area spring sports previews: Wayne Trace Baseball

Tuesday, 18 March 2008

HAVILAND – The Wayne Trace Raiders Baseball Preview for 2008 is listed below.

Wayne Trace Baseball:

Head Coach: Tom Schaper (2nd season; 6th season on staff);

Assistant Coaches: Tim Dunlap; Mike Jerome; Jeff Haney;

Division IV;

Green Meadows Conference (GMC);

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Returning Lettermen:

Ryan Davis (Senior-Outfield/Third Base/Catcher);

Jayme Denny (Senior-Outfield);

Riley Linder (Senior-First Base/Pitcher);

Chris Rozier (Senior-Second Base);

Justin Davis (Junior-Catcher/Third Base/Outfield);

Devin Dias (Junior-Second Base/Outfield);

Joe Morehead (Junior/First Base/Outfield/Pitcher);

Evan Dasher (Sophomore-Outfield);

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All statements below by Raiders Head Coach Tom Schaper:

*Strengths for the Season – “We have a nice crop of freshman and sophomores who show much promise, also, we have many players that have improved their speed”.

*Weaknesses – “Although we have a promising group of underclassman, most of them are at least a year away from being ready to contribute at the varsity level, plus we have some inexperience at some key positions. For example, the shortstop position is a big question mark for us with some keys losses to graduation (Brandon German and Adam Miller). Furthermore, senior Ryan Davis will be playing a new position this season (third base), after playing the outfield in 2007. Also at the catcher position, junior Justin Davis will be in his first season of replacing 2007 senior-standout and graduate Joey Sinn. Although in his first season behind the plate, Davis (who played third base in 2007) should be able to take over the receiving duties nicely. One more concern will be the depth of our pitching staff. Riley Linder and Joe Morehead will return and should provide quality starts for us this season. Unfortunately, our relievers gave spotty performances in 2007. Hopefully, we will be able to develop more pitchers this season by targeting our problem areas”.

*Overall Outlook – “Our biggest obstacle in 2007 was our defense. If we can cut down our errors in the field and find gaps while on offense, I believe we can become competitive with every team on our schedule. The GMC is going to be tough again this season. Ayersville and Fairview should have nice squads once again, but I think Tinora will be the team to beat. Coach Renollet has an excellent group of hitters returning as well as an outstanding pitching staff and defensive unit. They are definitely a team to watch for the next severall seasons”.

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2008 Wayne Trace Raiders

Baseball Team Roster

Ryan Davis 6 Senior OF, 3rd, C

Jayme Denny 18 Senior OF

Andrew Geren 3 Senior OF

Riley Linder 15 Senior P, 1st

Chris Rozier 22 Senior 2nd, C, 3rd

Brad Botteron 54 Junior OF

Justin Davis 4 Junior 3rd, OF, P

Devin Dias 21 Junior 2nd, C

Joe Morehead 45 Junior P, 1st, OF