Hills baseball kicked off their season this year like they have the last three seasons:  flying down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for a weekend of exhibition games against teams from across the country. The trip is exciting for players and coaches alike. As the players get to escape the cold weather that the early season usually entails and get some time on the field, and the coaches have a weekend to asses the talent their program possesses.

To say the cowboys performed well this weekend would be a dramatic understatement. In the four days they played six games, won all six, and gave up a combined nine hits in their six games. Their bats really came alive, as they outscored their opponents a combined 50-2. But an even more incredible feat was their dominant pitching. In 37 innings pitched, the Hills staff had a combined 67 strikeouts. That equates to the cowboys throwing an average of nearly two strikeouts for every three outs they make.  That ratio is one that any coach or player can be happy with. Hills bench coach Joe “Gambs” Gambardella commented on the cowboys’ pitching success this weekend: “The pitchers did a great job of throwing strike one and setting the tone. They commanded the zone all weekend. They worked efficiently and with great tempo. For everyone’s first extended outing each I feel like they all showed great mound presence and focus on executing one pitch at a time.” That is high praise coming from a coach that consistently demands perfection and execution 100% of the time. The cowboys came out of this weekend looking very strong, building up their confidence for a very exciting season.

Below are the results and stats from this weekend’s games:

Hills senior, and Emory pitching commit, Jack Brodsky commented on his performance this weekend: “I thought it was going to be a little tough playing basically immediately after the plane ride and waking up very early in the morning. But when I got down there I knew that I basically had to get going despite the cold weather and do what I normally do. I though I pitched very well.  I was very happy with my performance.” Brodsky has been a key man in the Cowboys’ rotation since his sophomore year, every year reaching new heights. He hopes to be the ace on this year’s team and to lead them back to a consecutive state sectional championship.

In Hills’ six games, they rolled with college baseball commits to start the game on the mound four times. Along with one commit coming out of the bullpen. With a rotation like Hills’, score lines are expected to be low for the opponent. That was true this weekend, with hills only allowing two runs in their six games, and none in their last four.

Also commenting on this weekend was senior pitcher, and Iona College pitching commit, Paul Sullivan. He goes on to say, “It was good to get back on the mound again. My arm felt good and I feel this did a good job preparing me for the rest of the season. I hope out team can continue these kinds of performances through the entire season.” Paul was very pleased with his performance, but knows this is just the beginning, and there is a long season ahead of them.

Hills has high expectations for this year, and this weekend marked the true beginning of the season. These few days would set the tone for the weeks to come, and a hot start here would provide a great stretch of confidence for the cowboys for the real season.