Korey Noles is back as the head baseball coach at LaGrange Academy, and he’ll have a familiar face next to him in the dugout.

Noles, who is heading into his second season as the Warriors’ coach, will have a new assistant coach this season, and it just happens to be his father, David Noles, an accomplished baseball and softball instructor.

“Him being retired, he wanted to help me out,” Korey Noles said.

And Noles eagerly took him up on the offer.

“I grew up watching him play, and he was real good, and he’s been teaching me everything, all the ropes,” Noles said. “I know that he’s going to see something and help out where he can. If he sees somebody doing something wrong, I know he’ll help them. Especially fielders. He knows a lot about fielding.”

The Warriors have been busy practicing for nearly three weeks now, and they’ll open their season on Thursday at Heritage School in Newnan.

The Warriors made it to the GISA Class AA state playoffs last season, and they’ll look to build on that success this spring.

Noles said everything has been going smoothly so far.

“Everything’s been good. After their basketball season ended, we hit it running,” Noles said. “We have a few new guys, younger guys that are going to help us out a lot. We’ve got more pitching, and that’s a plus.”

Noles, a LaGrange High graduate, brought a stellar baseball resume to LaGrange Academy, mostly as a player.

He was the 2004 Class AAA player of the year when he led the Grangers to a state championship as a pitcher and a hitter.

He then went on to star at Columbus State, winning numerous pitching honors there before spending three seasons in the Phillies’ organization.

After deciding he was ready to leave his playing days behind him, Noles was looking for a new challenge, and he found it when he was offered the job at LaGrange Academy.

“(As a player), all I had to think about was going out and throwing strikes,“ Noles said. “Now I have to think about every aspect of the game. It’s fun, though. It keeps me into the whole game, and it’s real rewarding for the team when things go right.”

Noles said having players eager to learn made the transition a lot more comfortable.

“It wouldn’t have been as easy without having the kind of kids that I’ve got,” Noles said. “They’re just unbelievably coachable. When they’re listening, and yes-siring to everything you say, it makes it a lot easier. They’re not complaining.”

It was an adjustment, though, and Noles said he’s a lot more at ease now.

“The first year, you’re going into it blind. You don’t really know what to expect,” Noles said. “Now with a year under my belt, I know the competition, and how to go about managing the game.”

Noles said the players are also more familiar with the way he does things, which helps a lot.

“They know the program, and they know what’s going on, and they can kind of transition a little easier,” Noles said.