Orono Baseball Set to Swing Away

Last year’s record: 16-9

Conference record: 12-4 (Tied for 1st)

Section 5AA tournament: defeated Minneapolis North 18-0, defeated Heritage Academy 3-2, defeated Delano 6-5, defeated Maple Lakes 7-2, lost to Zimmerman 6-5

Key returners: Senior catcher Erik Peterson, senior infieldier Matt Helling, senior infielder Kyle Mileusnic, senior outfielder Dylan Limesand, senior outfielder/first baseman Mitchell Wolff, senior pitcher Kyle Ignatius, junior infielder/catcher Jack Halverson, sophomore pitcher Max Mason

Key losses: Pitcher Judson McKown, pitcher Brandon Walker, shortstop Joey Salde, first baseman Chase Gottschalk, infielder Andrew Miller

Conference outlook

The Wright County Conference is as competitive as they come.

In 2010, three schools—Orono, Delano and Glencoe-Silver Lake—tied for first, with each losing four games. All three schools are expected to compete for the conference title again in 2011, although Orono may fade if its young pitchers don’t put together strings of strong performances.

The Spartans graduated two of their top arms—McKown and Walker—in 2010, as well as star shortstop Salde, who coach Bucky Mieras said the team will “really miss dearly.”

“We’re young in a lot of areas,” Mieras said. “We’ll get better as the year goes on.”

Section outlook

Traditionally, Section 5AA has produced teams capable of making noise at the state tournament. Orono could very well be one of those teams in 2011, especially if its young players improve the way Mieras expects them to.

The Spartans will no doubt be better in May and June than they are now; however, that may not be enough to top the likes of Delano, Glencoe-Silver Lake and Breck, which is one of the few schools in Section 5AA that isn’t a member of the Wright County Conference.

“Breck will be pretty good,” Mieras said. “They’ve got a lot of key players returning.”