Cougars on the prowl

Frontier baseball team boasts a 14-5 record

By Kevin Pierson, kpierson@mariettatimes.com
The loud thwack of the ball hitting the bat has been a common sound when the Frontier Cougars baseball team has taken the field this year.

Hitting close to .400 as a team the Cougars boast one of the most potent offenses in the area and it’s helped them to a 14-5 mark and a share of the Pioneer Valley Conference title this season.

Frontier’s potent offense takes wing as soon as lead off hitter Tyler Harris steps into the batter’s box and gets the Cougars off and running.

Batting an impressive .538 and boasting an on-base percentage of .707 Harris jump starts the Cougar offense from the get go.

“He usually gets things started for us and gets things started pretty quick,” said Frontier head coach Rob McPeek.

Harris also leads the area in stolen bases, swiping 29 bases in just 32 attempts.

“He has the automatic green light. He picks his pitch to take off on,” McPeek said.

After Harris gets on base it falls to No. 2 hitter Brent King, who has a .320 average, to move him over and get on base himself to set up the RBIs for power hitting junior Ryan Neader.

Neader has ripped six home runs this season and also handles the Cougar pitching staff as the team’s catcher.

On the mound junior southpaw Jacob Beaver has recorded a stellar 5-1 mark while senior Ethan Morris has also pitched well.

“I feel comfortable and confident with either one I put on the mound,” McPeek said.

Morris also wields a .377 batting average and while he doesn’t quite have the 1.99 ERA he had a year ago he has still performed well for the Cougars.

Senior Davey Thomas provides leadership in the outfield and also bats .350 while Quinton McPeek, the Cougars’ fourth senior starter, mans first base.

Junior Seth Valentine has become the utility man of the Cougars, playing third base, second base, outfield and even pitching on occasion all while maintaining a .333 average and blasting three home runs.

“He just bounces around from place to place and keeps right on plugging away,” coach McPeek praised.

While their defense and pitching have been sound this year the offense has been the big key to helping them into a tie for the PVC with the Fort Frye Cadets and Monroe Central Seminoles, under the direction of head coaches Sonny Bidwell and Ryan Rosnick respectively.

McPeek attributed his team’s ability to hit to their hard work and willingness to hit in the batting cage on the soft toss or off the tee.

More importantly, though, he can look at his team and see outstanding young men and students with all of the seniors maintaining grade point averages of 3.9 to 4.0, which is the biggest part of being a student athlete.

“They’re just a super bunch of kids to be around and to work with. That makes it fun,” McPeek said.