IN THE SWING: Princeton Day School baseball player Ryan Augustus follows through on a swing in recent action. Last Monday, senior outfielder Augustus helped PDS top Holy Cross 9-0 as it improved to 10-4. PDS will be starting play in the state Prep B tournament this week, where it is seeded second and will host No. 7 Wardlaw Hartridge in a quarterfinal game on May 12. The semis are slated for May 17 with the championship game set for May 19. The Panthers are also scheduled to play regular season games at Nottingham on May 13 and at Hamilton on May 16. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

It was a spectacular catch worthy of the ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 as Princeton Day School star Ryan Augustus crashed into the left field fence at full speed to track down a long fly in the fifth inning last Thursday against Nottingham in the MCT quarterfinals.

Even though third-seeded PDS was trailing 6th-seeded Nottingham 4-0 at the time, senior Augustus didn’t hesitate to put his body on the line for the ball, ripping his jersey and cutting his arm in the process.

“I have started getting real comfortable working around the fence from batting practice; when we are out there, we like to go hard in practice,” said Augustus. “We don’t want to fool around or let balls go past you.”

PDS, though, never could get comfortable at the plate against Nottingham as it managed just two hits and had 15 strikeouts in getting shut out by righty Ronnie Voacolo.

“That kid was pretty good but I think we were just going up there trying to tie it up on one swing instead of working good at-bats and driving the ball the other way and putting the ball into play,” said Augustus.

“We just weren’t making adjustments at the plate but I think we were capable of hitting him. It was unfortunate.”

While falling in the MCT quarters was unfortunate, Augustus saw it as a step forward for the Panthers.

“I enjoyed the run but I would have liked to see us get farther,” said Augustus.

“Everyone is going to be unhappy that we lost but in my four years here this is the furthest we have ever been so I guess that is something to be proud of.”

Augustus is proud of the team’s start as it improved to 10-4 with a 9-0 win over Holy Cross Academy last Monday.

“I would really say that the most important thing is the camaraderie,” said Augustus.

“We all pick each other up, we all care about each other … and we are wanting to give up our bodies and make plays for our team and our pitchers. We really just want to win more than anything. We don’t care about the stats or anything, we just want to win and that is really helping us grow as a team.”

As he headed into his final campaign at PDS, Augustus was looking to grow as a player.

“I was just working hard in the offseason, trying to get better, trying to get ready for the season,” said Augustus.

PDS head coach Ray O’Brien likes the way Augustus has come through this season.

“He has been with us in the program and you could see it coming,” said O’Brien.

“This year, he has really blossomed and he has been playing tremendous outfield and he is hitting cleanup for us. I am happy for him; he has worked hard and he deserves it.”

O’Brien acknowledged that his squad didn’t do enough to deserve a win in the game against Nottingham.

“We made a bunch of great plays but we kicked it around enough to kill ourselves,” said O’Brien.

“But then again, we didn’t hit. We struck out too many times. We didn’t make any adjustments. The kid was throwing the ball well but it was high in the zone and we never made him bring it down.”

In assessing his team’s strong start, O’Brien sees pitching as central to its success.

“We have played pretty solid baseball, every day we throw out a kid who is going to throw strikes and keep us in the game,” said O’Brien “Chase Fleming has pitched well, Russ Kirczow pitched great today.”

With PDS starting play Prep B tournament this week, where it is seeded second and will host No. 7 Wardlaw Hartridge in a quarterfinal game on May 12, O’Brien is confident that his team will make a solid showing.

“I am happy with the way the kids battle and stick together; hopefully we can get the bats going for the tournament,” said O’Brien.

“They work hard. They care, they take it to heart and they have each other’s backs so what more can you ask from a team? They are together. We don’t have a lot of guys but the guys that we have, want to be here and they are here for each other so it is great. They are fun to coach.”

Augustus, for his part, is hoping the Panthers can have some fun down the stretch of the season.

“We should feel confident going into the Prep B, it is definitely something that we should go very far in,” said Augustus.

“We have three very good pitchers and I think the bats will come alive for that tournament. We just have to work on our approach.”