A new coach with seven returning starters has West Geauga focused on winning its first conference title in nearly two decades.
The Wolverines, who finished 6-15 last season, open the year under first-year coach Brett Munn, who previously coached at Brush from 2018-2024 and at Harvey in the seven years prior.
“West Geauga has not won a conference title in baseball since 2007 so that is our number one goal this season,” Munn said. “The (Chagrin Valley Conference) is a strong baseball conference and I know there are quite a few good pitchers and teams in our division, but we will be prepared and ready for anything we’re up against. I’ve coached similar teams to this year’s West Geauga team where a lot of guys started varsity as underclassmen and took their lumps. This has a very similar feel. A lot of this year’s team played varsity at some point last year, earned valuable experience, and are ready to roll this year. This is a team that’s ready to win now and compete in the CVC. They are already fundamentally sound and have a good instinct for the game so we will hit the ground running once games begin.”
The Wolverines already lost two starters to offseason injuries, so remaining healthy this spring is a major challenge.
“We hate to see those guys lost for the season but it’s a next-man-up mentality,” Munn said. “Coming out of fall workouts, I thought we had about 15 guys who can play at the varsity level so we have the depth and talent to have a great season despite the loss of two key players.”
Pitching depth is one of West Geauga’s strengths this season.
Junior Tyler Fink was 3-1 with a 2.02 earned run average with 26 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings of work last spring. Junior Jackson Remaley struck out 16 in 27 innings, and Elijah Gudger posted 12 Ks in 10 2/3 innings of relief. Junior Bryce Vidovic recorded a 2.56 ERA in 13 2/3 innings, and newcomer to the varsity Mitchell Mikolay also will chew up some innings.
“From the pitching side of things, our returning players accounted for 75 percent of the innings pitched last year,” Munn said. “Fink, Remaley, Vidovic, Mikolay, and Gudger will be our top arms this season and ate up a lot of those innings. Experience is the best teacher, and my hope is that the experience they gained on the mound last year will benefit us this season.”
Fink, a second-team All-CVC performer last season, will catch when he isn’t pitching. He batted .255 with eight runs scored last season. Senior Jesse Tackett also will see time behind the dish. He hit .276 last season.
“Tyler Fink was a second-team CVC Utility/DH last season and is a jack of all trades. He will be our No. 1 pitcher and also do quite a bit of catching,” Munn said. “He can also play on the left side of the infield and outfield when needed. Tyler will hit towards the top or middle of our lineup and I would expect him to be one of the top two-way players in the conference.”
Remaley will play shortstop or third base when he isn’t pitching with Finn Keenan providing depth at both positions.
“Jackson Remaley will play both third base and shortstop this year and has shown a strong arm and good range from both positions,” Munn said. “He will also be our No. 2 pitcher and will hit in the middle of our lineup and can hit for both average and power. Jackson started last year as a sophomore, and we are expecting big things from him this season.”
Gudger, a first-team All-CVC performer after batting .387 with nine doubles, eight runs scored, six runs batted in, and five stolen bases, will play center field when he isn’t pitching.
“Elijah Gudger was a first-team CVC outfielder as a junior and will be our leadoff hitter and patrol center field for us again this season,” Munn said. “He is one of our captains and one of the hardest-working players in the program. He plays the game the right way with full effort at all times and plays the game like his pants are on fire. He’s a great leader by example and should have a huge year for us both in the field and at the plate.”
Vidovic will play first base when he isn’t pitching and senior Henry Bartlett is slotted at second.
Sophomores Austin Kanieski and Nick Colella will make their varsity debuts in left and right field, respectively.
Mikolay could start at second, third, or shortstop depending on who is on the mound, and juniors Bennett Utterback and Evan Sustin will provide depth.
“Experience is one of our strengths going into this season,” Munn said. “We have a nice blend of upperclassmen with a couple of sophomores that will play significant roles for the team this year. We have seven players who earned meaningful playing time last season so we have confidence that that experience will allow them to make great strides this year. I think our defense, specifically our infield defense, is one of our major strengths. We have six infielders who play above-average defense. One of the most important things at any level of baseball is making the routine play and from what I’ve seen so far, our infielders can do that. I am confident at this point that we will be able to limit teams to three outs which should keep us in most games.”
West Geauga’s mix of talent and experience will help the Wolverines make strides to achieve their goals, but it won’t come easily.
“Our offense needs to produce more runs in order for our team to have more success this season,” Munn said. “We only averaged about 2 1/2 runs per game last season, which isn’t enough to win games at any level. I think we have the ability to limit teams with our starting pitching, but we have to be able to hit with runners in scoring position and come up with the big two-out base hit if we expect to compete for a league title. We have some guys at the top and middle of our lineup that can hit for average and drive the ball gap to gap which should improve our run production.”
