BRINGING THE HEAT: Hun School softball pitcher Julia Revock fires a pitch last Thursday against WW/P-N. Sophomore star Revock went the distance as Hun beat the Northern Knights 5-2. The Raiders, who moved to 5-1 with a 10-0 loss to Penn Charter (Pa.) last Saturday, are slated to host Lawrenceville on April 21, Mercersburg Academy (Pa.) on April 23 for a doubleheader, and Princeton Day School on April 26. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Having begun the season with four straight wins, Julia Revock and the Hun School softball team ran into some adversity when they hosted WW/P-N last Thursday.

Sophomore pitcher Revock yielded two runs in the first three innings of the contest as the Raiders fell behind 2-0. “It started out a little rough,” said Revock.

But in the bottom of the third, one swing changed the course of the game as Hun senior star Alexis Goeke lined a three run homer over the left field fence to put the Raiders up 3-2.

“We really picked it up after Goeke’s home run, it really boosted us up and I felt a lot more confident that we were up,” said Revock, who drew a walk and was on base when Goeke smacked the homer.

Buoyed by the lead, Revock got stronger and stronger in the circle as the game went on, taking command to help Hun pull away to a 5-2 victory.

“I was just trying to pitch strikes and then towards the end of the game my adrenaline started running and that is when my change up started to work,” said Revock, who pitched four strikeouts and scattered seven hits in the outing. “It feels good. I knew if we just held them, we would get more runs.”

Hitting second in the Hun batting order, Revock also contributed offensively, going 1-for-3 with a run.

“I always try to make sure to help myself,” said Revock. “If I am not hitting my best, I know my team is going to back me up.”

Having emerged as the pitching ace this spring for the Raiders, Revock is relishing that role.

“I feel a lot more confident in myself; I really know that my team is behind me,” said Revock.

“I know that it is a lot on me but I know that if I just do my job, we will do well.”

Edging perennial nemesis Peddie 11-10 in its season opener on April 5 showed Hun that it could do well this spring.

“That game was a tough game but we pushed through,” said Revock. “That started our momentum and we just want to keep that going.”

Averaging nine runs a game in its first five contests has helped the Raiders build momentum.

“The biggest positive is definitely our offense, it has been really good,” said Revock.

“We have been hitting really well and when we are hitting well that helps me do my best.”

Hun head coach Kathy Quirk sees Revock’s strong pitching as a major
positive for the Raiders.

“Julia threw yesterday so I was nervous about whether she was going to be able to go two games in a row; we have this little thing, are you OK, how is your arm, and as long as she tells me she is fine, I keep her in there,” said Quirk.

“Every game has been a good game and she has been doing her job so I am not going to pull her. She has given up playing travel ball and has taken the pressure off of herself. She is out there having fun and I think her teammates are so supportive of her.”

It was fun for Quirk to see Goeke come through with the big homer against WW/P-N when the pressure was on.

“It was beautiful, there is no other way to describe it,” asserted Quirk. “She has been a true leader, on and off the field. She has just done everything we have asked her and she just keeps working hard every day. I have been really pleased with her.”

Quirk is also pleased with the production she has been getting from freshman first baseman Megan Donahue.

“She can crush the ball,” said Quirk of Donahue. “She had a home run against Blair and it was the same as Goeke’s today. She fields well, she stretches, she knows her infielders and where she has to move.”

Starting the season with the win over Peddie got Hun moving in a positive direction.

“We hadn’t beaten Peddie in six or seven years,” said Quirk. “It is always a game where we go up and then they come back and we go up and they come back and in the seventh inning we always end up losing. It was a big boost for all of us, especially the seniors who have been there for four years.”

In Quirk’s view, her squad has the potential to produce a very good year.

“They all just get along, it is a great bunch of kids,” said Quirk, whose team tasted defeat for the first time, falling 10-0 to Penn Charter (Pa.) last Saturday, and will look to get back on the winning track when it hosts Lawrenceville on April 21, Mercersburg Academy (Pa.) on April 23 for a doubleheader, and Princeton Day School on April 26.

“I am very happy with our offense. On defense, we have had a few glitches every now and then but we have been able to pick each other up. We need to stay focused. We can’t get cocky.”

Revock, for her part, is confident that the Hun players will keep picking each other up.

“We are a very well bonded team,” said Revock. “We all know that we have each other’s backs. In our team room we have ‘I have got your six’ (a military saying for I have got your back) on the wall. We all get along, we are like sisters.”