Rob Reese has seen just about every scenario the last 17 seasons as Issaquah’s head baseball coach.

But 2011 brings a unique challenge to the veteran manager  —  a team with just three seniors.

“This is my 18th year and we’ve never had under 10 seniors, so it’s kind of strange,” said Reese, who’s amassed a 298-123 career record and 11 state tournament appearances.

Leading that group of senior returners is Ben Rosellini. The left fielder started all 23 games on last year’s 17-6 team, batting .345 with 13 RBI and 11 runs scored.

Gavin Schumaker and Justin Reynolds round out the small list of seniors. Schumaker is a veteran varsity player who started at second base as a sophomore and missed his entire junior season with a knee injury. Reynolds is an infielder moving up from junior varsity.

The rest of the Eagles’ lineup consists of 10 juniors, three sophomores and one freshman.

“We’ve got some good players, they’re just young,” Reese said.

Leading the junior class is shortstop Jake Bakamus. He started at second base as a sophomore, playing in all but one game. Junior center fielder Blake Miller also saw a large chunk of time in the outfield last season.

Issaquah also brings some junior depth to the mound.

Left-hander Ethan Kalin, the Eagles’ starting quarterback, is recovering from a dislocated elbow suffered last fall. He has played varsity baseball since his freshman year.

“He threw in the bullpen the other day and looked pretty good,” Reese said. “His arm’s strong, he can’t throw curveballs yet, but hopefully in another week or so he’ll be ready.”

Hard-throwing right-hander Brandon Mahovlich will also provide some heat from the mound.

Other pitchers expected to compete for significant playing time include juniors Cole Westover, Matt Gonn and Scott Boydston, along with sophomore Andrew Kemmerer.

Reese believes his defense and pitching will be strong this season. The big question mark with the young team lies at the plate. Facing veteran pitching staffs like Redmond and Newport, he knows hits could be hard to come by.

That doesn’t take away from the optimism of the new season, however.

“It’s our hope to win the state title every year,” Reese said. “Some years it might be a little more realistic than others, but that’s the bar we’ve set.

It’s just a matter of how they want to buy in, how hard they want to work and to not always believe their press clippings and stats all the time.”

Issaquah begins its season 3:45 p.m., Monday, March 14 at home against Kentridge.