Senior Hurler Keeps an Even Keel

Fair Lawn High’s Coby Kerr may have a nice array of pitches in his arsenal—his 8-1 record is proof of that.

But the senior hurler’s real strength comes not only from his obvious physical talent, but from his calmness and resolve on the mound.

“I treat every game the same, no matter who we’re playing or who’s up at the plate,” said Kerr, the Cutters’ righty ace, who, according to head coach Jamie Graceffo has had a big hand in Fair Lawn’s 13-11-1 season.

“Coby stays even all the time, with runners on base or facing the No. 4 hitter,” said Graceffo, in his third year at the helm for the Cutters. “He goes about his business. He’s definitely grounded.”

This is Kerr’s first season on the varsity squad—he played on the freshman team and spent two seasons with the JV. He also has played a lot of travel ball, which Graceffo said has helped make the transition to varsity seamless.

“That’s not always the case but it has been for Coby,” Graceffo said. “I think the experience of playing strong teams has given him a better idea of what varsity ball is all about.”

Kerr deflected some praise and lauded his teammates’ defensive and offensive support for making his job a little easier.

Case in point: The Cutters, seeded 13th, amassed an early 5-0 lead on Monday against No. 4 Roxbury in the first round of the North 1, Group 4 tournament.

“Having those runs certainly helped me stay confident,” said Kerr. “It helps having those guys behind me.”

“It was a tremendous win for us,” said Graceffo, whose team faces No. 5 Union City in the second round on Friday. “My first year, we didn’t make the tournament, and last year we lost in the first round. This team has surprised me every day so anything’s possible.”

Kerr, who hopes to play baseball for the County College of Morris, is expected to be on the mound for that game, too.

“I know a little about them [Union City] but I’m just going to play my game as usual,” he said, calmly.

The game is set for 4 p.m. in Union City on Friday.