Baseball
By: Mike Molaro
It didn’t take long for John Costantino to set the tone for the Hopewell Valley Central High School baseball squad.
"I told the guys that over the last 10 years as a player and a coach at Hamilton High, I’ve been in the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III finals seven times," the first-year Bulldog head coach said. "I’m accustomed to being in that game and playing on that day."
HoVal, 11-13 last season overall and 8-10 in the Colonial Valley Conference, doesn’t have the track record of the Hornets.
Still, the rookie skipper isn’t giving his guys much slack.
"My expectations are high," added Costantino. "I hope the kids have high expectations also."
His philosophy is plain vanilla, but one that could bring success if everyone is on the same page and works as a team.
"As this is my first year, my game plan is very simple," Costantino said. "Do the fundamentals and do them well. Things like catching the ball, throwing the ball, hitting the cutoff man, working the pickoff plays. I want the guys to execute their plays and think on the field.
"Fundamentals are very important for high school baseball players."
Coming from a perennial state tournament participant to a program trying to find its own identify, Costantino had to switch gears and slow things down a bit.
"Assistant coach Jake Manning has been a great help in my transition from Hamilton to Hopewell," he added. "I took a lot of things for granted at Hamilton. It’s been a teaching process here at HoVal. We’ve had to add a couple of steps that will take awhile for the guys to learn. It’s a big adjustment for the guys."
The Bulldogs, who opened their season Wednesday at home against Lawrence, take a back seat to nobody when it comes to swinging the bat.
With sophomore center fielder Rob Salyga; junior shortstop Matt Barrett, who hit well above .400 last year; junior first baseman Mike Williams; junior outfielder Chris Borkowski; and senior second baseman John Meszaros in the leadoff spot, HoVal will score its share of runs.
"Our offense is our strength," said Costantino. "We have some kids who hit real well last year. Matt (Barrett) is one of the best hitters in the league and Chris (Borkowski) has a great attitude. He knows his ability and is into helping the team. He allows us to do a lot of things, like hit and run. Chris isn’t interested in statistics. He does whatever it takes for the team to win."
Others who should contribute are seniors Matt Boyle (right field), Bob Piatonni (catcher), and C.J. Nami (second base), juniors Chuck Sista (first base), Scott Shults (pitcher), and Aaron Vurgason (catcher), sophomores Gus Davidson (outfield) and Chris Morgan (pitcher), and freshmen Brian Kirby (pitcher), Dan Hogan (pitcher), Mark Yuhas (second base/shortstop), and Chris Zsenak (third base).
While the Bulldogs will have no trouble with the bats, their greatest challenge is defensively.
"We need to work on catching and throwing the baseball on a consistent basis," added Costantino. "In preseason, we’ve shown that when we catch and throw, we do well. When we struggle in the field, we struggle in the game.
"Our pitching is inexperienced. We have two seniors, two juniors, two sophomores, and three freshmen. We have guys with ability but it will take time to mature into varsity baseball players. Our experienced guys will have to carry us in the early part of the season."
It’s no surprise that one of HoVal’s major goals this year is to build a solid foundation where success breeds success.
"We don’t want to just qualify for the state tournament but advance through the state tournament," added Costantino. "Good teams year in and year out are measured by how far they advance in the state tournament.
"If our pitching comes around, we can do it. Our defense will determine how successful we are. Offensively, we can hit with anyone. Offense wins a few games, but pitching and defense wins championships."
Costantino admits his expectations are high in his first season as Bulldog head coach. He’s used to winning and wants that to continue.
For HoVal, it all comes down to execution. Plain and simple.
Just like Costantino’s philosophy.