Baseball season is in full swing for Bay Area teams from Little Leagues to the Upper 13 League but, for high school teams in Bayfield, Drummond, Mellen, South Shore, Washburn and Ashland, the pitching, running, catching and hitting are over. While the Washburn Castle Guards enjoyed the most success this spring in winning an NLC championship and advancing to sectionals, the Ashland Oredockers defined their season with steady improvement and momentum that carried them into a hard fought extra innings 4-3 loss in a regional final game against host Medford on May 29. Medford then advanced to sectional finals before dropping a close 7-5 game to sectional champion and state qualifier La Crosse Logan on June 4. The Ashland Daily Press caught up with Oredockers Head Coach Chris Kempf, and WBCA Hall-of-famer, to discuss his ‘Dockers 2024 season and what happens next for his young team.
Question: A lot of progress this year, coach. What can you say?
Answer: Our team improved immensely, and faced a lot of difficult situations. Early on we spent a lot of time in the gym with limited space, utilized the disc golf course for outside work, and had only two home dates until our playoff run. The athletes worked hard and improved from game to game. Having only 2 returning full-time starters back from 2023, in Jake Neff and Michael Zunker, we needed to play as many games as we could to be ready for the playoffs. I don’t think playing games in practice or scrimmages are as valuable as playing non-conference quality opponents. The Heart of the North Conference was evenly balanced and every team had a chance to win the game. I am proud of the resilience of the players I have, and the parents that had to deal with the ever changing schedule we had this year.
Q: You’ve got a young team and some good returning players ….
A: We are only losing one player this year from a relatively young team. If our athletes put the time in the weight room and play some baseball this summer, it would go a long way for us next season. We have the potential to be a very good baseball team. Wyatt Lund and Michael Zunker both made First team All-Heart ‘O North Conference, but I believe that we had a few others who could have received honors if other coaches would have felt the same way. Unfortunately, it was a senior heavy class of nominees this year.
Q: A lot of good seniors graduated across the conference. What about your senior, Jake Neff?
A: Jake Neff is our only graduate. He has been a mainstay in our infield for the past four years. He was very athletic and could play any position in the infield including catcher, along with having a few games in the outfield. Jake was like a Swiss Army Knife of baseball skills. Very smooth and had a lot of baseball smarts.
Q: After all the progress in 2024, how might your young team fare next season?
A: As I mentioned, our players need to take advantage of opportunities to improve themselves by staying in shape, playing multiple sports, and playing the game. We definitely have the potential to be a state qualifier next season. We will also be counting on a healthy number of younger athletes to compete for positions next season.
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