No matter what happens this season with the Fenwick baseball team nothing will compare to what transpired in the final game on the final play of the Friars’ 2009 campaign. One controversial triple play by St. Ignatius sent Fenwick home early in the regional playoffs.
It was the top of the seventh inning and Fenwick was trailing 1-0 with two on and none out … well, we won’t go into it again. The Friars are surely eager to put that game and that one particular play behind them. With a senior-laden team this season, they may do just that.
Seniors Kevin Sweeney, Mark Donatelli, Chris Gleason, Joe Horrigan, Matt Parrilli, Tom Galvin, Luke Pacer, John Claffy and Charlie Moore give the team a plethora of leadership this season. Sweeney has taken over as Fenwick’s main pitcher. He went 5-3 last year behind Cam Verbeke. Sweeney, bound for Northern Illinois University in the fall, had an ERA of 1.80. When not on the mound, he’ll play shortstop.
Gleason will see significant time on the mound, while Moore, Horrigan and Galvin roam the outfield.
Senior Joe Romano, the Fenwick football team’s starting quarterback last fall, will try his hand at baseball for the first time on varsity this season. He’s likely to take up a spot in the pitching rotation.
With four-year starting catcher Mike Falsetti now at Bradley University, Fenwick head coach Dave Hogan has called upon sophomore Andrew Schroeder to fill the void. Juniors Michael Trucco and Chris Celio will act as backups behind the plate.
Juniors John Panek, Michael Schillinger, Tyler Sewell, Jonathan Buchta, Michael Buzzell, William Meyer and John McGann, Ryan Fitzgerald, Brendan Fitzgerald and Joseph Patzelt are also expected to be added to the mix this season.
The Friars, who went 21-12 last season after falling to St. Ignatius 1-0 in that fateful regional title game, are in the middle of a seven-game homestand. They’ll host Curie today (Wednesday, March 31) at the Dominican Priory and Kenwood tomorrow (both at 4 p.m.). The Friars begin division play against St. Laurence on April 19. They’ll play each team – St. Laurence, St. Ignatius, De La Salle and Bishop McNamara – in their new division twice.
On April 26, Fenwick will host a formidable opponent in St. Rita. The Mustangs finished runner-up in Class 4A last year and are currently ranked 13th in the nation by Baseball America. St. Rita has four Division I recruits back from a team that won 33 games last season.