Spring sports have been thawing out of the offseason and attention has turned to the RedHawks stepping up to the plate. The home opener is March 18 against the Richards Bulldogs.
Last year, the RedHawks had a record of 20-14-1, and were led by notable seniors such as Aidan Flynn, a southpaw pitcher who is now a starter at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Joey Gumuls, a catcher at Loras College now reunited with other previous Marist baseball players, and John McAuliffe, a running back at Cornell University with MLB scouts eying him up and down.
In the playoffs, Marist faced a heartbreaking loss to the Stagg Chargers., losing in 11 innings, with a final score of 7-9. The Chargers went on a deep playoff run, and almost upset powerhouse Lincoln-Way West.
Now in year 12 as head coach of Marist, Kevin Sefcik, a former MLB player for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Colorado Rockies, has had a chance to reflect on last season.
“Obviously losing in the first round of the playoffs was a disappointment,” said Sefcik. “The guys played hard and we had our chances.”
“Really looking to advance past the regional this year,” said Sefcik “I don’t want this senior class to leave without getting to a sectional.”
In the offseason, a lot of players have been putting in the effort to get better.
“We have some guys that have made some nice jumps,” said Sefcik. “I am also impressed with the seniors. They have come in working hard and are always looking for extra time to get work in.”
The RedHawks are bringing back a lot of talent from last year.
“I feel like everyone on our team has improved tremendously but some big players are Mark Coffey and Tommy Hosty. They have gained a ton of velocity off the mound and will be big impacts this year,” said senior starter Ryan Rosas. “Gritty starter is Matt Molesky, he will always come to compete and is a tough guy to get out at the plate. Lastly, Underclassman Colin Lawlor, he was great for us last year and I expect him to be even better this year.”
With a lot of starters graduating last year, seniors and juniors now have big shoes to fill.
“But we also have some juniors that moved up and a couple freshmen who are trying to win starting spots so it’s a good mix. We also have plenty of guys who can throw strikes and fill in the gaps,” said Sefcik.
Defensively the RedHawks have a few aces up their sleeves. Some notable players will be Coffey, Hosty, J.P. Gainer, Rosas and Lawlor.
Some players have really big expectations for this upcoming season.
“I expect us to win about 20-25 games and to win our conference,” said Rosas. “Another goal is to make a deep playoff run and show off how talented we are.”
“Big games we have are four Do it Stevie’s Way tournament games along with our tough ESCC matchups with Joliet Catholic, Nazareth and Benet,” said Sefcik. “We have our annual games with St. Laurence, Brother Rice and Providence along with three tough Lincoln-Way Schools so it will be a challenging schedule once again.”
The varsity baseball team is nothing short of hyped for this upcoming season to start.
“I am really excited for the season,” said Rosas.
