LYNNWOOD — The Edmonds Community College baseball team is experiencing a bit of a bumpy ride to start the season.

The Tritons have split their first eight league games and are 13-14 overall.

First-year coach Hal DeBerry isn’t overly concerned, however, considering that Edmonds returns only a handful of starters and is relying on a number of freshmen.

“We’re going to be a work-in-progress,” said DeBerry, who had previously coached at Columbia Basin, Spokane and Glendale community colleges and at Portland State University. “The gap is certainly starting to close as we play more games.”

DeBerry also was a professional scout for the Montreal Expos and the Florida Marlins.

Though the Tritons have a lot of new faces, they also have plenty of returning players — 14 to be exact. It’s just that most of the returning players are stepping into starting roles for the first time.

“We’ve got guys who were here last year,” DeBerry said. “But they were guys who were playing behind guys who were starting.”

Two exceptions are sophomore outfielder Tyler Tomaselli (West Seattle) and sophomore utility/catcher Josh Waite (Edmonds). The two position players saw significant playing time last season.

Waite will split time with sophomore Tyler Hauschild (Spokane) at catcher but also plays second base, third base and may even be in the outfield this season.

“He has been a utility guy in every sense of the word,” DeBerry said of Waite. “He does a great job everywhere he plays. He’s not afraid to put his chest in front of everything.”

Archbishop Murphy graduate Jeff Arkell saw limited action a year ago and was playing a key role this season before being sidelined with a broken fibula last week.

Arkell was batting .300 and gave the Tritons some much needed power. His return to the lineup is up in the air but the sophomore first/third baseman plans to do all he can to get well quickly.

The loss of Ryan Strieby, a Mountlake Terrace graduate, and teammate Tyler Mach means that Edmonds has to work a little harder to score runs this season. The two combined to hit 13 of the team’s 21 home runs and drove in 108 RBI.

The Tritons’ offense, much like the pitching and defense, has been inconsistent this season.

“We went into the season trying to continue to do what Edmonds does, which is to be very aggressive at the plate,” DeBerry said.

Injuries haven’t helped matters. The Tritons have had to manufacture runs, which they have not been used to doing.

Earlier in the season, Edmonds would have runners in scoring position and then had a tendency to sit back and wait for the big hit.

“We’ve trying to be a little more aggressive in moving some runners on and are focusing on making productive outs throughout our lineup,” DeBerry said.

“It’s a lot harder than last year when you could sit back and let those guys drive in all the runs,” Arkell said. “This year everybody needs to contribute, to get on base, to move guys over and to drive in runs.”

Hauschild isn’t pleased with how Edmonds has played so far.

“We definitely expect more from ourselves than what we’ve started with,” he said. “We’re going to really be pushing. We’re going to go out there and just show people what we really can do.”

DeBerry will be looking to Hauschild to continue to provide some power in the lineup. Hauschild hit his third home run of the season in a 7-1 victory over Bellevue in the second game of an April 10 doubleheader. Edmonds dropped the opener 7-0. The Tritons have lost the first game in three of their four doubleheaders.

Edmonds’ top returning pitcher is sophomore righthander Mike Dedonato (Kirkland), who went 5-0 last season. Dedonato currently is 2-3 with a 2.27 ERA.

Dedonato throws a good fastball along with a curve and change-up. He’s also developing a cut fastball.

“He’s still learning to pitch it,” DeBerry said. “It’s something I think when he gets really comfortable it’s going to be a viable weapon for him.”

DeBerry also is relying on sophomore lefthanders A.J. Huttenlocker (Buckley) and Robbie Grimm (Seattle).

The bullpen currently is being run by committee as no standouts have emerged.

“We’ve giving people opportunities and just trying to have guys come in with confidence and really be aggressive,” DeBerry said. “We’ve got some kids that are on the cusp of being able to step in and really do the job for us and separate themselves.”

Another key to the Tritons’ success is how they execute in the field. When Edmonds has won games, it generally has played good defense. When the Tritons have made errors, they have lost.

“That is something really essential to this club,” DeBerry said. “We don’t have a lot of big strikeout pitchers. To be successful, guys have to put the ball in play.”

Players coming to Edmonds’ program are used to success.

“When you come here, you’re expected to perform and win,” Hauschild said.

The Tritons finished second in the division last season and advanced to the NWAACC tournament where they finished third overall. Edmonds had made the postseason 28 times in the last 29 years.

But the players know that they just can’t sit back and expect the victories to come to them. A winning tradition will only take the Tritons so far.

“(Success) doesn’t just come with putting the jersey on,” Arkell said. “It comes with a lot of hard work and preparation that we do here at Edmonds. We still have to work hard to reach that goal. It’s just not given to us just because we’re Edmonds.”