MANKATO — If Mankato East baseball is going to duplicate the success it’s achieved over the past two seasons, senior center fielder Carson Hart will certainly be one of the reasons.

East, coming off two straight Big Nine Conference and Section 2AAA championships, is looking to replace a majority of its lineup after finishing 23-4 a year ago with a second place finish at the Class AAA state tournament.

Hart, a terrific all-around player who is headed to Creighton next year to play at the Division I level, will certainly be the catalyst on this year’s team after hitting at a .352 clip last season with 12 RBIs, a team-best 33 runs scored to go along with team-bests in walks (26) and stolen bases (24). He smacked five triples, five doubles and a home run for the Cougars, who tallied 105 stolen bases.

“Carson is a very competitive player. When he was younger that was sometimes a knock on him,” first-year coach Travis Miller said. “But he’s matured so much since he’s gotten to high school and now he’s got that edge to be a DI athlete. He’s one of the fastest kids in the state at all the showcases he’s been at. Basically, if he gets on base he’s going to end up on third base.

“He’s also so strong and can hit into the gaps where he might end up on third any way. He’s a great leader in the dugout for us and has really stepped into a leadership role. Nothing drops in front of him or gets behind him in center field. … We’ve been very fortunate to have him the past three years.”

While Hart’s offensive numbers are impressive, his perfect fielding percentage anchors the Cougars’ defensive alignment as well.

“We learned a lot the past two years by playing in the state tournament where there’s a lot of pressure,” Hart said. “We’re looking to use that to our advantage to get back there this year. I thought I played well last year and am looking to build off that this year. I am hoping to help the team out more this year by getting some more RBIs. I feel I can manufacture runs pretty well by getting on and moving around the bases.

“I feel I can also make a big play defensively that can help shift the momentum. I need to work on my arm strength and at being more vocal as a leader too. Other than that, there’s always things you can work on and you figure that out as you go on. We’re a close-knit group and that was a big part of our success last year. There’s a lot of guys who are going to step up and help us. … We’ll be strong with our pitching and defense which has always been our philosophy.”

Like Hart, senior infielder Mason Diede returns after playing in all 27 contests last year. Diede batted .306 with 12 RBIs and 16 runs scored. Other than that duo, East will look to senior left fielder Alex Fast and junior catcher Koltin Kolbinger to provide an expanded role heading into April 7th’s opener against Austin at Wolverton Field. Fast hit. 400 in limited action while Kolbinger batted .318 and drove in seven runs.

While the Cougars graduated a quartet — Caeden Willaert, Owen Studtmann, Nathan Bridger and Jacob Langworthy — from a pitching staff that compiled an impressive 1.56 ERA, junior left-handed ace Keaton Wojcik will look to punish hitters like he did a year ago. Wojcik, one of the state’s top prospects, is coming off a 7-0 season with a phenomenal 0.55 ERA in 50 1/3 innings pitched. He fanned 74 and walked 20.

“Our JV was 17-1 last year in a tough Big Nine Conference so we’re looking for those juniors to step up and find out what roles they’re going to fit in,” Miller said. “A lot of our infielders are pitchers and are interchangeable, which is nice to have. We’ve hung our hat on having a low ERA and a high fielding percentage while playing small ball to win games.

“I’ve been in this program for 20 years, so it’s fun to see the kids I’ve had a long-term connection with coming through.”