It was a Friday evening on the eve of a big early-season tournament and Clare baseball coach Skeet Colosky was all business.
Sort of.
“You want a burger or one of these Montreal steak things?” Colosky asked his players as they gathered around a charcoal grill for a post-practice feast.
That’s the way the Pioneers like to roll as they head into what they hope is a run to the Jack Pine Conference pennant.
“It usually comes down to Clare, Gladwin and Meridian,” Colosky said. “Meridian has won the last three in a row, and hopefully we can change that this year. They are always good, but we’re pretty good too and we have more fun than anyone else.”
Colosky is heading into his fourth year of coaching. The Pioneers won a regional title the first year, lost during the district tournament in 2014 and then won the district last season before bowing out with a loss in the regional final.
Like the meat on the grill, the bulk of this year’s roster is seasoned.
“We have seven returning starters,” said Colosky. “We’ve got a couple of holes to fill, but we had some kids come up who are doing all right. We have a solid squad that could make a pretty good run.”
Senior Camden Dice, who was all-district and all-league last season, will see action as a pitcher and shortstop.
Senior Max Swan is the ace of the pitching staff and also sees action at first base. Junior Gabe Denton was an All-State catcher last year and will power the offense from the No. 3 spot in the order.
“We were in the mix last year for the league title, but we lost a few games we shouldn’t have lost, and once you lose two, it is hard to recover,” Colosky said. “There’s not a lot of margin for error in our league. It’s quick. You play Tuesday and Thursday and you better have four pitchers ready.You have to be ready every week to rock and roll.”