Raiders still growing on diamond

Fedroff, Swickle call on rookies for help

By: Rudy Brandl
   
   WARREN — Hillsborough High baseball coach Norm Hewitt spend a good chunk of the 35-minute lightning delay during last Thursday’s game at Watchung Hills urging his younger players to contribute. Veteran players Tim Fedroff and Corey Swickle asked their teammates, most of whom are newcomers to the varsity level, to step up and make an impact.
   Fedroff, Swickle and pitcher Rob Kumbatovic, the only returning starters from last year’s State Group 4 championship team, have done their part to keep the Raider machine rolling. Fedroff has been nearly impossible to get out, Swickle has blasted four home runs and Kumbatovic posted the team’s first two victories on the mound.
   Some of the new varsity players have made an early splash, especially right fielder Matt Zygmund and shortstop Andy Pogorzelski. But if the Raiders (2-3) expect to get back to the level that carried them to the Somerset County, Central Jersey Group 4 and State Group 4 titles, they’ll need everyone in the lineup to hit and all nine positions to make plays.
   It’s unfair to make comparisons and ultimate judgments just five games into the season, but the Raiders need to start a win streak if they expect to qualify for the state playoffs.
   "I’ve got a great bunch of kids, but we’re still learning the game," Hewitt said after his team fell below .500 with the 6-4 loss to Watchung Hills. "We’re not putting pressure on these kids. They’re working hard, but we’re making too many mental mistakes. Right now, we’re concerned about making the states."
   Last week’s game at Matullo Field, the first meeting between the rivals since the Raiders posted a 5-0 victory in the State Group 4 final last June, reminded HHS fans of the 2005 championship surge. Swickle stepped to the plate in the top of the first inning and drilled a three-run home run over the left field fence for a 3-0 lead.
   The Raiders started many of last year’s state playoff victories with big early shots and sent an early message with Swickle’s blast. Unfortunately, they couldn’t hold the lead this time.
   Swickle took the mound for his first start of the season and Watchung tied the score in the home half of the inning, thanks in large part to a two-run blast to right-center field by shortstop Brandon Edwards. Swickle got into a jam in the second and was replaced by Kumbatovic, who kept the Warriors hitless until the fourth.
   That’s when Watchung took the lead for good with a pair of unearned runs. Adam Rivera reached on an error and scored when Edwards, who went 4-for-4 with four RBI, smacked a single to left. Edwards moved to second on an infield out and scored on Matt Gray’s base hit up the middle.
   Unearned runs rarely plagued the Raiders last year. Their defense let them down big-time in a 7-6 loss to Phillipsburg earlier this month. Despite three-run blasts from Swickle and Fedroff, the Raiders lost because they committed seven errors.
   "We’re young and we have a lot of new players," Hewitt said. "I told you it wasn’t going to be easy."
   The umpires halted play after a scoreless fifth inning, once the game was official. The Raiders stayed focused and nearly regained the lead in the top of the sixth. Albert DeSanto reached on an error and scored on a booming double to right-center by Zygmund to make it 5-4.
   That set the stage for Fedroff, who just missed giving Hillsborough the lead. The powerful lefty hitter, who had two hits and a walk in three previous trips, launched a high drive to the right field wall that fell about five feet short of going out for a two-run homer.
   "I just got under it," Fedroff said. "He threw me a curveball and left it up. I just got under it a little bit. It’s frustrating."
   Edwards gave the Warriors a little insurance with his second homer of the game leading off the sixth to cap the scoring.
   Despite the big offensive day by Edwards and very good relief pitching from Tim Brechbuehler (2-0), the Raiders still had their chances to win this game. While the error and two unearned runs in the fourth were costly, the Raiders hurt themselves just as much with bad base running and failing to hit with men on base.
   Hillsborough was set up to blow the game open in the first inning but had two men cut down on the base paths. Rocky Palumbo, who had doubled after Swickle’s homer, was gunned down trying to score on Corey Towey’s single to right field. Towey was later picked off third base after executing the front end of a double steal for the final out of the inning.
   Fedroff and Swickle walked to lead off the third and moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. Fedroff got caught in a rundown when Ricky Schwalje hit a grounder to third and was tagged out. The Raiders also left nine men on base in the game.
   "When we get two strikes with men in scoring position, we need to put the ball in play," Hewitt said. "You don’t always have to get hits, but you have to put the ball in play. You want to force the defense to make the play to keep you from scoring."
   The Raiders have lost three tight ball games by a combined total of five runs, including last week’s 3-1 decision vs. Hunterdon Central. The team started slowly last year and got hot in May. Fedroff’s hoping the same thing happens this year.
   "With so many guys that are playing their first season on varsity, it’s going to take some time," Fedroff said. "It’s a new experience for these guys and we can’t make any judgments five games in. I hope one of these losses is a turning point."
   The Raiders were scheduled to host Franklin and Montgomery this week in two Delaware East Division games.
   "We have to teach the game a little bit, have some patience and let the kids play," Hewitt said.