LIVINGSTON MANOR – On a rainy Monday afternoon in Livingston Manor, both Rockland teams were forced indoors, turning the gym into a makeshift training ground as preseason work continued to ramp up.

With the spring season approaching, the Section IX Class C baseball team and the Class D softball team are already putting in the work, focusing on conditioning, fundamentals, and building chemistry ahead of opening day.

Sixth-year baseball Head Coach Dylan Smith is hoping for a step forward after last season’s 5-12 finish, which ended in a sectional loss to Eldred.

“We missed out on the playoffs last year, losing to Eldred,” Smith said. “We want to improve on that and take a step forward this season.”

Rockland enters the year as a relatively young squad, with a roster heavy on sophomores. Still, Smith is confident in the leadership of a small but experienced core, including reigning team MVP Ben Johnston, senior Kaleb Maldonado, and junior Evan Nichols.

During practice, Nichols, a 6-foot-2 right-hander, worked on his mechanics and pitch location, while Maldonado focused on developing his changeup to complement his existing arsenal on the mound. Johnston was not in attendance during the session.

On the softball side, Head Coach Nick Wyss emphasized the importance of finishing games, something that proved costly a season ago.

“Last season, we led a lot of games late and couldn’t close them out,” Wyss said. “Errors and walks hurt us. That’s something we’ve been focusing on fixing.”

Now moved up to Class C, the team will face tougher competition this spring, but Wyss believes his group is ready for the challenge. He’ll lean on a strong group of upperclassmen and key returners, including sophomore pitcher/shortstop Alexandra Potosek, senior catcher Clara LeRoy, senior pitcher/third baseman Kelsey Rider, and senior infielder Leah Ladenhauf.

Potosek was active during the indoor session, throwing live batting practice in the cage, showcasing both her movement and velocity against hitters.

“For this season, my expectations are to make sectionals, improve in the areas we struggled in, and find ways to win those close games,” Wyss added.

With outdoor practices just weeks away, both teams are eager to transition from the gym to the field, where they’ll look to turn preseason work into results once the season gets underway.