pvi tennis and baseball

PVI Tennis and Baseball

By David Steinbacher
Special to the HERALD
(From the Issue of 4/26/07)

Paul VI varsity coach Ellen Horan has the Panthers playing very competitive tennis. The Panthers have an overall record of 6-6 more than halfway through the 2007 season.
Horan, a former assistant to previous head coach Craig Tutt, took over the program in 2005, and has seen the Panthers improve every season.
"We're young this season,” she said. “We've got a lot of talent. We're about a year away (from having a breakout season)."
Horan, a physical education teacher at the Fairfax school, also coached the Panthers in the 1980s.
This year, PVI has defeated St. Mary's Ryken (6-3 in March, 8-1 in April); Ireton (6-3 several weeks ago, 8-1 one week ago); Good Counsel (5-4); and McNamara (9-0). Among the Panthers’ six losses was a tight 5-4 setback to St. John’s.
"In our second match with St. John’s (a few weeks ago), the match was tied 3-3 after the singles,” Horan said. “The match was suspended (due to the weather). Should we resume the match, I believe we are capable of winning it. But, I'm just not sure that there is time in the calendar, before the tournament, for St. John’s to travel back here."
The Panthers have started 13 matches but only completed 12.
The Panther squad is led by sophomore Brian Hope (singles #1); sophomore Chris Rieves (#2); senior Tim Horan (#3); junior Pat McGee (#4); junior Jack Power (#5); and junior Andrew Rielly (#6). Juniors Bryan Nelson and Robert Lange have also seen brief action this season.
Leading the Panthers in wins thus far are: Rielly (8-1 singles record), Power (7-3), McGee (6-5) and Rieves (6-6). Due to occasional missed matches - they do not always add up to 12.
Hope — who plays No. 1, and thus faces the best opponent that each school has to offer — and Horan are both slightly below .500.
The doubles partners generally consist of: Hope and Rieves; Horan and Power; and McGee and Rielly.
The latter combination has a 9-3 record on the season, while the other two combinations have each earned a 5-7 record.
"Our styles mesh well together,” said Rielly about teaming up with McGee. “We're aggressive. We go to the net and we like to finish the point."
The Panthers lost to O’Connell March 20 despite Hope and Rieves’ victory over the Knights’ top doubles combination of seniors Milo Alexander-Barajas and Josh Labat.
"Both Brian and Chris played very beautiful tennis that day [versus O'Connell]," Horan said.
In describing that doubles victory, Hope said he and Rieves had “some good first serves. We kept the ball in play and we attacked the net."
Horan said the entire team is improving as the season continues.
“We've gotten better during the second half of the season,” she said. “In the Ryken and the Ireton matches, we won 8-1 the second time that we played them (as opposed to 6-3 the first time that we played them). We've got a chance to finish third or so in the upcoming WCAC Tournament.
“We're all just going to have to do our best and stick it out,” she said.
This week, the Panthers were scheduled to have matches against Gonzaga, McNamara and Good Counsel.
The WCAC Tournament will start in early May. DeMatha, O'Connell and PVI should all have the ability to finish in the upper tier.

PVI Baseball Team Tied for First Place
The PVI baseball team continues to roll. The Panthers, led by head coach Billy Emerson, have a 17-3 record — 8-2 in WCAC play — with losses to St. John’s, Gonzaga and Notre Dame Academy.
PVI defeated North Stafford 7-4 Monday in Fairfax. Senior right-hander John Ralston struck out five to record the win.
Emerson is fortunate to have Jeff Nolan on his staff, one of the most respected pitching coaches in the league.
"John has a real good mix of pitches,” Nolan said. “He can throw a knuckleball, a late breaking curve ball and a fast ball."
Against North Stafford, junior second baseman Matt Murakami added two RBIs for the Panthers, and senior outfielder Scott Walsh added two runs.
Also on Monday, PVI knocked off DeMatha 6-2 for the second time this season. Junior right-hander Peter Verdin struck out two in four 2/3 innings and logged the win.
"Peter has a real good fastball, a sharp breaking ball and a good sinking changeup," Nolan said.
When Verdin is not pitching he plays center field and leads the Panthers in batting at .482.
On April 18, PVI dropped a 1-0 contest to St. John’s. Junior right-hander Mike Mitchell struck out four in seven complete innings, and absorbed the loss as the Panther bats were uncharacteristically anemic versus the Cadets.
PVI knocked off Ireton 8-1 on April 17. Junior left-hander Drew Shaw logged the win and had a no-hitter going after 6 1/3 innings.
The Panther pitching staff is one of the deepest in the WCAC. Drew Shaw and Mike Mitchell lead the staff with 4-1 records. Ralston, Verdin and sophomore right-hander Chad Morgan all are 2-0 on the season.
Three other pitchers have logged one win each: senior left-hander Jack Sullivan out of the bullpen; senior right-hander Robert Grazioli with a start; and freshman right-hander Tyler Costello also with a start.
Costello's older brother, Zach, was a football standout for Pat McGroarty at PVI this past fall, and also is an outfielder.
As of Tuesday, PVI and St. John’s led the WCAC with 8-2 records. Gonzaga (8-3), DeMatha (7-3) and O'Connell (7-4) follow closely behind.
In addition to Verdin, juniors Tim McCormick (.415 average), Reed Bromley and Brett Bowers, both hitting .409, contribute to the Panthers’ offense.