Sports
Young Lakeside Baseball Team Aims for Playoffs
The reigning division champs don't expect a repeat this year, head coach Bill Newsome said.
's baseball team isn't among the metro area's most celebrated programs, but it does boast an incredible playoff record. The Vikings have reached the postseason nine of the last 10 years, a run that included a Region 6-AAAA championship last season.
Still, with all the his team's success down the years, coach Bill Newsome faces a tough challenge to achieve a fifth playoff appearance in a row. Experience is his biggest problem.
Lakeside returns just two starters from last season, having graduated 11 seniors from a squad that lost only one regional game before falling to Sprayberry in the first round.
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"It's a whole new bunch," said Newsome, a 1983 Lakeside graduate. "We want to make the playoffs, as winning the region is unrealistic."
Recent realignment changes haven't helped either. Current state champion Marist is among the division's newcomers, which include DeKalb powerhouses Redan and Tucker.
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Newsome, the head coach since 2004, is looking to pitchers Will Bracewell and Jonathan Whittington–both returning starters–to play an important role as their teammates adjust to the tough schedule.
"I'm counting on these guys for pitching," he said. "Our [other] pitchers are sophomores and freshmen mostly."
So far, the Vikings have posted a 1-2 record, dropping their first two games before trouncing Arabia Mountain 10-2 last Saturday. Six more non-regional fixtures make up the schedule before serious business starts with the first region showdown against Tucker on March 16.
From there, the Vikings face an eight-game stretch that will gauge their postseason aspirations. That gives Newsome just a few weeks to have his young team ready for the challenge.
However, he believes his players have shown the right attitude to be in with a shot.
"They're focused, and it's always fun having kids who are eager," he said. "At times inexperience can be a problem, but they don't seem to be backing down."
Lakeside travels to Shiloh on Tuesday before hosting Cedar Grove on Thursday afternoon.