Dickerson’s Royals rolling, hungry for more

This has been a year of firsts for David Dickerson.

After a four-year college baseball career that ended last season, Dickerson is currently the head coach for his alma mater New Site. He’s temporarily filling in for Luke Goff, who is taking the year off due to military duties.

“I've loved every step of the way. These guys have been great,” Dickerson said of the players. “And my assistant coaches, Mason Walden, Dave Wyers and Ben Taylor, have helped me so much.”

Dickerson also has the Royals in the Class 2A state quarterfinals. New Site got there with dominant sweeps over Strayhorn and Leland, outscoring those teams 64-9.

The Royals needed to replace Landon Stanley, who pitched the most innings on the team last year, heading into this season. Zander Denson (4.27 ERA), Colton Trimble (2.55 ERA), Jayden Greene (2.23 ERA) and Landon’s cousin Rylan Stanley (2.93 ERA) have held their own.

“When you lose such a big part of your defense on the mound, it's really hard to replace that,” Dickerson said. “And everybody has stepped up this year to fill those shoes.”

As a whole, New Site has demonstrated toughness and grit. Part of it is that the Royals know it doesn’t take much to either make it a ballgame again, come back to tie it or take the lead.

“We don't ever feel like we're out of a ballgame,” Dickerson said. “I don't ever see any of our guys’ heads get down. They've shown a lot of grit throughout the year.”

Alongside that toughness and grit sits dissatisfaction.

Many people in and around the community thought this would be a rebuilding year, and the team has already surpassed those expectations, but there is a burning desire on the team to do more. It’s fueled by the fact that the Royals have never reached the state championship series.

“You can't become complacent on how far you've come,” Dickerson said. “We've been here last year under a great coach, and he's built a great program out here. And we’ve just got to keep doing what we're doing. Keep getting better every day.”

New Site’s quarterfinal foe will be East Webster. Game 1 is scheduled for Thursday at 6 p.m. in Maben.