(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski) caption: CATCHING FIRE: Hun School baseball star Chris Leach gets ready to receive a pitch in action last spring. Senior star Leach will be counted on to guide an inexperienced pitching staff for the Raiders this spring as they look to maintain a winning tradition that saw them win the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) title in 2010. Hun, which started its 2011 season by losing 6-5 to Lawrenceville last Thursday, plays at Blair Academy on April 6, and Academy of New Church on April 7 before hosting Peddie on April 9.

Hun Baseball Needs Pitching to Mature Quickly In Order to Have Another Championship Season

Bill Alden

For the Hun School baseball team, its success this spring could depend on executing one of the basic fundamentals of the game.

“We have 18 guys on the team and we need to find six guys who can get the ball over the plate,” said longtime Hun head coach Bill McQuade, who is in his 41st season at the helm of the program and led the Raiders to a 15-5 record last spring and the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) title.

“We will be splitting the games up three innings at a time. If our pitchers throw strikes, I think we can play good enough defense and score enough runs to win some games. The total key is pitching.”

McQuade is confident that three of his younger pitchers, junior Alex Fabian together with sophomores Austin Goeke and Mike Manfredi, can lead the rotation.

“I am looking for the trio of Goeke, Manfredi, and Fabian to be the main starting pitchers,” said McQuade, whose team started its 2011 campaign by losing 6-5 at archrival Lawrenceville on March 30.

“The question is going to be how the young guys handle the pressure of being aces, they are sophomores and they haven’t gone against the likes of Lawrenceville, Peddie, Hamilton, and Steinert.”

Noting that the pitching load will be handled by committee, McQuade sees at least four other players who will get a shot on the mound.

“I think Gavin Stupienski can pitch for us and Stevie Wells will get some innings,” said McQuade.

“Dave Dudeck can pitch for us, he is an athlete. Mark Rende is also an athlete, he will get some innings. We will probably be splitting games up three innings at a time.”

McQuade will be depending on the athletic Dudeck to provide punch in the middle of the Hun batting order.

“We will probably bat him third or fourth,” said McQuade of Dudeck, who provided power and speed in the leadoff spot last season.

“We have also looked at him at second. We could go lefty-righty-lefty with Stupienski, Dudeck, and Wells. He has power; he can hit it a mile. Wells is a good lefty hitter.”

During the team’s preseason spring swing in Florida, McQuade saw encouraging offensive signs.

“Rende led off for us in Florida and Devan Birch runs so well; he is injured right now but we may look at him at leadoff when he comes back,” added McQuade.

“Andrew Levine looks much stronger. Stupienski hit well in Florida. We were far advanced in Florida from where I thought we would be.”

The Raiders should be advanced defensively. “We are strong up the middle,” said McQuade.

“We have Chris Leach at catcher, he is very good, he has a quick release. We have Rende at shortstop, Brandon Smith at second, and Dudeck in centerfield.”

The rest of the defensive alignment will feature Wells and Manfredi at first base, Stupienski at third, and Birch Levine, and Brett Forman in the outfield.

While McQuade realizes that the young Raiders could go through some growing pains, he is enthusiastic about his team’s prospects.

“I have never had so many young kids,” said McQuade, whose team plays at Blair Academy on April 6 and Academy of New Church on April 7 before hosting Peddie on April 9. “It should be a fun year.”

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