The upcoming baseball season looks promising as nine seniors are returning. Codey Batten, Sean Karney, and Jacob Barber are three notable players who stepped up and leads the team. 

  Shortstop and pitcher Codey Batten has been on varsity for two years. Batten is a reliable player to put on the mound when the game is close. Fastball, curveball, and change up are his three go-to pitches. Multiple colleges have reached out to Batten, but he has yet to make a decision on where he will play next year. 

  Batten is excited about the season and has high expectations for himself and the team. One noticeable strong suit to him is the pitchers. 

  “We have eight potential starting pitchers, so the depth is very good. I think we will be successful this year,” Batten said. 

  Catcher Sean Karney has been on varsity three years. Not many balls get by Karney, and he can make game changing plays when the team needs it. As the catcher, he speaks up to let the rest of the team know the situations and outs. After high school, Karney plans to attend the United States Coast Guard Academy while playing baseball. 

  His expectations are high after the first two scrimmages. The pitching depth is something Karney also mentioned as a strong suit. 

  “I think we will be a well put together ball team,” Karney said. “Our pitching staff looks strong this year and we’re hitting well, but losing Jacob Barber hurts us. We have had other guys step up and really show improvement, which is promising. We just have to take it one game at a time.” 

  All around player, Jacob Barber, has been in the program since middle school, and on varsity for three years. Being a leader is something Barber values. 

  “Just being the one everyone comes to on and off the field to get advice is great knowing everyone has trust in me,” Barber said. 

  Normally, he is a pitcher, but he recently had surgery on his throwing arm and cannot pitch this year. He looks to adapt to his injury by playing first base, second base, and being a designated hitter until his arm heals. Toward the end of the year he may pitch if he is cleared. Barber looks to attend a junior college school near Virginia Beach called Paul D. Camp. 

  The team’s main goal is to win the Jefferson District Championship and move on to win Regionals.