On White River High’s baseball diamond, the future is looking bright for a team heavy with senior talent.

The Buckley nine will be strong up the middle as the Hornets return all-league upperclassmen Daniel Smith at catcher, Michael Anastasi at second base, Connor Williams at shortstop Payden Lamb in center field.

Added to the mix are senior sluggers Cameron Kujawa, who will be found at first base and when he isn’t pitching, and third baseman Dustin Stroud.

The pitching staff will feature five senior righties and one junior southpaw in Trevor Lubking, who will also play right field. The righties include Smith, Stroud, Tyson Erickson, D.J. Reynolds and Dillon Myers.

The boys will be looking to improve on last season’s 8-8 South Puget Sound League 3A mark and overall record of 10-10. “We have a lot of guys on this team that have been learning the system for four years now and they and the coaching staff are approaching this campaign with the philosophy that we are going to come out and be able to compete well in every single game we play,” said skipper Mike Williams.

The Hornets open with a pair of nonleague home games – at noon Saturday against Yelm and at 4 p.m. Monday against Fife.

The initial SPSL 3A action comes March 18 when the Hornets host Peninsula High.