ROLLA, Mo. – While the 2017 season didn't quite reach the level that the previous year did, the one thing the Missouri S&T baseball team gained was experience – something that should be valuable for the 2018 squad as it prepares to open its season this weekend.

The Miners finished 26-23 a year ago and reached the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament for the sixth time in the last seven years, but it was a season that was up-and-down in nature for them.   S&T had a six-game winning streak during the year and later had a run of eight straight wins, but it also had two five-game losing streaks, including one on the heels of the eight-game winning streak that ended their season in the conference tournament.

As the 2018 season begins for S&T Friday against Mississippi College in Jackson, Miss., where S&T will play a four-game series on Friday and Saturday, the Miners hope the substantial playing time gained a year ago will pay big dividends.  The Miners return a battery of five potential starting pitchers and a catcher with experience, as well as five of their top bullpen arms, two probable starters in the outfield and three of the four infield starters from last season.

The pitching staff will be headed by seniors Anthony Garza (Belleviille, IL/Belleville East) and Dan Borek (Greenville, WI/Hortonville), who combined to win nine games last spring.  Borek shared the team lead in wins with Matthew Lamb (Doniphan, NE/Grand Island) – also a starting pitching candidate – with five and struck out 34 hitters in 60 innings of work.  Garza finished 4-4 with a 5.13 earned run average and was a workhorse on the hill as he threw 73 2/3 innings, the second-most on the staff last season.

Lamb, who started the season in the bullpen but moved into the starting rotation late in the year, also won five games and had a staff-best 3.93 ERA.  Two others in line to become potential starters are Dalton Erger (Imperial, MO/Seckman), who has been a key reliever over the last two seasons and Luke Marcheschi (Bloomington, IL/Central Catholic), who spent much of last season in the rotation and threw the team's only complete game shutout among his four wins.

Marcheschi could also pitch out of the bullpen, where the Miners had two other lefthanders in returners Stuart Martin (Ajax, ON/Ajax) and Bryan Nolan (Ballwin, MO/St. Louis University HS).  The right side will feature returners Blaine Dunbar (West Plains, MO/West Plains) and Alex Reynolds (Republic, MO/Republic) along with newcomer Connor Forsythe.   In addition, the Miners also return Trent Green (Perryville, MO/Perryville), who led the Miner staff in innings pitched and strikeouts a year ago.

The staff will have veteran catcher Justus Nelson (Plymouth, MN/Robbinsdale Armstrong), who has spent the last two seasons behind the plate and threw out 12 runners trying to steal last season, to throw to.  Nelson caught 37 of S&T's 49 games last year, but should get some additional help in that role this season from newcomer Drew Aldana (El Paso, TX/JM Hanks), a transfer from Hesston College and redshirt freshman Brady Wildschuetz (Foristell, MO/Francis Howell).

The Miners lost first-team All-GLVC outfielder Eli Miller, who led the team in hitting last season, but return their two corner outfielders in Lucas Swindle (Weldon Spring, MO/Lutheran-St. Charles) and Kaleb Reid (Smithville, MO/Smithville).  Swindle hit .301 a year ago and led the Miners with five home runs, while Reid – who is expected to move to center this spring – gained a starting role early in the season and ended up hitting .314 with 12 stolen bases.

Sophomore Zach Wiegand (Coppell, TX/Parish Episcopal) is the leading candidate to fill the third outfield spot, with returners Jason Volkmann (Liberty, MO/Liberty) and Matt Gruse (Neenah, WI/Neenah) in contention as well.

On the infield, the Miners also had a key loss in second-team All-GLVC third baseman Adam Richter, but return starters at the other three positions.  That group is headed by second baseman Matt Knickerbocker (Bayfield, CO/Bayfield), who was named as the GLVC's freshman of the year in 2017 after hitting .314 and handling 188 chances in the field with only five errors.

The other middle infield spot will be handled by Cameron Burk (Nacogdoches, TX/Cushing), who has been a starter during parts of his first two years at S&T and Jack DeGarmo (Liberty, MO/Liberty North), who started in 38 games during his freshman season.  Freshman Will Hayes (Terre Haute, IN/South Vigo) will also challenge for a spot in the middle infield, primarily at second base.

Zach Bracken (Berthoud, CO/Berthoud), who hit .295 with 26 runs batted in a year ago, will battle with returner Tim Lira (Granger, IN/Penn) for the starting role at first base and both players will also be in contention to serve as the team's designated hitter along with Gruse. 

Gruse will also be in the mix at third base – the position open due to Richter's graduation – where Nathan Volkmann (Liberty, MO/Liberty) is expected to enter the season as the starter.

Following the weekend series at Mississippi College, the Miners will be idle until Feb. 20 when they open the home schedule against perennial NCAA Division II power Central Missouri.  S&T was pitched to finish third in what is expected to be a competitive GLVC West Division and will open its conference slate in the final weekend of March against Maryville.