Panthers top Peddie to prove ability
By: Bob Nuse
All through the preseason, Bruce Devlin had a good feeling about his Princeton Day School baseball team. When the Panthers opened the season with a 3-1 win over Peddie on Saturday, that feeling proved to be justified.
"It was nice to start off with a win," said Devlin, whose team is right back in action today when the Panthers host Hamilton. "My thoughts to the kids have been that they have to believe in themselves and they can be a good team. I know we have the talent to be a good team. Before, they may have looked at a game against Peddie and not thought they could win. But I know we can be competitive with every team on our schedule."
The Panthers were led by the three-hit pitching of junior Will King, who heads a staff that Devlin has a lot of confidence in this season.
"We have a lot of potential with our pitching staff this year," Devlin said. "Alex (Sugiera) is a nice addition. He can throw three pitches and he is working on a fourth with our pitching coach, Dean Wylie. He didn’t give up a run in eight innings in the preseason. And Will is the workhorse. He’s a tough kid and he wants the ball. He’s a great competitor and a leader for our team as a junior."
King made quick work of Peddie in the final inning on Saturday. With the Panthers leading 3-1 and the rain starting to come down heavier, King retired the Falcons on six pitches and gave PDS a season-opening win.
"That’s what we expect from Will," said Devlin, who offense received runs batted in from Sugiera and Ben Johnson. "He can throw a lot of different pitches. He’s not afraid to throw a curve or a change with a 3-2 count or if he’s behind a hitter. You have to have confidence in all your pitches and Will does."
After opening with a win over Peddie, the Panthers now face a two-day stretch with games against Hamilton and Blair. And while the schedule is daunting, Devlin welcomes the challenge.
"I’ve been trying to tell the kids that the days of us not feeling like we can play against the bigger schools are over as far as I’m concerned," Devlin said. "There will be days that we’re going to go beat, but we’ll never quit. We go out to be in every game and I think we can be in every game.
"Our schedule has the Prep B schools and we also have so good games outside the Prep Bs. We look forward to all of them. I think we can compete with every team on the schedule."
In their opener on Saturday, the Panthers showed they can compete with, and defeat, Peddie. And as the season moves forward, they’ll find out about other teams as well.

