A year ago, The Bison released an article headlining Harding\u2019s \u201cyouthful\u201d baseball team and this season, the team is ready to show the growth that has occurred since last season.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year, we had one senior. We started four freshmen and had a freshman in our starting pitching rotation. We were very, very young,\u201d head coach Patrick McGaha said.<\/p>\n
According to McGaha, last year\u2019s lineup offered both challenges and opportunities. Younger members of the team who may not have as many opportunities to play in other circumstances were able to gain more experience on the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can do everything right in practice, but until you\u2019ve been in the pressure of a game situation, you don\u2019t know how you\u2019re going to handle it,\u201d McGaha said.<\/p>\n
McGaha added that the older players on the team have created a dedicated environment that he believes will propel the team to success.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have 10 seniors this year,\u201d McGaha said. \u201cThey\u2019ve done an outstanding job on really developing the culture and hard-working mentality that we want here.\u201d<\/p>\n
During training, the baseball has team focused on fundamentals and the strength of their defense. McGaha said that the team is ready to show their opponents that they have matured and are strong contenders.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we have a chance to take the next step as a team,\u201d junior outfielder Ben Brauss said. \u201cWe\u2019ve been on the doorstep. We\u2019re ready to knock the door down this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Brauss, that next step is a conference championship. The Bisons have played in the Great American Conference tournament for the past five seasons, the longest stretch in Bison history.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re trying to not look too far in the future and not dwell in the past, just to get better everyday,\u201d Brauss said.<\/p>\n
Junior redshirt outfielder Jack Thomas agreed that moving forward, the Bisons are prepared to maintain a day-by-day focus.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf it\u2019s practice, we\u2019re going to be really good and have a lot of energy. If it\u2019s a game, we\u2019re going to be really good and have a lot of energy there, too,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cI think seeing what we have that day and dominating that day is key to the success we\u2019ll have this year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sophomore infielder Luke Van Dover said the baseball players grew individually as well as a team during fall training. Van Dover added that the team is looking forward to opening day against Missouri Western State University.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to be ready to go, so we just hope that the fans show up,\u201d Van Dover said.<\/p>\n
The Bisons will play their first home game of the season on Feb. 3 at noon. Conference play begins on Feb. 16 against the Northwestern Oklahoma Rangers at home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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