Indian Hills' Baseball Seniors Leave 'Great Legacy'

The Indian Hills Braves seniors did something special in 2010.

"They've left a great legacy," said head baseball coach George Hill. "Everyone of them, with the exception of Nick (Fiore), are first-year starters. They waited their turn, and they waited their turn, and they were all great leaders. They went far and beyond what we thought we were going to do."

After going 19-9 last season and graduating 12 seniors, the Braves were hoping to just stay relevant in the tough NBIL.

Seniors Fiore, Bryan Menduke, Rob Safir, Dan Valladares, Brian Greer, Jason Ogull, Ryan Van Grouw and Joe Pierce had something else in mind.

The seniors led a high-powered offense behind lefty ace Menduke's 6-2 record and 1.85 ERA, to storm out to a 16-3 record. The Braves' dedication and love for the game paid off, as they suddenly found themselves playing for a league title and were home favorites in the county and state tournaments.

"Baseball means a lot," said Pierce, who batted .333 with 18 RBI at designated hitter and posted a 4.04 ERA out of the bullpen. "Considering you can't play baseball your whole life, you have to cherish every moment of it."

Pierce plans to play baseball and major in history at Allegheny College. His plans over the summer coincide with many of his teammates: baseball.

"Baseball means everything," said Safir. "I love coming here, all my friends I've met through baseball. My memories with my dad are mostly him throwing to me, me hitting line drives."

Safir played the outfield and batted .341 while tying for the team lead in RBI with 21. His bat delivered a homer, two doubles and 5 RBI in an incredible 9-0 comeback over Mahwah. He plans to play on a summer league with neighbor Rod Stern, who set the record at Hills for average. Safir will play baseball at Skidmore College and is undecided in his major, but is leaning toward sociology.

"Baseball has done more for me that I can say," said Valladares. "It means the world to me. I love playing, and I always get close with my team."

Valladares played the outfield, batting .304 with 18 RBI, and was Hills' No. 2 starter, posting a 3.93 ERA in 62 innings. He plans to attend Lafayette College, where he will major in either economics or psychology.

"I've played football, but baseball has been my favorite sport my whole life," said Ogull. "Having a team just brings us together as friends and as people."

Ogull batted an impressive .346 with 20 RBI and provided many of the big hits that helped carry Hills back from a 9-0 deficit against Mahwah and mercy rule first-place Ramsey 17-7 after falling behind 7-3. He plans to attend Bergen Community College, where coach Hill just convinced him to try out for the baseball team.

Fiore batted .356, led the team with a .500 on-base percentage and tied for the team-high with 21 RBI. He plans to attend Pittstown University and major in business.

"It's like family," said Fiore about his experience with the team. "(It means) having someone you could always go to and look to."

Van Grouw batted cleanup for most of the year, posting a team-high .368 average with 12 RBI. He plans to attend Ramapo College, where he will spend the summer training to play basketball and plans to return to visit often.

"Baseball has given me the chance to make lifelong friends and have good bonding," said Van Grouw. "It's a lot of fun, too."

With heavy hitters up and down the lineup, the Braves counted on second baseman Greer to lead the effort on the field. Greer batted .242 with nine RBI and seldom had a misstep between first and second. He plans to attend Springfield College and major in physical therapy.

"I've always played infield," said Greer. "I started at second this year and have gotten so comfortable there. Second base is like my second home."

Steady bats and stingy defense helped carry Menduke to an impressive senior showing and a spot on the Bryant University baseball squad. A steaming fastball, dizzying changeup and deadly curve didn't hurt either.

"I'm looking forward to being able to come out every five days and give it my best against every team," said Menduke about Bryant, where he will major in business management.

Though the Braves ended up losing six of their last nine games, the value of teamwork and friendship was not lost among the team. As with this year's seniors, many sophomores and juniors are looking to step up and fill the void left by so many dedicated young men.

"You could see the amount of former players that come back and sit on our bench," said Hill. "We've built something special, and we're really confident our sophomores and our juniors will do the same."