Like nearly every baseball coach at every level, Warrenton’s Eric Burle is looking for pitching.

The Warriors lost starter Hunter Capstick to graduation and Burle hopes someone can replace him at the top of the rotation.

“We lost our best pitcher from last year and our best pitcher from the year before, so we’re just trying to figure out who can pitch at his level and pitch consistently,” Burle said. “Depth isn’t going to be an issue for us, it’s more about finding that consistent person. We don’t have an arm like we did with Ben Stephens a few years ago, and Hunter was effective for us last year. But we have a couple of guys. Eli Ecton has looked good so far, and Dalton (Owenby) has a couple of years of varsity experience under his belt, so hopefully he can round back into shape.”

Owenby started 10 games for the Warriors last spring, posting a 4.12 earned-run average in 51 innings.

Ecton saw six innings of work as a sophomore.

Other returners on the mound include Chris Vogt, Chris Garrett, Clayton Schowe and Garrison Hibbs, although Hibbs has been turning more heads with a bat in his hands early on.

The sophomore led the Warriors with a .417 batting average through five games.

Alex Vogt was hitting .400 with two doubles and four RBIs.

“Garrison Hibbs has come out and hit the ball pretty well, and the same goes for Alex Vogt,” Burle said. “Those guys have been successful at all levels, so they’re obviously acclimated. There might be some adjustment periods for some other guys because the pace of play is a little bit different than J.V.”

Along with the departure of Capstick, Burle also is looking to replace Dallas Johnson, Hunter Russell, Jake Abel, Sawyer Junker, Austin Dixon and Brandon Purkaple.

“We replaced about half of our lineup, so we have guys in some roles that they’re not accustomed to. It’s going to take a while for them to adjust, but they will,” he said. “The last couple of years we’ve lost some pretty high-caliber players, which is what every program has to deal with. So we’re just feeling it out early on.”

Trent McGee has shuffled around defensively while hitting .357 early on.

The junior infielder could hit his way into the leadoff spot soon, Burle said.

“He’s finding his way and we’re looking for him to have an impact for us,” he said.

The Warriors (1-4) began their Gateway Athletic Conference North season Tuesday at St. Charles and play a home-and-home series with St. Charles West next Tuesday and Wednesday.

St. Charles won the conference last season.

“I think there will be a lot of parity this year. The top teams from last year, Winfield, West and (St. Charles) High, brought most of their lineups back, and even a team like Orchard Farm brings a lot of guys back,” Burle said. “I told our guys there isn’t a team on our schedule that we can’t beat, but there isn’t a team that can’t beat us if we don’t come to play. I think we should be able to compete in conference, but there might be a little bit of a learning curve. But we’ll find our way.”