5A SIC

Boise Braves

Coach: Brad Dalton, first season (sixth overall)

Returning lettermen: 10

Players to watch: Zach Haggett, sr., third baseman/RHP; Lance Kotter, sr., right fielder/LHP; Nate Bush, jr., shortstop; Brady Beutler, sr., second baseman.

Team tidbit: Dalton previously coached at Centennial, but returned to his alma mater, where he won a state title as a player in 1994. Haggett, Kotter, Bush and Jake Oths played for the Idaho Cubs last summer, a developmental team organized by the Chicago Cubs.

Borah Lions

Coach: Wes McAllaster, fifth season

Returning lettermen: 10

Players to watch: Cole Skinner, jr., pitcher/first baseman; Matt Wooley, jr., pitcher/shortstop; Sam O'Neil, sr., outfielder; Lucas Keefe, jr., catcher; Miles Bigelow, jr., pitcher/third baseman; Shane Layman, jr., outfielder; Connor Wood, jr., second baseman; Trey Dennis, jr., pitcher.

Team tidbit: The Lions finished in the bottom half of the standings in 2012, but made a strong run at the district tournament to advance to a state play-in game.

Capital Eagles

Coach: Jerry Holloway, 11th season (22nd overall)

Returning lettermen: nine

Players to watch: Corbin Smith, sr., RHP/infielder; Russell Reber, sr., RHP/infielder; Makena Simis, sr., RHP/outfielder; Jacob Foley, jr., infielder; Garret Pearson, jr., RHP/outfielder.

Team tidbit: The Eagles are expected to contend for a district title with five returning starters and the addition of Bishop Kelly transfer Reber, a righty who helped the Knights finish second at state last year in the 4A classification.

Centennial Patriots

Coach: Brian Champion, first season (11th overall)

Returning lettermen: seven

Players to watch: Jamey Carman, sr., RHP; Blake Bell, jr., left fielder/shortstop; Ryan Murkle, jr., third baseman/first baseman; Jake Dewey, jr., first baseman/DH.

Team tidbit: Champion previously coached at Sprague High in Salem, Ore., and began working with the Patriots in late January. The Patriots have only two seniors, and are getting a fresh start with a new coach, system and uniforms.

Eagle Mustangs

Coach: Frank Wright, 18th season (40th overall)

Returning lettermen: six

Players to watch: J.T. Williams, jr., shortstop/RHP; Brandon Martinez, sr., center fielder; Greg Robinette, sr., third baseman; Steven Hexum, sr., first baseman; Patrick Burns, sr., second baseman.

Team tidbit: The Mustangs do not have a pitcher or catcher who played varsity last season, but that doesn't mean they won't be competitive. Eagle finished second at state last year and won it all the season before.

Meridian Warriors

Coach: Rod Williams, 12th season

Returning lettermen: four

Players to watch: Tim Jones, jr., outfielder/pitcher; Zach Toney, jr., infielder/pitcher; Jake Carr, jr., pitcher; Nate Lainhart, jr., pitcher/infielder/outfielder.

Team tidbit: Experienced pitching could boost a young, but talented group that Williams says is "highly capable of being an upper-echelon team in the 5A SIC."

Mountain View Mavericks

Coach: Matt Rasmussen, 10th season (14th overall)

Returning lettermen: nine

Players to watch: Branson Trube, jr., center fielder; Devon Pogue, sr., catcher; Connor Odneal, jr., shortstop; Cody Reilly, jr., second baseman; Kody Garvin, jr., RHP; Andrew Clark, jr., RHP; Jason Maughan, jr., RHP.

Team tidbit: The roster includes one freshman, two sophomores, eight juniors and three seniors. Mountain View has finished third at state the past two seasons, and this group is considered to be a top 5A SIC contender.

Rocky Mountain Grizzlies

Coach: Jake Taylor, fifth season

Returning lettermen: seven

Players to watch: Mason Smith, sr., center fielder/shortstop; Michael Abraham, sr., infielder; Landry Batis, sr., outfielder; Dakota Weindel, sr., RHP; Johnny McNerney, sr., RHP; Josh Gasser, sr., RHP.

Team tidbit: The defending district and state champions return a core group of starters, but the progress of an inexperienced infield will play a role in determining this year's success. Pitching and outfield should be strengths.

Timberline Wolves

Coach: Larry Price, 14th season

Returning lettermen: nine

Players to watch: Cody Price, sr., pitcher/infielder; Michael Stefanic, jr., infielder; Nick Klena, sr., outfielder.

Team tidbit: Timberline lost to Mountain View in the third-place game at state last season, but has a strong group of lettermen back. The roster includes two freshmen and three sophomores.

Vallivue Falcons

Coach: Justin Schneidt, sixth season

Returning lettermen: four

Players to watch: Tad Gamble, jr., pitcher; Carey Loveland, jr., pitcher/outfielder; Tanner Vogt, soph., infielder.

Team tidbit: The returning lettermen include one senior, two juniors and a sophomore. "We will be tested early and often as we hope to compete against a very good conference schedule," Schneidt said.

4A SIC

Bishop Kelly Knights

Coach: Bobby Sutcliffe, ninth season

Returning lettermen: seven

Players to watch: Bowen Ogata, jr., shortstop/pitcher; Robby Degen, jr., center fielder; Derek Thompson, sr., right fielder; Colby Wade, sr., catcher; David Pogue, sr., third baseman.

Team tidbit: The defending district champions return the 4A SIC player of the year in Ogata, but because of injuries and transfers, the Knights have less experience at pitcher than in previous seasons. Sutcliffe said his team's strength will be at the plate.

Caldwell Cougars

Coach: Dan Richardson, second season

Returning lettermen: eight

Players to watch: Laren Walker, sr., outfielder/pitcher; Andrew Lopez, sr., third baseman/pitcher.

Team tidbit: The Cougars -who return three starters - are eager to build on how they finished last season, fighting back from a 1-7 start to an 8-8 finish in league and 10-12 overall.

Columbia Wildcats

Coach: Phil Diplock, seventh season

Returning lettermen: six

Players to watch: Justin Lamb, sr., catcher; Nate Emerson, sr., shortstop/pitcher; Mike Metzger, sr., first baseman/pitcher.

Team tidbit: Metzger is a returning all-conference first baseman who has committed to Northwest Nazarene. The Wildcats have 10 seniors, but only three returning starters. Defense could be a strength.

Emmett Huskies

Coach: Shad Larson, first season

Returning lettermen: seven

Players to watch: Hunter Larson, sr., outfielder/RHP; Rashe Elliot, sr., outfielder/LHP; Gunnar Gustin, jr., shortstop/RHP; Nate Hundley, jr., second baseman; Porter Gustin, soph., first baseman/RHP; Cody Hedges, jr., infielder/catcher; Wyatt Smith, soph., third baseman/catcher.

Team tidbit: Emmett returns its top six batters and its entire pitching staff, and has an opportunity to improve after winning one league game in 2012.

Kuna Kavemen

Coach: Dale Rippy, sixth season

Returning lettermen: four

Players to watch: Landon Croft, sr., RHP/center fielder; Hayden Stauffer, sr., RHP/third baseman; Jeffers Erickson, jr., right fielder.

Team tidbit: Only two starters return for a team that finished third during the regular season, but stumbled in the district tournament and did not make state. Rippy says his inexperienced squad, with just five seniors, will get better as the season progresses.

Middleton Vikings

Coach: Pete Dias, 17th season

Returning lettermen: five

Players to watch: Victor Dias, sr., shortstop/RHP; Christian Hill, jr., catcher; Shive Huggins, sr., catcher/RHP; Terrance Balderas, jr., outfielder; Cameron Foreman, sr., RHP; Alex Vasquez, jr., RHP.

Team tidbit: The Vikings finished second at district and third at state last season, and return two all-conference selections (Dias and Hill).

Mountain Home Tigers

Coach: Mark Cotton, third season

Returning lettermen: five

Players to watch: Skyler Podesek, sr., catcher; Danny Brescia, jr., center fielder.

Team tidbit: In a competitive 4A SIC, the Tigers narrowly missed out on state in 2012. Mountain Home lost to Skyview in the district third-place game, but hopes to improve on that finish in 2013 with the help of strong pitching.

Nampa Bulldogs

Coach: Marcos Sanchez, third season

Returning lettermen: 11

Players to watch: Ryan Sullivan, sr., infielder; Dominic Hammudeh, jr., infielder/pitcher; Chase Swainston, jr., infielder; Gustavo Pina, sr., infield/pitcher; Braydon Torres-Moore, soph., catcher; Cutler Dunn, soph. infielder.

Team tidbit: The Bulldogs are loaded with eight returning starters and a talented group of sophomores.

Skyview Hawks

Coach: Ryan Bobo, ninth season (13th overall)

Returning lettermen: six

Players to watch: Brendan Crabb, sr., shortstop/second baseman; Toby Anderson, sr., shortstop/pitcher; Tanner Ashworth, sr., catcher; Tyler Hensley, sr., third baseman; Jared Hoops, sr., outfielder; Matt Lightfoot, sr., outfielder; Casey Bennett, sr., outfielder.

Team tidbit: The Hawks may have one of the best pitching rotations in the league, and a core group of high-average hitters, run scorers and RBI producers, which could help them advance to state for a third straight year.