By Chris Chaney
Sun staff
Coming off of a strong 2014 season that saw the Glen Este Trojans upset in the first round of the Division I sectional tournament, Mike Hatfield returns a host of hungry and experienced players looking to capture a piece of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference title and make a run in the postseason.
“We’ve got 12 seniors and everybody understands and embraces their role,” Hatfield said. “They just like being around one another. They’re great young men and they trust each other.”
That leadership and trust has led the Trojans to a 14-4 (7-1 ECC) mark through nearly a month of baseball.
A team is only as good as its man on the mound and Glen Este has a formidable rotation of senior arms headed up by Evan Moores.
“Evan has had an exceptional season to this point. He’s 4-1” Hatfield said. “His only loss came on Opening Day against Moeller. He threw a no-hitter against Walnut (Hills), a one-hitter against Kings. He’s really stepped up.
“Certainly, Peyton Burdick has had a good season. Zach Jones has an ERA under half a run, AJ Sweatland’s (ERA) is around 1.50. We have guys who take the ball and expect to win every night. Plus, we’re getting strikeouts, we’re missing bats, which takes some pressure off the defense.”
With the bat in their hands, the confidence that the Glen Este has in their pitching staff manifests itself in the runs they push across the plate. The Trojans have scored in double digits six times this season.
Statistically, GE has the top three batters by average in the ECC among guys who have seen at least nine at bats: Sam Frische (.556), Dylan Chafin (.500) and Ronnie Murphy (.469). Sweatland and Burdick routinely help their own cause by both boasting batting averages above .400.
As sabermetricians can verify, those stats translate to a lot of winning. In a historically strong conference, the Trojans once again find themselves right in the thick of the league title hunt with just over a week remaining in the season.
“The ECC is a great conference,” Hatfield said. “You’ve got five teams right now with double digit wins, so any given day, you have to come to play; there are very few gimmes.
“You’ve got to be able to make plays and get clutch hits and do all the things that you expect to do to win baseball games.”
Embroiled in the hunt for the ECC crown with the Trojans are Milford and Loveland above all else. Both the Eagles and Trojans sit at 7-1 with the Tigers one game back and only a week’s worth of games left to play.
Milford and Glen Este squared off on Tuesday April 28 for league supremacy.
The result was not available at press time.
Still, next week, GE will face Milford once and Loveland twice to decide the league title.
By the time the first pitch is thrown next Monday vs. Loveland, the Trojans will know their path to the sectional final with the Southwest District Athletic Board holding its draw meeting on May 3.
Last season, the 18-8 Trojans were awarded the No. 8 seed in Division I, but lost to No. 20 seed Little Miami, 8-6, in nine innings.
This season, with a similar record heading in, GE will look to take the road that will give them the best chance to extend their season.