HATBORO-HORSHAM BASEBALL PREVIEW
Head coach: Pete Moore, 22nd Year
Assistant Coaches:
Matt Cavagnaro (Varsity Assistant)
Chris Hens (Varsity Assistant)
Bill DeBoer (Head JV Coach)
Andy Fisher (JV Assistant)
Dan Mattson (Head Freshmen Coach)
Al Wilson (Freshmen Assistant)
Last year's record: 19-5 Overall, 15-1 SOL American Champions; lost in 1st Round of State Tournament by a score of 8-7 to eventual state champion, Warwick.
Notable losses: Cole Fisher (P/2B; Millersville); Jack Elwell (RF, Catholic); Logan Fischer (1B, Lackawanna); Zach Greenberg (C, Limestone); Ryan Toporowski (SS, soccer at Widener); Will Bruner (2B); Nick Katherine (3B)
Key returning players: Trey Porter (SR, CF/P, Monmouth commit, Area Player of the Year in 2022); Noah Schlosser (SR, OF); Adriel Tiburcio (SR, OF); Stephen Plefka (JR, LHP/1B)
Others to watch: Brady Pagano (SR, OF/RHP); Jaxson Bumpus (JR, 1B/OF/LHP); Jamie O’Neill (SO, INF/RHP)
Season outlook: “We lost a lot of talent from last year’s team, which was one of the best teams that I have had the opportunity to coach at HH. Seven of our everyday players graduated. However, we had several players who played sparingly at the varsity level or were on the JV team last year, who would have been varsity starters in most years. Those players are welcoming the opportunity to compete for playing time this year. Our team was able to spend a week together on our trip to Florida from March 13-19. We saw an incredible amount of growth in our team during that week. The biggest factor for us is not replacing the talent, but rather getting our players caught up to the speed of the game at the varsity level as quickly as possible. While in Florida, we named three captains that immediately responded positively to that role. They are seniors Trey Porter and Noah Schlosser, and junior Stephen Plefka. We have great kids in our community and the kids in our program are hungry to contribute.
“On the mound, there’s no doubt that the graduation of Cole Fisher leaves a lot of important innings open for the taking. I am not going to tell you that we are going to have someone as dominant as Cole was last year, but we will have more depth on our pitching staff this year. We have at least nine arms in our program that I believe can get outs at the varsity level this year. Senior Trey Porter and junior Stephen Plefka threw important innings for us last year, and they look to lead the staff. The other returning pitcher with varsity experience is sophomore Jamie O’Neill. In addition to that trio that figure to headline the staff will be junior Jaxson Bumpus, who had a great first start of the year in Florida (W, 6 IP, 9 K, 0 BB). Seniors Brady Pagano and Adriel Tiburcio, junior Brendan Costello, and freshman Chase Canney will all compete for innings.
“Last year’s batterymate for the pitching staff, Zach Greenberg, has also graduated, leaving an important position to be filled by juniors Aidan Eckley and Seamus Hellings. Greenberg graduated as the best defensive catcher that we have had during my tenure as the head coach.
“We lost our entire starting infield to graduation, so there are plenty of opportunities for playing time to be earned by infielders. Juniors Bumpus and Plefka will handle the duties at first base. Bumpus got off to a torrid start in Florida and figures to hit in the middle of our order and be a big-time run producer. He’s a big strong kid with pop and the ball really jumps off of his bat. I’m excited to see what he is going to do for us this year. O’Neill has looked tremendous at the plate and in the field and figures to log a lot of innings in the infield. He is versatile enough to play anywhere in the infield. Seniors, Jack Barbor, Drew Dittus, Kyle Dittus, Alex Ferrante and Dom Pedone, and freshman Canney will all look to earn time around the horn for us.
“The most experience that we have as a team comes from our outfield, which should be a strength. Trey Porter was the area player of the year last year, as a junior, and he returns to patrol centerfield again. In the corners, we have two guys that would be the starting CF for most teams that I have coached. The ground that the three of those guys cover is something special to watch in practices and games. Another senior, Pagano, figures to get at bats as either an outfielder or the designated hitter, in addition to his time on the mound. Senior Thomas Shegogue, junior Costello and freshman Canney will also compete for playing time in the outfield.
“We know that there are several talented teams in our league this year and that we lost a lot of talent to graduation. With that being said, we believe that our current talent combined with the culture of our program will lead to success on the field again this spring. We look forward to the challenge of competing for a league title and a spot in the district playoffs.”
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