IN THE SWING: Hun School softball player Emma Eisenberg takes a swing in 2023 action. Last Thursday, senior catcher Eisenberg went 1 for 64 and one run to help Hun edge Lawrenceville 7-6 in its season opener. The Raiders host the Springside Chestnut Hill Academy (Pa.) on April 3 and the Pingry School on April 4 before playing at South Hunterdon in April 5 and at Villa Joseph Marie High (Pa.) on April 7. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

As the Hun School softball team headed into the spring, it was facing a major challenge as it looked to fill the void left by the graduation of stars and program stalwarts Lexi Kobryn and Jamie Staub.

Kobryn, who is now playing at Villanova, produced a record-breaking career for the Raiders as a pitcher and a hitter with 638 strikeouts and a 0.41 ERA and a batting average of .537 with 123 hits ands 119 RBIs while Staub, now competing for Brandeis, also starred in the circle and at the bat as she had 134 strikeouts and a 0.40 ERA and batted .427 with 88 hits and 61 RBIs.

Longtime Hun School head coach Kathy Quirk, who guided the Raiders to an 18-3 record and the Prep A state final in 2024, is looking for senior and Haverford College commit Anna Murphy to excel in the circle.

“Anna will be our No.1 pitcher, she has been working hard,” said Quirk, who will also be giving innings to senior Kailey Jacobs and freshman Payton Poandl. “We are looking forward for her to step it up. She has good movement on the ball and her speed is pretty good.”

As for the Hun batting attack, Quirk saw some good things on team’s recent trip to Florida over spring break.

“We hit the ball well in Florida which was surprising,” said Quirk, whose team opened its 2025 season by edging Lawrenceville 7-6 last Thursday. “We didn’t know how we were going to do. I am very pleased with our batting.”

Junior star and Sacred Heart University commit Sam Jolly (.524 batting average with 33 hits in 2024) will be the table setter for the Hun batting attack.

“She will lead off like she did last year,” said Quirk of Jolly who went 3 for 3 with one run and one RBI in the win over Lawrenceville. “She is a hardworking young lady and does a nice job for us at second base. We count on her.”

The Raiders should get some hitting punch from junior Rowan Lacy (.433, 26 hits), senior Emma Eisenberg (.306, 19 hits), and Murphy (.298, 19 hits).

“Rowan will probably bat second for us like she did last year,” said Quirk. “Down in Florida, Eisenberg batted third and Murphy batted fourth. We are looking for some big things from the two of them.”

Quirk believes that freshmen Poandl and Quinn Schweer can also contribute with the bat.

“Payton has got a pretty strong bat,” said Quirk. “Quinn has been doing a nice job, she is very patient with the bat.”

The Raiders feature a battle-tested infield with Eisenberg back at catcher, Jolly at second base, Jacobs at shortstop, and slick fielding senior Brianna Riviello at third.

“I feel pretty confident with my infield,” said Quirk, who is moving Lacy to first base from the outfield.

The Raider outfield is a work in progress. “In the outfield, we are still trying to figure out our starters,” said Quirk, who is looking at senior Sophia Troiano and junior Natalia Landamia in the outfield along with a quartet of freshmen in Claudia Price, Ema Vorilova, Karis Nicolas, and Schweer.

In order to maintain the program’s winning ways, Hun will need to be fundamentally sound.

“We need to play solid defense, our defense is going to see the ball a lot more than they have the past couple of years,” said Quirk, whose team hosts the Springside Chestnut Hill Academy (Pa.) on April 3 and the Pingry School on April 4 before playing at South Hunterdon in April 5 and at Villa Joseph Marie High (Pa.) on April 7. “We need to keep our bats alive.”