Sports

Wildcats dial in special teams starters BY KYLE TROUTMAN Football players called for key special teams positions have to have an equally special set of skills. Good hands, composure, consistency and playmaking ability are just a few of the things Cassville Coach Clay Weldy looks for in his returners, kicker, punter and long snapper.

The Cassville baseball program will have a new skipper come spring, current softball coach Shawn Trent. An Ash Grove graduate and baseball player at Evangel University, Trent was the head baseball coach at East Newton for 5 years before moving to Cassville, where he has been the high school assistant softball coach and junior high head softball coach.

The best defenders for the Cassville football team in recent years have had one major characteristic in common — toughness. Clay Weldy, Cassville football coach, said this year’s cast of secondary and linebackers has that gritty nature, and they will need it.

When it comes to offensive and defensive lines in the Big 8, the Cassville football team has neither the deepest or the biggest lineup, but the Wildcats aim to make up for that with heart. Clay Weldy, Cassville football coach, said last year the Wildcats were smaller than most teams, and this season will be much the same.

The Cassville football team is working this summer on the skills needed to beat opposing teams, all the while having to beat another opponent — the heat. Clay Weldy, Cassville football coach, said staying hydrated and healthy is the name of that game during July’s triple-digit heat wave.

The Cassville football team struggled from injures at the receiver position in the 2021 season, and Coach Clay Weldy is hoping those challenges were left behind. This year, the Wildcats return a fair amount of experience, and some new faces are working on the wings, as well.

A new baseball club is being formed in the area, aiming to bring success to the diamond in the same way the Mighty Mites and Wildcat Takedown Club have done for their respective sports. Shawn Trent and Dylan Klewer, along with other coaches and volunteers, are founding the Cassville Baseball Club for ages 9U-13U, with tryouts set for Aug.