Hurricanes will have new look in 2008

By Brian Hansel (Contact) | The Daily Journal

Published Friday, May 9, 2008

Dave Johnson’s Fergus Falls Hurricanes have some juggling to do this season as they adjust to the loss of three key players.

The Class C amateur town team is coming off another big year. The Hurricanes won 23 of their 32 games last year. They reached the second round of the state tournament before falling to St. Francis 3-1. Along the way the Hurricanes took runner-up honors in the Region 16C playoffs and defeated defending state runner-up Union Hill 7-4.

Aaron Olson, Mic Johnson and Eric Anderson have moved to different clubs.

Olson, a shortstop, hit .314, scored 20 runs, drove in 17 and led the club with 23 walks. He also collected eight doubles and hit two home runs. Olson will be playing for Class B Shakopee this season.

Johnson swung a big bat for the Hurricanes. He led the team with a .438 average and also came up with a team-high 28 runs and six home runs. The outfielder will be playing for Class B Maple Lake.

Anderson led the Hurricanes on the mound with 60.1 innings of work. He also won four of his five decisions and notched three saves. Anderson will be playing for Rochester this season.

While the Hurricanes lost most of their power they also gained some speed. Johnson plans to stress bunting and hit and run baseball this year to utilize this advantage.

Joining the Hurricanes for their 2008 season will be infielders Mike Gaustad and Alex Conboy. Pitcher-infielder Travis Swiontek, first baseman Joe Ellig, former Otters Erik Rohlfs and Conner Kerr and current Minnesota State CTC player Demitrius Wooden.

Gaustad has good speed and played for the Hurricanes in 2005. Conboy played college ball for the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Swiontek played for the Fergus Falls Post 30 Legion team last year. Ellig will add a powerful left-handed bat to the lineup. Rohlfs caught for the Otters while Kerr played the outfield. Wooden played the outfield for the Spartans.

A bright spot for the Hurricanes will be the return of their two top pitchers – Tyler Gagner and Caey Kowalski. Gagner posted a 7-1 record last year in 55.1 innings of work. His earned run average was an excellent 0.98. Kowalski went 6-2 on the mound. He had a team-high 65 strikeouts in 58 innings of work and turned in an excellent 1.24 ERA.

Casey Bovkoon will also be back on the staff. Bovkoon was 3-0 last year with a 3.44 ERA in 34 innings of work.

Adding depth to the pitching staff will be Jarrod Asmus, Nick Lewis, Kellen Shebeck and Johnson himself.

Asmus is a versatile player who will see action at first and the outfield as well as on the hill. Asmus hit .389 last year, drove in 25 runs and scored 17.

Lewis and Shebeck will see action in the outfield when they are not being called on to pitch. Lewis hit .287 for the team, scored 20 runs and collected five doubles. Shebeck hit .231 with 14 runs and eight ribbies.

The best bat in the outfield last year belonged to Tim Erickson, who hit .378 with a team-high 10 doubles, two homers, 20 runs and 16 RBIs.

The Hurricanes will also have third baseman Dusty Christenson, second baseman Ben Brimhall and catcher Matt Brekke back. Christenson hit .242 with 14 runs and eight ribbies. Brimhall had an off-year at the plate but scored 18 runs. Brekke, who can also handle other infield spots, hit .324 with 16 RBIs.

The Hawley Hawks have joined the Countryside League this season. Dent and Vergas both return solid clubs. Pelican Rapids will have a mixture of veteran talent and younger talent. Frazee is rebuilding with a younger team.