East Xtra: Tried and true formula works for Seton Hill
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The formula works at all levels of baseball.
If a team has solid pitching and defense, it doesn't have to have great hitting to be successful. Seton Hill University in Greensburg proved that last season en route to the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and a 36-21 record.
"We were first in pitching and defense out of 15 teams in the conference, but only in the top half in hitting last year," Seton Hill coach Marc Marizzaldi said. "We've always been a team that has relied on our pitching and defense."
That is the case again this season, especially with the graduation of power-hitting catcher Pat Trettel last year. Trettel hit .420 with 16 home runs and 81 RBIs in 57 games. Seton Hill hit just 40 homers as a team.
So far, the Griffins pitching has been good, even with freshmen Alex Haines, a Hempfield Area High School graduate, and Brad Schnelle from Moon Area in the starting rotation. Both are right-handers.
The Griffins' team ERA after 21 games is a nifty 3.50. Schnelle is 4-0 with a 0.85 ERA in six games and Haines is 3-1 with a 2.65 ERA.
"We were a little concerned about our pitching coming into the season. We had four guys who experienced arm problems, and one of them had to have Tommy John surgery," Marizzaldi said. "We didn't want to rush the other guys back into starting roles, so we've gone with the two freshmen starters and things have worked out so far."
Seton Hill is 16-5 and is scheduled to play Ohio Valley in a doubleheader today starting at 1 p.m. The Griffins are 11-0 in the WVIAC North Division.
The team's No. 1 starter is senior Rick Raraigh, a lefty from North Allegheny who is 3-1 with a 0.35 ERA in five starts. The other two starters are Bob Carbaugh, a sophomore right-hander from Richland High near Johnstown who is 1-0 in three starts and Greg Daviault, a junior righty from Ottawa, Canada, who is 1-2.
First Published April 7, 2011 12:00 am
