The Great Falls Voyagers begin their 2024 regular season campaign tonight at 7 PM inside Voyagers Stadium, and excitement has certainly been in the air for a team that has seen its most significant roster turnover in the team's history.

First year head coach Sean Repay made sure his impact was felt early, only returning two players to the roster from the previous season; outfielder Xane Washington and pitcher Braden Forsyth. With so many new faces on the team, building a strong culture has been a focal point throughout the preseason for Repay and his squad. When asked to describe his new group of players, "energetic" was the word he used. "There's been a lot of comradery for such a short time together; it's an electric atmosphere".

Sean also has brought in a number of players that he has coached previously; Marcos Castillo at Coppin State and Nolan LaMere from the Northwood league to name a few. Repay said that these moves are all about building a solid foundation for the team to grow upon. "Guys that know me, know my style of coaching, know my philosophies, and know my approach in the dugout, win or lose. Relaying that message to guys that are new, or haven't been around me yet it's nice to have someone beside you telling you how those things are going to go."

Coach Repay told us that he kept his message to the team lighthearted prior to the start of the season. "Be competitive, have fun, play hard, and good things are gonna happen. You don't want to put so much pressure on guys out the gate, the guys already put enough pressure on themselves."

We also got to catch up briefly with returnee Xane Washington and newcomer Makhi Backstrom on their expectations going into the season. Xane said, "It's been a lot of fun, a lot of personalities, a lot of cultures coming together on this one team, and I think we're gonna mesh pretty well together. "I'm excited to be on the field, see these fans, hopefully give them a show every time we step out on the field".

2019 MLB draft pick and new member of the Voyagers Makhi Backstrom also gave us some time to talk about the new team, "A lot of electricity, a lot of fire, most of all it's a team that wants to win. We don't want to sit here and be average, we're all scared of being average. We all have that same goal, we all have that drive to be better."

The Voyagers open up their season tonight at 7 PM against the Billings Mustangs, and new team members are eager to integrate themselves with as much of the fan base as possible. Sean Repay highlighted this at the end of his interview. "We want our guys to interact with fans as much as possible. I don't want fans out there to be afraid to approach our guys; whether it's to chat them up, or autographs, please come out!"