GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Coming off a roller-coaster 2018 campaign, the Gettysburg College baseball team has put in the work during the fall, offseason, and preseason to make a run at the postseason this spring.  
 
Gettysburg had posted six consecutive 20-win seasons and competed in the postseason four times from 2012-17. Hopes were high for more success in 2018, but weather woes and injuries served to derail a developing lineup and left the Bullets on the outside of the playoff picture with a 13-23 overall record, including 6-12 in the Centennial Conference.
 
"The frustrating thing last year was we were a different team from the year before," said Head Coach John Campo, who enters his 33rd season at the helm. "We got off to a rough start. We turned it around the back half of our Florida trip and had some momentum coming home, but then the snowstorm wiped out games for two weeks.
 
"There were a lot of games that were critical to our team and it affected a team like ours more as opposed to a more experienced and established team. We needed those games to develop because we had a lot of guys in different spots."
 
Campo, who enters the campaign one win shy of 600 for his career, has seen the ebbs and flows of the game during his three decades of coaching and expects last year's setbacks to help build the team to prosperity this spring. At the forefront of the process are pitching and defense.
 
"Philosophically, it starts with pitching and defense," noted Campo. "When I'm building a lineup that's what I'm looking at. If you have good pitching and good defense, you have a chance to win. That's been our major focus, as well as developing our run production."
 
Gettysburg's lineup returns a strong core, but there will be several holes to fill among the starters. The team lost two former all-conference performers in center fielder Chuck Probst '18 and third baseman Logan Sneed '18, in addition to starting pitcher Brad DeMartino '18. Probst hit .333 with 12 doubles and 20 RBI and Sneed batted .282 with 26 runs in 2018. DeMartino was a workhorse on the mound in his final campaign, racking up 62 innings of work – 28.1 more innings than anyone else on the staff.
 
While those particular holes will be hard to fill, Campo will look to shuffle his lineup to produce the best outcomes on the field, both offensively and defensively. The team has been building up to the season with a productive fall and offseason. The captains in particular – senior pitchers Jonny Bray (Fairfax, Va./Robinson) and Sam Dobbins (West Hartford, Conn./Hall) and junior infielder Ryan LaCoe (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) – have set a strong tone for the team.
 
"I'm very happy with our leadership, starting with the seniors and going down through the juniors and other returning players," said Campo. "It's not just about saying the right things; it's about how they go about their daily business."
 
Bray and Dobbins head a deep staff of pitchers that welcomes back every arm that started a game in 2018 except DeMartino. The two seniors will be joined on the mound by classmates Will Wortmann (Bedford, N.Y./Fox Lane) and Brendan Wright (Bayville, N.Y./Locust Valley) as well as juniors John Braun (Ambler, Pa./La Salle College) and Jack Havard (New Canaan, Conn./New Canann). All six have seen success during their time wearing the Orange and Blue and give Campo a solid core to build around.
 
The most intriguing class of pitchers to watch may be the sophomores. An added year of growth and experience has paid dividends for a number of past Gettysburg greats as they transitioned from their first to second seasons.
 
"Looking back at guys like Ryan Taylor, Eric Hungerford, and Drew Felsenthal, they all had potential coming in, but sophomore year was when they became that all-conference and all-region caliber type of pitcher," noted Campo.
 
The sophomore class includes Erik Wortmann (Garden City, N.Y./Garden City), Dan Ball (Bernardsville, N.J./Bernards), Myles Burbank (Rye, N.Y./Rye), Sam Blanchard (Chatham, N.J./Chatham), and Connor Murtaugh (Coopersburg, Pa./Souther Lehigh).
 
The newcomers to the pitching staff will see time early on and could make an impact sooner rather than later. Tyler Carmolingo (Mullica Hill, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep), Jack Corrigan (Northport, N.Y./Northport), Tim Fay (Easthampton, Mass./Williston Northampton), Nathan Masteralexis (Amherst, Mass./Northfield Mount Hermon), Sam Sestito (Sea Grit, N.J./Saint Rose), and Teo Torrado (New York, N.Y./Polytech Prep Country Day) will all try to crack the rotation this spring.
 
For the pitchers, maintaining control, getting ahead in the count, and keeping walks down to a minimum will be key to building a successful rotation. In its losses last season, the Bullets allowed over six batters per game to reach base via walks and hit-by-pitches.
 
"We've been preaching to our pitchers to get ahead and cut down on free passes and pitching from behind," stated Campo.
 
Defensively, the lineup will see some familiar faces in new places as Campo looks to put a strong unit on the field. Sophomore Sean Murphy (Westfield, Mass./Westfield) and junior Dominick Gasparro (Clarksburg, N.J./Princeton Day School) return to starting spots in outfield. Murphy was the team's top newcomer a year ago, hitting .331 and leading the team in RBI (28), walks (14), and on-base percentage (.404). Gasparro was injured for much of 2018, but he's worked hard in the offseason to get back to his full potential.
 
Replacing Probst in center will be sophomores Harry Quimby (Wilmington, Del./Tower Hill School) and Kobi Wolf (Westfield, N.J./Westfield). The two second-year players have demonstrated the skills and abilities to take over for the former all-conference performer. Waiting in the wings for time in the outfield are a number of viable options, including junior Ryan Augustus (Freehold, N.J./Princeton Day School) and freshmen Shane Manieri (Harleysville, Pa./La Salle College) and Reid Gesualdi (Stamford, Conn./King). Braun could also see time in the outfield when not minding the mound.
 
The corner infield spots will see a pair of new gloves as LaCoe swings over to third from the middle infield and sophomore Matt Szczesny (Schwenksville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) moves from behind the plate to first base. LaCoe has started at every spot in the infield and will look to establish a firm foundation at third. He hit .339 with 19 RBI last spring. Szczesny started 27 games at catcher and hit .280. The two give Campo solid contact hitters in the lineup after combining for just 18 strikeouts in 202 at bats a year ago.
 
In the middle infield, the Bullets will look to juniors Joe Giovinco (Stirling, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) and Sinjin Smith (Nazareth, Pa./Mercersburg Academy). Giovinco will slide over to second base after earning All-CC Honorable Mention at shortstop last season. Giovinco led the team with a .349 batting average and scored 21 runs. Smith impressed the coaching staff filling in at shortstop late last season and will assume that spot in 2019.
 
Both Gasparro and Manieri have the potential to step into roles on the infield. Freshmen Tim Harper (Kensington, Md./Saint Johns College), Tommy Lieberman (Wellesley Hills, Mass./Wellesley), and Mark Seibert (Yardley, Pa./Holy Ghost Prep) will provide depth at the corners, while first-years Matt Muir (South Easton, Mass./Oliver Ames), Brodey Cowan (Sarver, Pa./Freeport), and Michael Bernhardt (Timonium, Md./Dulaney) will back up the middle infield.
 
With Szczesny sliding over to first, the door is open for a new battery mate for the pitchers. Sophomore Eric Raio (West Caldwell, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) started five games last season and will compete for playing time alongside sophomore Collin Short (Chesterfield, Va./Benedictine College Prep) and freshman Andrew Decker (Baltimore, Md./Towson). Harper, Seibert ,and fellow first-year Paul Krakoviak (West Orange, N.J./Seton Hall Prep) are slated to compete for time behind the plate as well.
 
Gettysburg hit .357 and averaged nearly 10 runs per game in its victories last season. Campo will look for those same kinds of numbers on a more consistent basis out of the batting order this spring, as well as a higher rate of contact and lower percentage of strikeouts.
 
"We need to make sure our approach is right," said the head coach. "We need to focus on line drives and ground balls and make the other team work."
 
Campo isn't alone in his development of the student-athletes with returning assistants Justin Perry and Ryan Martin and new coach Cooper Ayres. Perry oversees the pitchers and the team's strength and conditioning program, while Martin works with the catchers and breaks down the hitting analytics. Ayres has taken on the development of the outfielders among his primary duties.
 
From 2011 to 2012, Gettysburg improved its win total by 13 games and earned a spot in the CC playoffs. Following a productive fall and offseason, Campo believes this team is capable of achieving that same kind of turnaround and get back into the race for not only a spot in the playoffs, but also the pursuit of the program's first CC title.
 
"I've been happy with what I've seen in the talent level and our attitude and our work ethic," said Campo. "We're in position to have a good year at this point. Bottom line is the formula for success is you have to have enough talent and you have to prepare properly. We've done that. Our preparation has been excellent.
 
"Now you have to put it in a winning performance. Are we going to be able to get it done on the field? I'm optimistic. If we stay healthy and can be at full strength consistently, I think this team has an opportunity to do a lot of good things."
 
Gettysburg is slated to kick off the season at Stevenson University on March 5 at 3 p.m. Following non-conference outings at Stevenson University and Juniata College on March 5 and 6, respectively, the Bullets embark on a 10-game spring break trip to Florida. After break, the team plays six of its next seven contests at home. Gettysburg opens the Centennial schedule at Haverford College on March 30 at noon.