2008 PREVIEW
The Logger baseball team will throw the first pitch of the season on Saturday, February 9 at noon at Logger Field against the Corban Warriors to kick off the 2008 campaign.
The Loggers ended last season 16-21-1 and 13-11 in Northwest Conference play, good enough for fourth place in the competitive conference. Brian Billings, entering his sixth season as skipper of the Loggers, likes the look of this year's ball club.
"We will lean heavily on our seniors this year since the rest of our roster is inexperienced," said Billings.
Slugger Michael Olsen (Niwot, Colo./Niwot) returns to the Logger outfield for his senior season. Olsen, a Second Team All-Northwest Conference student-athlete, hit .350 for Puget Sound as a junior, top ten on the Loggers all-time list.
Also returning are seniors Joe Newland (Tulalip, Wash./Marysville-Pilchuck) and Shaun Kiriu (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou). Newland led the team last season with a slugging percentage of .589, 10 home runs, and 32 runs-batted-in. Kiriu hit at a .275 clip last season while fielding multiple positions. As a pitcher, Kiriu had eight appearances and tallied an ERA of 3.42. "He's a clutch player," stated Billings when talking about Kiriu.
Gregorio Beck (Chico, Calif./Chico) enters his final year as a Logger looking to continue his success in the outfield as well as at the plate. Beck tallied 40 hits, including a pair of triples and four home runs, as well as recording a school-record 20 hit-by-pitches.
Beck, alongside the other key hitters, will play a key role in the offensively strong Loggers.
"We'll need to execute well offensively and do a good job of taking advantage of scoring opportunities," mentioned Billings.
Experience returns to the hill for the Loggers as Ryan Gustafson (Bellevue, Wash./Sammamish). Gustafson tallied a 6-2 record in 12 starts for the Loggers. He's been working hard in the offseason to overcome a nagging injury.
"I expect Ryan to pitch well for us in 2008," added Billings.
The pitching staff looks to be strong and deep. Gustafson will be assisted a full staff of young arms including sophomores Tim Fogarty (Pacifica, Calif./Sacred Heart Cathedral), Jarvis Nohara (Honolulu, Hawaii/Iolani) and Dusty Kauflin (Boulder, Colo./Boulder). All three saw significant innings last season and look to be crucial parts of the pitching rotation.
The Northwest Conference changed conference play to a for game weekend series. Teams will play two-nine inning games on Saturday and Sunday.
"Four-game weekends will be a new challenge in 2008," added Billings. "Staying healthy will be critical if we're going to improve on our fourth place finish from 2007."
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