Veteran Northstars ready to play ball

Unlike most sports returning this spring, the Havre Northstars American Legion baseball club got the opportunity to compete in 2020. Last year, they qualified for the state tournament for the first time since 2005.

And Northstars head coach Patch Wirtzberger believes that last year's success will now lead to more this year.

"Last year was a fun year," Wirtzberger said. "It was an inexperienced team, but they gained a lot of experience and accomplished a lot last year with making it to the state tournament and I would expect them to build off of that and be every bit as good if not better."

The Northstars will only lose two seniors from last year, so they will have many players returning. Wirtzberger expects all three of his seniors to make an impact this year. Ethan Carlson will play infield for the Northstars. Wirtzberger believes he is ready to break out this season after he finished last year with 29 RBIs and a .277 batting average.

Another returning senior is Carson Lunak, who Wirtzberger believes can make an impact both at the plate and on the mound this season. Last year, Lunak started six games for the Northstars will also play first base.

Eli Cloninger, who had a .281 batting average and 24 RBIs last year, is another key senior. Cloninger is a player that the Northstars like to use all over the field, so he should have many opportunities to make an impact this year.

"He's the kind of guy we use all over the field, and he's a spark plug on offense, so we're hoping for big things from him," Wirtzberger said.

The Northstars will also have several underclassmen returning. Junior Trenton Maloughney was second on the team last year with a .305 batting average. He also started 13 games as a pitcher and recorded a 4.3 ERA.

Other returning juniors include Caden Jenkins, Kale Reno, Theron Peterson, Tavish McLean and Drake Berreth. Sophomore Brody Nanini will return for his second year with the Northstars. Wirtzberger believes that Nanini can rebound from a midseason injury last year to have a strong 2021 season.

"He's a stud," Wirtzberger said. "He pitches, he plays middle infield and catches and pretty much does everything we ask him to do, and I think he's poised for just a huge breakout year."

Heading into the season, Writzberger believes his team's greatest strength is depth to help them survive a long season and injuries.

"Depth is a huge strength of ours," Wirtzberger said. "We're not reliant on just one guy at one position, we got a lot of kids that can play a lot of different positions and we have a lot of depth on the mound, too, so that is a huge advantage for us."

One area that the Northstars are looking to improve upon heading into the season is consistency at the plate.

"We've had moments where everybody looks really good, and they've all had moments where they know they need to improve," Wirtzberger said. "A lot of them have put in a lot of work in the offseason. I hope that shows here early in the season but it could take some time."

In 2021, the Northstars will also host the state tournament in July for the first time since 2004, so they have already qualified for the state tournament. Havre was set to host it last summer, but the pandemic forced the venue to be moved.

"We get to showcase our great facility, Legion Field. It's just a gem up here on the Hi-Line that a lot of people haven't gotten to see," Wirtzberger said. "I'm excited for our kids to get to play in front of their home town on the biggest stage."

Before the state tournament, the Northstars will play their regular season. The season begins this weekend at home against the Billings Expos. The Northstars will then begin conference play on June 8 when they play the Lewistown Redbirds at home.

Other conference opponents that the Northstars will play include the Great Falls Chargers and Tri County Cardinals. The Northstars will not get to play their four conference opponents from Canada because of the border closure caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. If circumstances allow it however, Havre may get the chance to play these teams in postseason play in July.

Some non-conference opponents that the Northstars will play include the Glendive Blue Devils, Miles City Mavericks, Bitterroot Bucs, Glacier Twins, Mead Panthers and Gallatin Valley Outlaws. Wirtzberger looks forward to playing against Gallatin Valley because they always provide a challenge.

"That's a good rivalry for us," Wirtzberger said. "A really experienced team that gives us a great game every time we play."

If the Northstars are going to survive this schedule and make a run at a state title, they will need to build off what they did last year and continue improving.

"For us to take the next step and really challenge for a state title, it's going to take everybody working and moving in the same direction and working really hard in our preparation at practice every single day," Wirtzberger said.

The Havre Northstars' season begins this Saturday at 5 p.m. against Billings at Havre's Legion Field.