Baseball Stars have lofty expectations

By Michael Leek
Sports Editor

The LCC baseball season has already begun. The Stars lost their first game and won the next two. All three games were played against Guilford Technical Community College in North Carolina.

Coming off a third-place finish in the National Junior College Athletic Association World Series last year, LCC looks to return to the World Series despite having just a few key returning players. The Stars had a 50-12 overall record last season.

Head Coach Steven Cutter is in his third season for LCC. He said he looks to continue the team’s success while helping the players develop.

“Our main focus in our program is to develop better men; this applies on and off the field,” Cutter said. “We have many external expectations and much of it is just noise. Teaching not to get lost in the noise and enjoying the present of the moment is our biggest team goal.”

LCC is bringing in 35 new players this season and 25 returnees, a few of them being redshirt freshmen.

Cutter said for the new freshman, it is a large adjustment to the schedule of collegiate baseball play, but they have been doing well.

“We have our fall season to get them acclimated to the busy schedules of being a student-athlete at the collegiate level,” Cutter said. “We really try to teach time management skills right away so they are better equipped to handle the challenges that lie in front of them.”

The success the past two years has helped draw in some talented student-athletes to the program. Cutter said the depth is what he is excited to show with this team.

“Our talent level is at an all-time high, and our experience level is at an all-time low,” Cutter said. “So it will be important for them to fall back on our processes when adversity hits, which in this game happens often.”

Some of the new players to watch include freshman infielder Brayden Jones, who has already recorded two home runs and four RBIs for the Stars; and freshman utility man Chyran Humphries, who has a home run and three RBIs so far this season.

Returning faces to watch include sophomore pitcher Braden LaRusso, and redshirt sophomore infielder Alec Cutter. The latter has three hits and four RBIs through the first three games.

Cutter said he wants to build leaders within this team and every player has the ability to be one.

“Leadership is something we work on daily,” Cutter said. “We return one starter on offense and five pitchers who pitched on last season’s 50-win team. So we will truly find out how well our leadership training works this season.”

LCC’s next game will be Thursday, Feb. 29, at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. The Stars will continue playing games in the south until March 19, when they host their first game against Lake Michigan College at Municipal Park in Lansing.