Dixie State University baseball has prepared to start its 2022 season playing Arizona State.
The season will start a three-game series at PAC-12 Power Arizona State. The team is excited to compete, recognize where they stand as a team and explore what there is to improve on.
Tyler Hollow, a senior exercise science major from Boise, Idaho, said there are many new faces in the clubhouse and more talent this year to improve on last year.
“We have many new athletes this year since we lost a great deal of seniors last year,” Hollow said. “For the fall and the spring, we are just getting used to each other and everyone is excited for next week.”
Head coach, Chris Phatenhauer, said the conferences this year are more competitive than previous seasons. The first nine opposing teams are regional teams. DSU will be playing against highly ranked DI teams.
“I’m excited to see the athletes have the opportunity to compete at the highest level,” Phatenhauer said. The opportunities the athletes have this season include, “bigger competition, fan base and traveling, and they are all experiences to look forward too.”
Mathew Ivancich, a junior recreation and sports management major from Wildomar, California, said he is excited for the opportunity to play with the new team. He is ready to see the team grow in hopes to win the WAC championship.
Ivancich has spent time out side of practice along with his teammates to get extra minutes to prepare. Doing this not only prepares the athletes for practice, but also gives them more confidence in their big competitions and games.
Ivancich said, to improve from last season, the team a couple of tasks, such as cutting down strike outs and improving their game with more competitive pitchers.
The pitching was one of the bigger struggles in the 2021 season, “The pitchers gave up 98 runs in 11 games,” Ivancich said.
The team took fourth place in the WAC championship last year, but the athletes want the first place award. The coaches put time in to recruitment on specific parts of the game that needed improvement. The coaches have also changed the practices to work on aspects of their game that they could improve on from last year.
With hopes to win the WAC championship this year, the team has put in the work at practice to get ready for the season and opening game on Feb. 18.
