Diamond Classic: Drew Uccello powers Shawnee baseball past Pitman in opening round

MEDFORD – The Shawnee High School baseball team entered the 48th annual Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic with a chip on its shoulder after missing the event a year ago.

The 2019 champion couldn’t wait to get on the field and prove itself.

There was one thing head coach Brian Anderson wasn’t looking forward to though – pulling senior Drew Uccello off the base paths.

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Uccello is the most dynamic athlete on the team, Anderson said, but catchers aren’t allowed to run when there’s two outs in the event in order to save time.

“I hate that rule,” Anderson laughed. “Don’t make me take him out. I never would. I would never take him out.”

Anderson had to do it twice Thursday as Uccello drove in three runs with two outs and finished 3-for-3 with 5 RBIs as fifth-seeded Shawnee blanked No. 12 Pitman 10-0.

“We’re a hungry team right now,” Uccello said. “Not making it last year put a chip on our shoulder. It’s a great win, great team win.”

Uccello has been playing the entire spring with an extra edge.

The Bucknell recruit didn’t perform to his own expectations last year and he went into the offseason looking for answers.

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He altered where his hands were pre-pitch, got more straight up in the box and went with a simpler swing.

“Working on hitting line drives, groundballs, keeping the ball out of the air,” Uccello said. “We know the pitchers have our back so we got to do our part.”

Uccello has as he’s batting .458 with 22 hits, 3 doubles, 3 triples, 2 homers, 17 RBIs and a team-high 22 runs and 7 stolen bases.

“He’s a lot more confident,” senior hurler Dylan Terwilliger said. “Obviously the COVID year, sophomore year, none of us had much varsity experience last year. For him to come out and do what he’s done this year as a captain, it’s really impressed me and he sets the standard for the rest of the team.”

Bats stay hot

Shawnee has struggled the last several seasons producing consistent offense.

If the Medford program can maintain its current pace, it’s going to be a difficult out both in the Diamond Classic and the South Jersey Group 4 playoffs.

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Shawnee has scored 101 runs during its current 10-game winning streak.

“We had some younger guys we put in a little before they thought they were ready (due to injuries to Griffin Burns and Erich Hartmann) and now I think they realize they belong,” Anderson said. “They’re doing their part. (Michael) Pierson, (Danny) Scullion and Reid Uccello, those three sophomores have been having a lot of good at-bats for us.”

Pierson had an RBI against Pitman and leads the team with 21 runs driven in. Reid Uccello had a hit and scored twice and Scullion added a knock and a run.

The vets have been strong too as Nick O’Brien is also seeing the ball well. The Penn commit was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI against the Panthers.

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“They’re putting the ball in play and making things happen,” Terwilliger said. “… If we can match up (our hitting) with our pitching, I don’t know who’s going to beat us.”

No-rest gem

Terwilliger had been penciled in as the starting pitcher for the Diamond Classic opener all week, but he was needed out of the bullpen on Wednesday to close out a 4-3 victory over Cherry Hill East.

That didn’t faze him though.

The Massachusetts commit went back on the bump on Thursday and handled his business, throwing a five-inning shutout. He gave up just 3 hits (all infield singles), walked 1 and fanned 3.

“I wanted to be efficient, not put too much stress on myself and I made ’em put the ball in play,” Terwilliger said. “I trusted my teammates and obviously it went well.”

He needed just 60 pitches to get through the day.

“He gave us a great performance,” Anderson said.

Pitman appreciates experience

The Panthers were making their first trip to the Diamond Classic since 2013, and while it didn’t end the way they hoped, they took it as a learning experience.

“It means a lot for a small school like us,” head coach John Hopely said. “I think they got 400 kids per class, we got less than that in our whole school. These guys come out, they play hard, they try to win, the level of play is just a little bit above ours. We have to dedicate ourselves to better at-bats going forward.”

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Hopely did praise starting pitcher Hudson Rue. The freshman fought over 3 1/3 innings. He gave up 5 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits and 2 walks and struck out 2.

“You want to compete and we did for four innings,” Hopely said. “(Rue) threw a great game being a freshman, coming in here and doing the best he can. The better team definitely won. That’s a very good team on the other side.”

What’s next

Shawnee (15-3) is scheduled to travel to Williamstown on Friday, and will visit fourth-seeded Kingsway in the Diamond Classic quarterfinals on Tuesday at 4 p.m. Pitman (10-3) is slated to host Gloucester on Friday.

Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Shawnee baseball beats Pitman first round Diamond Classic