Oran hungry to continue tradition of excellence

Oran has played in three of the past five MSHSAA Class 1 State Championship games, winning two titles.

The Eagles are coming off a successful fall season, finishing 12-2, and are led by a talented roster of returning players and some exciting newcomers.

“Pitching and defense are what we are going to hang our hats on this year,” said Oran coach Joe Bickings. “Those two things have to be constant to give yourself a chance to win games. We expect to be playing our best baseball at the end of the year to compete for a district championship.”

Nic Massey catches a strike during Oran's 11-3 win over Advance in the MSHSAA Class 1 District 2 Championship at Westfield Park in Advance, Mo., on Tuesday, May 17. (Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat)

Senior Kolten Payne returns after earning first-team all-state and all-conference honors last season. Payne was the team’s top pitcher and hitter last season.

“We are looking for him to do the same this year,” Bickings said. “[Payne] has a very high baseball IQ and he is like having another coach out there on the field.”

Payne finished last season with a 1.35 ERA and a 9-2 record, while also batting .519.

Nolan Loper scores a run during Oran's 6-3 win over Northeast Cairo in the MSHSAA Class 1 Semifinals at US Ballpark in Ozark, Mo., on Monday, May 30. (Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat)

Senior Nic Massey is back at catcher after starting since he was a freshman. He earned second-team all-state and first-team all-conference honors last season after batting .300.

“[Massey] does a great job behind the plate for us and we are hoping he can do some damage in the middle of our batting order,” Bickings said.

Second-team all-state selections Nolan Loper and Carson Kern are also back. Loper batted .368, while Kern finished with a .371 average and a 3-0 record on the mound with a 3.50 ERA. Kern was also an all-conference honorable mention selection.

“[Loper] is a very athletic player that can play multiple positions for us,” Bickings said. “His bat really came on strong at the end of last year for us and we hope he can do the same this year. Kern is another athletic kid that can end up playing multiple positions. He played very well for us down the stretch last year and is a player that will see plenty of mound time for us this year.”

Junior Brenden Campbell and senior Luke Peterson are the team’s final returners. Campbell finished last season with a .406 average after being inserted into the lineup about halfway through the year, while Peterson batted .305.

“[Campbell] can also play multiple positions for us and will see some time behind the plate,” Bickings said. “[Peterson] will be our starting centerfield again this year. He is a kid that we will be looking for to produce in the middle of the order.”

The new faces expected to contribute to the varsity team this season are juniors Cooper Senciboy and Gabe Dirnberger, and sophomore Kole Burger and Parker Bryant.

Bickings said Senciboy is a good outfielder with speed to track down fly balls, Dirnberger has looked good on the mound and will also see some time in the outfield, Burger is another good outfielder and will look to build off a strong fall season at the plate, and Bryant will see mount time and look to take over first base duties.

“The kids are very eager to get back on the field and compete,” Bickings said. “We had a very successful fall season and we are hoping to continue that to the spring season.”