(Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) IRON MIKE: Hun School baseball star Mike Ford prepares to wing the ball across the infield. Last Saturday, junior Ford produced a sparkling mound effort in pitching Hun to a 2-1 win over visiting Blair. Two days earlier, Ford slugged two two-run homers to lead the Raiders to an 8-1 win over Pennington.

Ford Displays Mound Craftiness, Leadership in Pitching Hun Baseball to Win Over Blair

Bill Alden

It was the seventh inning of just the seventh game of the season but Mike Ford believed the Hun School baseball team had reached a crossroad.

The Raiders were tied 1-1 with visiting Blair last Saturday, looking to extend their winning streak to four and get their first win in Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) play.

As Hun took the field for the top of the inning, junior pitching ace Ford had a few words for his teammates.

“I said to all the infielders right around the mound that this is a big inning for our season not just for this game,” said Ford.

With Ford cleverly mixing his pitches and Hun turning a slick double play, the Raiders held Blair scoreless in the top of the frame.

In the bottom of the seventh, Julian Dandridge led off and reached second on an error. After Brendan Dudeck was intentionally walked, Mark Rende slapped a single to center field to score Dandridge and give Hun a dramatic walk-off victory.

The win triggered a raucous post-game celebration which saw the Hun players joyously mob Rende.

A grinning Ford said the win and the way it happened could prove to be a turning point for the Raiders.

“Walk-off wins are the ultimate,” asserted Ford. “A win like that sets the tone for the rest of the season.”

After starting the season with three straight losses, including lopsided defeats to MAPL foes Peddie and Lawrenceville, it looked like there might be a sad tone to Hun’s spring.

“In the first two games, we were just a little shaky,” said Ford. “With new kids coming up, you have nerves. We are showing that we are maturing as a team today by the defense. We had three double plays in the game; it shows we are much more in the game and that the nerves are gone.”

Ford has put in a lot of work as he has matured into a pitching ace for the Raiders.

“I worked real hard in the offseason; I gained 20 pounds,” said Ford, who plays third base when he isn’t pitching and is Hun’s top power hitter.

“I worked on my location and everything like that. I am just glad it is coming out.”

Ford’s whole repertoire came out Saturday as he continually kept Blair off balance with the combination of his velocity and breaking stuff.

“My curve ball is a pretty good pitch; I like to mix that in with my fastball,” explained Ford.

“Then I noticed as the innings went on, that my changeup was working pretty well today too. I would go with either curve, change, or fastball away, change in. Mixing locations and mixing pitches, that’s how you get guys out.”

With Ford uncharacteristically making outs when he batted Saturday, he was happy with how his teammate delivered clutch hits.

“I love the way the team works,” said Ford, who slugged two two-run homers in an 8-1 win over Pennington last Thursday.

“When I am on the mound, I am really focused on pitching. When you don’t have a good day at the plate, I like it when other guys step up; this is the ultimate team sport. Brendan [Dudeck] stepped up huge with some big hits and Jules [Dandridge] stepped up, scoring both runs for us.”

Longtime Hun head coach Bill McQuade was pleased by how his team stepped up collectively in beating a Blair squad that came into the day with a 7-2 record.

“We have had good games against teams not quite of Blair’s caliber so we have started to play better,” said McQuade.

“We are still a young team, learning how to win and how to hit in a key situation. We have had some good practices in the past two days. They want to play, these kids pour their hearts out playing.”

McQuade knows that he is going to get a lot of heart from Ford when he takes the mound for the Raiders.

“Today Mike Ford pitched a great ballgame, he was unbelievable,” said McQuade.

“He says give me the ball, he wants to go again. I am ready to go. A lot of kids get it and they are timid and they back off, Mike isn’t like that. He challenged these guys today and today we won.”

Another key factor in the win was the spark Hun got from Julian Dandridge offensively.

“Julian beating balls out was big, he gets out of the box as fast as anyone on our team,” said McQuade of the junior outfielder who scored both of Hun’s runs in the win.

“He may not be the fastest guy but he is the fastest out of the box and he makes them rush plays.”

When Dandridge raced to second in the bottom of the seventh with none out, McQuade could sense that Hun was going to make the winning plays.

“I knew I had to get him to third base,” recalled McQuade, whose team is slated to play at Princeton Day School on April 22 before heading to Mercersburg Academy on April 25 for a doubleheader.

“I knew with Brendan up, they would walk him and challenge Mark Rende. Mark has been pressing. I said to him that we can’t have that little ground ball to third, take the time and relax and look away and get something to drive that way. On the first pitch, he did.”

In Ford’s view, the Raiders can make a nice stretch drive. “We are a young team but we have a lot of talent,” said Ford.

“We can win against anyone, I feel. I think you are going to be seeing a lot of W’s from us the rest of the year.”

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