The Tahoma High baseball team is back on the field and ready for another season.

The boys have played two nonleague games, losing to Sumner 10-5 Monday and beating Emerald Ridge Tuesday 6-2.

The Bears finished third in state last year and the team will be looking for that magic formula that got them that far again this year.

Leading the defense in the infield will be senior Taylor Smart at shortstop. He will be playing at University of Nevada, Las Vegas next season, but for the spring he will be anchoring the hole for the Bears.

Smart has already started strong, going 3-4 against Emerald Ridge with a home run.

Coach Russ Hayden said Smart went 0-3 at the plate in the opening game against Sumner Monday, but he hit the ball hard each time.

Jerod Casper will be returning to second base in the infield and he will be on the mound for the Bears.

Hayden said Casper “throws hard” and should be one of the Bears top pitchers.

Another bright spot for Tahoma is catcher Brian Olson who fires bullets down to second. Hayden expects Olson, who is a junior, to be one a top catchers in the league.

Olson will also be a threat at the plate. He collected a pair of doubles in the game against Emerald Ridge.

Spencer Hobson is penciled in as an ace of the staff. He is working on his control, but, once the South Puget Sound League 4A North Division games begin his control should be dialed in and he will be a workhorse for the Bears.

Tahoma will travel to Auburn Riverside for a 4 p.m. game Tuesday, the first league matchup of the season.