Cardinal Gibbons Growing Up Before Our Eyes

The Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs are long removed from the days of dominating their district. From 2002-2007, Gibbons won district titles every season, but has been unable to hoist the district trophy since. The team that was once a powerhouse under former manager George Petik has been average lately, and that is something manager Frank Pisani hopes to change in the near future.

“Gibbons hasn’t won a district title in five years, and that’s something that we have to change,” said Pisani. “We have a good group of young players, and I like our chances this season.”

Achieving the goal of district champions will be a tough order for the Chiefs, who play in one of the toughest districts in the state. The process of developing into a title contender starts in the fall for most programs, and Pisani, who has been around baseball in Broward for more than a decade, decided this year to change the structure of his fall program.

“We split our squad up into two teams,” Pisani explained. “On Monday, we inter-squad. On Wednesdays, we do a split-squad, where we send both teams out to play different opponents. This way, everyone is getting at-bats and work in the field. Instead of just getting one or two at-bats and then sitting the bench, like in a normal structure, these guys are getting full games under their belts.”

As documented by BHSB throughout our preview series, fall structure can be much different from team to team. For Gibbons, the players have no complaints with the new system.

“They love it,” said Pisani. “They love coming to the park knowing they are going to get three or four at-bats, and they’re going to play six or seven innings in the field.”

Don’t take it directly from Pisani. Here’s what junior shortstop Tyler Norris had to say about the fall structure.

“It’s working great for us players,” said Norris. “To know we are getting a lot of at-bats, that’s not something you usually see in the fall. It’s helping us get prepared, and the more pitching we can see, and the more ground balls we take, it can only make us better come the spring.”

In the spring, Gibbons will have to deal with the loss of some of their top players of the past few seasons. Former ace Thomas Woodrey has moved on to the University of Miami, and top hitter Anthony Cerquozzi has graduated as well. Woodrey and Cerquozzi were the two top hitters from last year’s team, hitting .397 and .400, respectively. The team hit .254, and Norris believes this year’s team can be more efficient.

“We’re going to be scrappy,” said Norris. “We’re going to steal bases, hit-and-run, lay down bunts. Anything that can help us manufacture runs this year, we’re going to execute. We may not have a lot of power, but we should be able to scrap and score some runs.”

Norris will be counted on by Pisani to be the leader of the Chiefs, and it is a role that the shortstop/pitcher has taken a liking to.

“This year our team is very young. I just want to keep our team loose and focused on the goal of winning districts. I need to make sure we stayed focused in practice, and I hope to lead by example.”

Norris, according to Pisani, will be one of the pitchers Gibbons will rely on at the mound. The exact roles are not yet determined, but it is likely that either Norris or Chris Williams will be the closer. Whichever one does not close will join Grant Trower, John Leachman and Craig Olson to round out the Chiefs staff behind projected ace Mark Nowatnick.

This summer, Nowatnick played with Norris for the Elite program while working his way back from an injury that sidelined him last year. The early returns show that Nowatnick could be one of the better pitchers in the county.

“I’ve never felt better,” said Nowatnick. “Taking that time off really helped, and I felt comfortable this summer. I’m throwing the ball harder than I did before, and my location is much better. I’m ready to go.”

His teammate Norris agreed.

“I played with Mark all summer, and he’s just been lights out,” said Norris. “He just dominated every team he faced. His fastball and his off-speed stuff were all overpowering. It’s going to be fun playing behind him this season.

Nowatnick and the rest of the staff will have to fill the voids left by Woodrey and Michael Hanke, who combined throw 94.2 of Gibbons’ 139.1 innings in 2012. Michael Anderson threw 13.1 more innings, leaving behind a staff that combined only for 21.2 innings. The inexperience is something Pisani hopes his team can overcome. Last year, the Chiefs had a team ERA of 2.66, and even with the losses, Pisani believes his team can improve on the mound.

“We have a lot of young talent to replace those guys from last year,” said Pisani. “As a coach, you always want to believe your team can improve, so I think we can be better than that 2.66 ERA. How much better, or if we achieve that goal, will depend on how quick these young guys grow up.”

Offensively, there will not be much returning from last year’s squad. Norris returns the most at-bats with 60. Behind Norris, Ryan Bowman (39), Nathan Pawelczyk (34), Olson (30), Williams (25), and Dalton Jugovic (15) are the most experienced Chief bats.

Williams, Leachman, David Pedraza, Justin Lara, Bowman and Olson will compete for the starting outfield positions. On the infield, Norris, Jukovic, and Connor Durkin are expected to man short, second and third, although specific positions have not yet been established. Trower is expected to play some first base this year, and Drew Hanke will round out the infield behind the dish.

As for how far the 2013 version of the Chiefs can go, that depends on their maturity as a team, but there is no lack of confidence among the players or the coaching staff.

‘We may be young, but a lot of these guys have experience playing at the varsity level, and I think that experience is going to pay off this year,” says Pisani.

“We have the tools to win a title,” said Norris.

“If we play as a team, pitch well, and manufacture runs, the sky’s the limit,” said Nowatnick. “Consistency will be the key.”

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