“We battle every day,” said senior right-hander Parker Thomas, an East Carolina commit who lowered his ERA to 0.70 with his third shutout. “Everybody has a role they star in.”
Among a staff of five pitchers with Division I commitments, on a team that allowed just two runs per game, the Cavaliers (22-6-1) could certainly tab Thomas, or any of their pitchers, as a hero. Spalding could also crown senior catcher Ethan McNally, who orchestrated a stellar pitching staff all season and whose fifth-inning RBI single, which scored his younger brother Jack, gave the team a 1-0 lead over the Cardinals (18-14).
But at the core of the Cavaliers’ message, the team speaks of sacrifice. Often, with a consistent influx of talent, future college stars must sacrifice high school plate appearance when they arrive in Severn. In senior outfielder Brayden Marrocco, Spalding found a star who served as a microcosm for that sacrifice — and its occasionally wonky but mostly powerful 2023 campaign.
After coming off the bench during his junior year, and after returning to the pine early in his senior year following a slump, Marrocco got another shot in mid-April. He hit a three-run homer in his first game back and was the Cavaliers’ best hitter in the final month.
“Every guy in this program has a dog mentality,” Ethan McNally said. “Everyone buys in for the moment we had [Sunday] night, to play college baseball; the things we teach at Spalding helps everyone in the long run.”
Unlike Spalding’s 2022 team that went 17-0 in league play, these Cavaliers were not without flaws, particularly at the plate. But, they said, the obstacles made this year special. After dropping consecutive games in mid-April, Coach Joe Palumbo — who shares a quote of the day at every practice — settled on a message that stuck: “Oak trees grow their roots stronger in storms.”
The Cavaliers were at their best in the final week.
“When you take talent and add a little toughness and character to it, that is a potent mixture,” Palumbo said. “Ultimately, they just wanted the feeling of winning a championship again.”