Leapfrogging 16 games in one season is a tough act to follow. Yet a whole bunch of Mandan Chiefs want to try.

There's only one rookie in the lineup that has its sights set on improving on last year's 35-25 record.

Actually, the Chiefs aren't that wrapped up in their won-lost record at all. It's their state tournament performance that's the main concern.

Mandan lasted into the fourth round of last year's state Class Atourney inMinot. First baseman Matt Keller says this team has much greater expectations than that this summer.

"We've kind of kept this year in the back of our heads for a long time," said Keller, one of five 19-year-olds on the club. "… The way last year ended gave us a lot of confidence coming into this season for sure. Our expectations are pretty high, definitely."

The Chiefs tore through the state qualifying tournament, outscoring five opponents by a margin of nearly 50 runs. In the state tourney, Mandan rolled over Fargo and lost to eventual champion Dickinson in the winners' bracket. They eliminated Grand Forks before being bumped out of the tourney by Minot.

Keller's hot streak didn't end with the end of the Legion season. As a freshman at Bismarck State College he adjusted rapidly to the change from metal to wood bats in the fall exhibition season and carried that momentum over to the spring.

He hit ".365 or .370, somewhere right in there" for BSCthis spring and was named the most valuable player in the Mon-Dak Conference.

"Ihad a pretty good spring,"he said. "I just got going and kind of had one good game and kind of built off that. It's all about attitude and confidence. I hit a good pitcher (in the season opener) and that made me feel like I could hit anybody."

On Tuesday at DevilsLake he jumped off to an even faster start on the Legion baseball season.He bashed three home runs and drove in nine runs in the Chiefs' first game, an 18-4 victory. Devils Lake took the second game 4-3.

"I had a couple of good swings," he said. "… I definitely like the metal bats a lot more."

Keller is entering his sixth season of Legion baseball, his fourth with the Chiefs. Jared Quast is also a fourth-year varsity player.

The other three 19-year-olds - Steve Pletan, Jason Mellmer and Jared Muth - are entering their third seasons with the Chiefs. Mellmer played with Keller at BSCand Muth and Pletan played at the University of Mary. Quast attended North Dakota State University but didn't play baseball.

Quast at third base, Pletan at second and Keller at first return to a shuffled infield. Newcomer Brent Stoltz has been installed at shortstop with Pletan, the veteran, moving to second base. Keller is transitioning from second to first.

Keller has played mostly second base over the years, but has been versatile enough that the change to first base isn't an ordeal.

"It's pretty much the same thing. Catch the ball, throw the ball," he said. "It took me awhile to get used to that big glove, though. It's like a pancake."

With Mellmer behind the plate and SamSalveson, Muth and Reid Jungling available in the outfield, new head coach Ryne Jungling can field a team with veterans everywhere but shortstop.

Keller said the experience factor should help keep the team on an even keel.

"The last couple of years our team has been like a roller coaster going up and down," Keller said. "Hopefully, this year we'll be able to keep on a straight line and not get too high or too low."

Likewise, the pitchers who did the bulk of the heavy lifting in 2008 are back. Reid Jungling, Flaa and Quast led the team in games started with 14, 12 and 11, respectively. Returning Chiefs pitchers worked 333 of Mandan's 396 innings last season and accounted for 31 of the team's 35 victories.

If the pitching staff performs as expected, Keller is optimistic about the possibilities. "Our bats will be there every day and our defense should be there every day," he said.

The numbers back Keller up, partially. Mandan outscored its opponents 439-373 last season and finished with a 41-30 advantage in home runs. However, the Chiefs sprang a few leaks defensively. They surrendered 144 unearned runs, an average of 2.4 per game.

Ryne Jungling takes over as the head coach after serving for two years as Len Stanley's assistant. Jungling, who played high school and Legion baseball at Mandan, just completed his third year of competition at the University of North Dakota.

Stanley has moved into the background as a consultant for the Mandan youth baseball program. The coaching change is a result of a new NJCAArule. Stanley, as the Bismarck State College baseball coach, isn't permitted to have direct off-season coaching contact with his players.

For Keller, the decision to return for a fourth season with the Chiefs was virtually automatic for him and the other 19-year-olds.

"It was just taken for granted,"Keller said. "The last couple of seasons playing under coach Stanley have been so much fun that what else are you going to do? We've almost got a brotherhood among the five of us."

Beware of Dickinson

Ryne Jungling says defending state Legion baseball champion Dickinson bears watching again this year.

Many of the players who contributed to the 2008 championship are back, making the Roughriders a threat again.

"Dickinson returns a lot of guys … and Minot always reloads really well,"Jungling said. "Fargo should be pretty good. They have some good pitchers."

Jungling looks upon his team as a possible contender, too. "If we get pitching, defense and some timely hitting we'll be right in the mix," he noted.

The Chiefs roster:

19-Year-Olds

Matt Keller, IF-P, .395, 12 HR, 77RBIs, 63 R, 20 doubles, 10 SB; 1-0, 3.60, 11.2 IP, 9 H, 8 BB, 2 SO. JasonMellmer, C, .373, 3 HR, 31 RBIs, 54 R. Jared Muth, OF, .368, 0 HR, 29 RBIs, 77, 23 SB. Steve Pletan, IF, .344, 10 HR, 69 RBIs, 68 R, 33 BB. Jared Quast, IF-P, .414, 12 HR, 77 RBIs, 63 R; 6-5, .3.29, 68IP, 91 H, 33 BB, 55 SO.

18-Year-Olds

BrennenRossman, OF, .250, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R. SamSalveson, OF-P, .313, 2 HR, 37 RBIs, 36 R, 11 SB; 4-5, 4.27, 59 IP, 81 H, 40 BB, 26 SO.

17-Year-Olds

BrandonAustad,OF. .000, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 R, 1 R. Andy Conlon, IF. Jacob Friesz, IF-P, .205, 0 HR, 7 RBIs, 16 R; 4-2, 5.47, 39.2 IP, 52 H, 29 BB, 25 SO. Reid Jungling, OF-IF-P, .345, 1 HR, 34 RBIs, 30 R; 8-4, 2.76, 83.2 IP, 75 H, 30 BB, 35 SO. Steve Serr, C, .276, 1 HR, 24 RBIs, 31 R, 32 BB.

16-Year-Olds

Jay Flaa, IF, .333, 0 HR, 0RBIs, 0 R; 6-4, 4.04, 71 IP, 86 H, 37 BB, 49 SO. Brent Stoltz, IF.