Caleb Pollema—Staff Writer

Photo by Caleb Pollema

The Dordt baseball team is set to open its season this weekend in O’Fallon, Missouri, with a four-game series against Hannibal-LaGrange University.

The Defenders are looking to their youth this year as the team will replace eight of its nine starters from last year’s team.

“I’m excited to see how our brand-new team will compete together this year,” said senior outfielder Dillon Branderhorst. “Being that we brought 20 plus new guys in this season, it’ll be fun to see what we can do despite not having the chemistry most teams have.”

The team is excited for the upcoming season, especially after practicing since the beginning of the school year. With a lot newcomers, they knew that this fall and winter would be critical in their preparation for the season.

“Losing experience can hurt a lot of teams,” sophomore catcher Cody Veach said. “But for us it drove us in the offseason with workouts and keeps a competitive environment throughout practices and games.”

The Defenders see their youth as a positive advantage, and they are looking to capitalize on their strengths as a team in their nonconference and conference slates.

“Our biggest strength is the athleticism and speed of our team,” said sophomore infielder and pitcher, Nathan Psyck. “Getting the chance to play the game I love and compete to my fullest with a great team like ours excites me the most about the season.”

This excitement has brought the team closer as they look to this weekend’s series and road trips to McPherson, Kansas, and Tucson, Arizona, over spring break.

The team will play a total of ten games on their trip to the desert and will end with a four-game conference series against Morningside.

The Defenders will open at home on March 23^rd with two games against Doane.