A new culture and new start for Bucktail baseball could turn program around

By Bees O’Brien

FARWELL- I’ve done a ton of preview article interviews with The Record and none was quite like my experience with Bucktail baseball on a warm and sunny Thursday afternoon in Farwell.

New head baseball coach Casey Friese invited me to conduct the interview behind the net at home plate as Xander Shearer threw heat towards Bucktail batters. Needless to say I was a bit jumpy and also a bit caught off guard. This was new to me, new to a Bucktail program that had struggled for a very long time. Also, there was music playing and signs of life from Friese’s 13-man roster. Times have changed on the Farwell diamond, but will this new found approach lead to victories from a team that went just 2-17 a season ago?

“We have a structure to practices now.” Said Friese “We work on a lot of foot work and drills to help eliminate a lot of errors.”

Errors were one of the Bucktail’s worst demons a season ago. The Bucks led the entire Mid Penn Conference in errors. That is something that Friese and his staff have been attacking during preseason drills.

Walks were another issue in 2023. Free passes were another statistic the Bucks reluctantly led the conference in. This season Bucktail will be able to go 8 pitchers deep in their rotation.

Brett Mason, Braylon Fantaski, Xander Shearer, Ethan Kalafut and freshmen Keller Friese, Gavin Pick, Tyler Hillyer and Cael Dorman are all expected to see time on the hill.

Of his 13 players, Friese returns seniors Mason, Fantaski, Kyler Friese and the returning Johnny Green. Green sat out his junior season following two solid years as a freshman and a sophomore.

“For missing an entire season, Johnny is looking really good.” Said Friese of the returning Green.

Kyler Friese’s .348 batting average led the Bucks a season ago. Shearer hit .320 and Fantaski batted .290. All three were the team leaders in stolen bases. Friese and Fantaski had 8 each, while Shearer swiped 6.

Kyler Friese will once again be a favorite to land on the Mid Penn Conference all-conference team at catcher and is looking to have a solid senior season.

“I have 13 on the roster and each one of them can pretty much play anywhere on the field.” Friese commented.

Bucktail’s schedule will be challenging. Mid Penn Conference foes Muncy, Millville, St. John Neumann, Montgomery, Northwest, Sullivan County, CMVT, Sugar Valley and Benton make up the conference schedule. Muncy is the returning champions, while Benton reached the District IV 1A Championship last season.

Bucktail will have some interesting out of conference games this season too. They host Northern Potter on March 23 at noon. Last season Bucktail won their lone meeting with the Panthers. They will return the favor on May 4 in Ulysses. They will also meet up with another District 9 opponent on April 12 with a road trip to Cameron County.

The Bucks will also travel to Shamokin for a tournament on April 13. Sugar Valley and Mount Carmel are also scheduled for that event. On April 15 the Bucks will travel to West Branch in a nonconference matchup with the District 6 Warriors.

Will a more relaxed environment result in more wins for the Bucks and a possible District playoff appearance, their first since 2015?

“I’m banking off of the momentum brought on by the boys basketball success.” Said Friese “These kids believe they can do the same thing and I do too.”