Hillsborough High Baseball on the Rise as Middleton Rebuilds

baseball's 17-8 victory over Middleton on Thursday said just about all there is to say about the current state of the two teams.

A year ago, the scoreline may have very easily been just the opposite. The injury plagued Terriers would have struggled to find good pitching and performed poorly at the plate and on the basepaths, whereas Middleton would have leaned on the experience of its aces and on its .394 team average at the plate.

"The biggest difference for us this year is having everybody healthy," Hillsborough coach Kenny White said. "It's really a combination of things, but I think that has been key. During 20 games last year, I don't think we had one where we fielded our full lineup."

Hillsborough (5-3) has found success this year when it jumps out to an early lead. The contributions of starting pitchers Dylan Moore and Ian Deese have made a big difference on the mound, while Nos. 3 and 4 hitters John Safe and Tony Jones have aided the offense with impressive batting averages.

"These last five games we've had 10 or more hits," White said. "When we get out in front we've been able to hang on to wins. Dylan and Ian are bringing it on the mound and at the plate, John Safe is hitting .675, and our cleanup man Tony Jones is batting over .400. We started out slow but we've been able to get it together."

The Tigers, on the other hand, are in the midst of rebuilding. After losing one ace to graduation and another to transfer, the team is left with almost no pitching at its disposal.

"The biggest difference from last year for us is on the mound," Middleton coach Vernon Slater said. "Our guys are young, and they have to start. We're killing ourselves with a lot of mistakes all over the ballpark. We can't compete when we play like that; it's the reason we're losing."

While the Tigers have struggled at the plate more this season (batting .262), Slater maintains that it's their mistakes in the field and ineffectiveness on the mound that have sunk them to a 2-7 record. While Slater is working hard just to encourage his team to keep their heads up, he faces the daunting task of finding a leader in the dugout and developing a cast of hurlers from scratch.

"I don't have any true pitchers, so I'm taking kids who have arms and trying to develop them as we go," Slater said. "I'm hoping that by the beginning of April we can get to where we need to be on the mound, but it's tough. The few seniors we have out in the field have to take ownership of this team and realize the other players look up to them. They can't slack even a little bit. They have to work harder than what they've been putting out, and the other kids will follow."

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