Meghan Schorman
GIRLS SOCCER
The Explorers hope to turn in a successful season in Brian Hoener’s first year as coach this spring.
Hoener replaced Steve Mitchell as the Explorers’ coach on Oct. 30. He will take over a team that finished 11-8-1 last year and has placed at the state tournament 4 times in the last 9 years, including a Class 1A state title in 2011.
“Things are going well,” Hoener said. “The girls have a really good attitude. They’re working hard. It’s bit of a challenging preseason because I’m learning all of the new faces and they’re learning about me. We’re just trying to get to know each other a little bit and start to build the foundation for what we want this season to be.”
Seniors Lauren Fischer, Lauren Walsh and Rebekah Johnes are among the top returning players. Fischer, a goalkeeper, plans to play at the University of Evansville next year.
SOFTBALL
The Explorers got back on the winning track last year, going 27-5 after winning just 5 games the year before.
This spring, Marquette is setting its sights on another strong year with 10 returning players. Among the returners are seniors Meghan Schorman, Grace Frost, Gracie Morris, Haley Johnson, Cayli Shinstock and Tess Eberlin, junior Kyra Green and sophomores Jada Johnson, Emma Nicholson and Taylor Whitehead.
Schorman, a pitcher, plans to continue her softball career at the University of Pittsburgh next year. Frost, who hit a team-high 6 home runs last spring, is headed to Illinois College.
“We had a pretty successful season last year,” said Dan Wiedman, who returns for his 24th season as head coach. “We got a lot of good ballplayers back and we’ve got some good young ones coming in, so there’s going to be a lot of competition for starting positions this year and that will be good.”
BASEBALL
Last year, the Explorers turned in their best season in Tim Fahnestock’s tenure as head coach, going 22-11 and winning a Prairie State Conference title and a Class 2A Althoff Regional championship.
With several players returning, Marquette will look to finish with its second straight winning season this spring.
Jayce Maag is the top returning hitter at .319 with a home run and 12 RBIs despite getting injured in the middle of the season.
Luke Simmons and Nick Hemann are Marquette’s top returning pitchers. Simmons led the Explorers with 5 wins and Hemann finished with 4 in ‘17.
Other seniors on the team include John Blachford, Kyle Begnel, Garrett Weiner, Kaleb Ware and Ethan Kopsie.
BOYS TENNIS
Junior Daniel McCluskey and sophomore A.J. Bower are the top returning players from last year’s team that finished 16-1 in dual matches and qualified a pair of doubles teams to state.
McCluskey and Bower both played at state in doubles. McCluskey teamed up with Jon Claywell and finished 5-2 at Class 1A state. Bower played with Joe Segneri and finished with 1 win at state.
The Explorers lost 45 players to graduation, including Claywell and Segneri. Nathan Walters is the lone senior on this year’s team.
Marquette, coached by Mike Walters, is scheduled to start its season on March 17 at the Triad Invitational.
TRACK AND FIELD
Senior Tommy DeClue and sophomore Riley Vickrey are the top returning athletes for the Marquette boys and girls track teams, respectively.
Last year, DeClue qualified for the Class 1A state meet in the long jump and 400 and the 400-meter relay. He won Madison County and sectional titles in the long jump.
Also a year ago, Vickrey was the Explorers’ lone representative in the girls state meet. She competed in the 3,200-meter run.
Marquette, coached by Mike Brooks, has 30 boys and 13 girls on its roster.
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