Brennan shines on the mound
The St. Joe’s baseball team finished up their second weekend of spring competition in Greenville, North Carolina on March 4.
The Hawks’ record is currently 2-5 after falling to Pepperdine University and East Carolina University at the Keith LeClair Classic. The Hawks totaled nine hits from junior Charlie Concannon, sophomore James McConnon, senior Dominic Cuoci, senior Matt Maul, freshman Liam Bendo, and freshman Cole Stetzar against Missouri State while capturing a 6-3 victory.
Junior right handerd pitcher Tim Brennan started on the hill against Missouri State on March 2. Brennan picked up the win which improved his record to 1-1. He then threw for six innings striking out nine, walking two and giving up one hit and two runs.
“I felt prepared and it was a good day to pitch,” Brennan said. “I was well rested and my arm felt really solid. The big thing for me was commanding my three pitches and keeping the hitters off balance.”
After his performance, Breennan was named the Philadelphia Big 5 baseball Pitcher of the Week on March 5.
The team endured a losing weekend in Portland, Oregon on Feb. 24 where they went 1-3. The guys knew they had a tough week of practice ahead of them. Head coach Fritz Hamburg discussed his mentality on the nature of preparation for a game.
“Preparation for baseball is different than football or basketball, when you are writing up plays,” Hamburg said. “You’re just working on trying to get your swing on point, bullpens working on command, and everyone getting into rhythm.”
Hamburg emphasized the significance of Brennan’s performance on March 2. He threw the ball terrifically and commanded the zone well. This has definitely been one of the more dominant performances of Brennan’s career.
“Tim carried us and we needed someone to step up,” Hamburg said. “Tim is a hard working player on this team and he has a bright future ahead of him.”
Hamburg also highlighted the big sixth inning against Missouri State. The Hawks gathered five runs off four hits.
“We need to have more innings like this,” Hamburg said.
While the Missouri State game brought a positive outcome for the team, the Saturday and Sunday matchups did not turn out as well. The Hawks fell 11-2 to Pepperdine and 9-0 to East Carolina, who were solid hitting teams.
For Hamburg, the talent and potential is there; the team is just young and inexperienced.
“We need the older guys to get it going,” Hamburg said. “We have a long way to go before regionals, and we need to give the younger guys a feel for what they are going up against. It’s much different than last year. The lineup was set before the season even started.”
Besides the two big losses this weekend, there were some positives for the Hawks. Maul and Cuoci totaled seven hits on the weekend, along with Brennan’s performance on March 1.
The Hawks will head to Port Charlotte, Florida over the break from March 9-14. The team will face Florida International University (FIU), Georgetown University, Western Michigan University and the University of Notre Dame.
