Baseball Dream Team: More superlatives for Super
Before the Sage Hill School baseball season in February, Brett Super began taking an ACT prep class. On the day of his first practice test, he wanted an answer to a specific question, one that had nothing to do with the exam, but it had everything to do with one particular student.
The student stood out because of what he wore. From head-to-toe, he was dressed in Crean Lutheran baseball gear. Crean Lutheran is Sage Hill’s rival in baseball.
“He’s like 6-foot-3 or something. He’s a big dude. I was like, ‘So, you play at Crean?’” Super said. “He’s like, ‘Yeah, yeah. Uh, do you play baseball?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I play for Sage.’ He’s like, ‘Oh, do you know Brett Super?’ I’m like, ‘I am Brett Super.’ He was like, ‘Ohhhhhhh!’ It was like this moment of realization of like, ‘Oh, you’re the guy. Oh, shoot! I was expecting a little more. I was expecting more of a [big] dude.’”
At 5-10 and 160 pounds, Super is an unassuming pitcher. He said his parents and coaches tell him to always say he’s an inch taller, as if that will make the Daily Pilot Newport-Mesa Baseball Dream Team Player of the Year look seem menacing.
Super ran into the same Crean Lutheran student twice more during the ACT workshop and they would nod their heads to acknowledge each other. The next two times they crossed paths was on the baseball field in early May.
Their teams played twice during a four-day span, and the contests determined the Academy League champion. After each game, the Crean Lutheran player began to distance himself from Super. He wanted no part of Super, and neither did the rest of the Saints.
Super threw a two-hitter in the first game the host Lightning won, 2-0, clinching at least a share of first place with one league game to go. Three days later, Super closed things out, pitching the final two innings of a 5-4 win at Crean Lutheran, earning the save and cementing Sage Hill’s second straight undefeated league crown.
That wouldn’t be the last time the Crean Lutheran student saw Super. On June 4, the Lightning and Crean Lutheran met to decide another championship. Top-seeded Sage Hill and the No. 2 Saints advanced to the CIF Southern Section Division 6 final at UC Riverside.
“The third time I saw him, it was kind of like, ‘Ugh, I don’t think he wants to say hi to me anymore,’” said Super, adding that he didn’t want to see the player or the Saints either. “I didn’t want to face them in the finals because I knew they’d put up a good fight against us. I pitch away a lot and they always hit away. They’re good hitters. They hit the ball where the ball is pitched and I don’t like that.”
Another element of the game that Super wasn’t too thrilled about was throwing in 100-degree heat. The hottest temperature Super and the Lightning had played in before that was 85.
Super didn’t succumb to the heat, the Saints did. The junior tossed a three-hitter in Sage Hill’s 9-0 win, giving the program its first section title.
The only thing Super and his teammates have to work on is the celebratory dog pile.
“I just ran for [catcher Tobias Bush afterward], but I didn’t know where he was going,” Super said. “He was kind of running toward our dugout [on the first-base side]. I think he was going to back up first base or something, but I caught him halfway there, and then we kind of had a four-person dog pile and then everyone else just kind of watched. We’re just really bad at dog piles.”
What Super and Sage Hill (28-1, 10-0 in league) weren’t bad at was winning.
Super and the Lightning were unbeatable during Sage Hill’s historic run. The right-hander went 13-0, while the team won its final 27 games. The winning streak is an Orange County record.
Another impressive mark involves Super and it dates back to his freshman year. In his last 25 decisions, Super has won, running his overall record to 29-2.
Each year Super, a three-time Dream Team selection, has improved. For the second straight year, he threw a perfect game and a no-hitter.
Super finished with a 0.51 earned-run average, 133 strikeouts and only 20 walks in 97 innings, garnering him the CIF Southern Section Division 6 Player of the Year award, the Academy League MVP honor, and third-team All-Orange County accolades. He tossed eight complete games and six shutouts, and recorded two saves.
When Super wasn’t pitching, he played third base. The left-handed hitting Super batted .268 with three home runs and 24 runs batted in. He finished with four triples, two doubles and 20 runs.
A lot of credit for Super’s success on the mound goes to first-year Sage Hill assistant Mark Cresse, who used to be a coach with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 25 years. Cresse, a former bullpen coach, called the pitches for the Lightning. When Super had a 2-2 count, he sent the sign in to Bush to order Super to throw a slider or curveball, instead of a fastball.
“It was easy to understand, but it was hard to trust it,” said Super, knowing he had to keep batters off balance. “Without challenging me to build comfort in my pitches, I would not have had the season I did.”
Super closed out the year throwing 41 scoreless innings. Sixteen of those innings came against Crean Lutheran.
Super blanked quality teams like Crean Lutheran, which beat Sunset League champion Marina during the regular season, and he threw six scoreless innings in a 4-1 win against Laguna Beach, the eventual CIF Southern Section Division 4 champion.
Super was so tough on hitters that Crean Lutheran Coach Jake Haney asked Sage Hill Coach Dominic Campeau for a favor recently.
“He’s like, ‘Did you order your [CIF] rings yet?’ I said, ‘Yeah, man, but the rings are so big and flashy that I don’t think I’ll ever wear it,’” Campeau said. “He’s like, ‘Next year ask Super if he can pitch with his [ring] on, then maybe we’ll be able to hit him, if he has something heavy on his [right] hand.’”
•The remaining members of the Dream Team follow:
Evan Larsen
Corona del Mar
The senior pitcher turned in a dominant season for the Sea Kings. The Cal State Fullerton-bound Larsen went 9-2 with a 1.07 ERA and one save, striking out 92 and walking 17 in 781/3 innings. The right-hander tossed 10 complete games and two shutouts, earning him All-CIF Southern Section Division 3 and second-team All-Orange County honors, as well as the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year award. Larsen, who hit .367, played in the Kiwanis Club of Greater Anaheim’s 49th Orange County All-Star Baseball Game and the Ryan Lemmon Senior Showcase game between the Pacific Coast League and Freeway League. Larsen is a two-time Dream Team selection.
Cade Seabold
Newport Harbor
The junior is the designated hitter after being a force at the plate for the Sailors. Seabold hit .507, tops in the area, with two home runs and 16 RBIs, finishing with a .753 slugging percentage and a .571 on-base percentage. He had an-area best 12 doubles and 15 runs. Seabold played right field for Newport Harbor, which won five more games in the Sunset League than it did in 2015. He garnered first-team All-Sunset League and second-team All-Orange County accolades. Seabold is the second member in his family on the Dream Team, his older brother, Connor, who’s at Cal State Fullerton, made it in 2014 and 2013.
Edward Pelc
Sage Hill
The freshman right fielder was a phenom for the Lightning in all facets of the game. Coach Dominic Campeau said many college programs are recruiting the speedy Pelc after he batted .489, the second-best average locally, and led the area in on-base percentage (.600), runs (38), triples (five) and walks (25). He finished with one home run, 21 RBIs, a .677 slugging percentage, four doubles and 23 stolen bases. Pelc, who received All-CIF Southern Section Division 6 and first-team All-Academy League honors, was the spark plug to Sage Hill winning the CIF Southern Section Division 6 championship, the program’s first section title.
Luke Genova
Newport Harbor
The senior pitcher kept the Sailors in contention to earn the Sunset League’s final berth into the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs. Genova tossed a one-hitter in a 2-0 win against Los Alamitos, to keep Newport Harbor within a game of second place with four to play. The future University of Santa Clara player finished 6-4 with a 4.51 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 662/3 innings. He went the distance four times, half of which were shutouts. Genova, who batted .346 with three home runs, 16 RBIs and eight doubles, played in the OC All-Star Game and the Ryan Lemmon Senior Showcase game between the Sunset League and Trinity League.
Ashwin Chona
Sage Hill
The freshman pitcher stepped in and gave the Lightning another legitimate ace. Chona and Brett Super formed the best one-two punch in the area. Chona went 12-0 with a 0.65 ERA and two saves, fanning 85 and walking 20 in 65 innings. In the semifinals of the CIF Southern Section Division 6 playoffs, the left-hander went five strong innings in top-seeded Sage Hill’s 4-1 win, eliminating defending section champion La Cañada Flintridge Prep. Chona, who earned All-CIF Southern Section Division 6 and first-team All-Academy League honors, struck out 18 and only allowed one run and six hits in 11 postseason innings.
Preston Hartsell
Corona del Mar
The sophomore left fielder could hit, field and run at a high level for the Sea Kings. Hartsell, a USC commit, boasts a big left-handed bat, hitting .364 with four home runs, tying him for the top spot in the area, and 19 RBIs. He finished with a .662 slugging percentage, five doubles, three triples, 21 runs and 14 stolen bases. Hartsell, who threw out three runners and committed no errors, made the All-Pacific Coast League first team. Hartsell went two for four with a homer and three RBIs in CdM’s 11-0 win over Newport Harbor in the Battle of the Bay.
JT Schwartz
Corona del Mar
The sophomore shortstop started at third base at the beginning of the season, before moving back to where he stood out a year ago. Schwartz helped the Sea Kings share second place in the Pacific Coast League and reach the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 1 playoffs for the second time in as many years. The first-team All-Pacific Coast League pick hit .320 with two home runs, 19 RBIs, six doubles and 23 runs. Against University, Schwartz went four for four with three RBIs and a double. Schwartz is a two-time Dream Team selection.
Grady Conner
Costa Mesa
The senior center fielder was a five-tool player for the Mustangs. Conner batted .444 with four home runs, a number he and only one other local player produced, and 28 RBIs. The Vanguard University-bound player led the area in slugging percentage (.792) and stolen bases (24), and had a .592 on-base percentage, 11 doubles and 28 runs. In 99 plate appearances, Conner, who made the Orange Coast League first team, only struck out nine times. He helped Costa Mesa to six more overall wins and three more league wins than in 2015. Conner is a three-time Dream Team selection.
Kevin McCarthy
Corona del Mar
The senior right fielder contributed to the Sea Kings’ first 20-win season in 12 years, their first 11-win season in the Pacific Coast League in seven years. McCarthy batted .389 with eight RBIs, 18 runs and 16 stolen bases. The left-handed hitter collected six multi-hit games, including in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs at Lake Elsinore Temescal Canyon. McCarthy also pitched 12 innings, finishing 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA and one save. He participated in the Ryan Lemmon Senior Showcase game between the Pacific Coast League and Freeway League.
Conner Bock
Sage Hill
The senior first baseman missed time after undergoing an undisclosed surgery and played a key role in the best season in Lightning history. Bock, who is heading to Cal, provided a powerful left-handed bat for Sage Hill, which capped an Orange County-record 27-game-winning streak by bringing home the CIF Southern Section Division 6 title, a first for the program. The second-team All-Academy League member batted .301 with two home runs, 26 RBIs, five doubles and four triples. He had a .561 slugging percentage, scored 18 runs, and was hit seven times. Bock is a four-time Dream Team selection.
Jeremiah Sheldon
Newport Harbor
The senior pitcher came through for the Sailors in the always-tough Sunset League, earning four of the team’s seven wins, helping them to a share of fourth place. Sheldon posted a 6-5 record with a 3.19 ERA with 39 strikeouts in 652/3 innings. The left-hander’s wins in league were against champion Marina, third-place Edison, fourth-place Los Alamitos and sixth-place Fountain Valley. Sheldon, a second-team All-Sunset League performer, went the distance against Marina, Edison and Fountain Valley, and he threw a three-hitter against University in a Foothill Division game at the Newport Elks Tournament. Sheldon hit .250 with nine RBIs and four doubles.
Connor Brown
Estancia
The senior third baseman clinched the Eagles’ third-place finish in the Orange Coast League and CIF Southern Section Division 4 playoff berth. Brown hit .303 with 13 RBIs, five doubles, one triple and 11 runs. The first-team All-Orange Coast League performer also pitched. Brown finished 7-2 with a 1.23 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 57 innings. The right-hander threw four complete games, including an eight-inning affair in Estancia’s 2-1 extra-inning win against Costa Mesa, helping the Eagles claim the Battle for the Bell rivalry for the seventh consecutive year. Brown is a three-time Dream Team selection.
Donato Di Ferdinando
Corona del Mar
The senior catcher caught Evan Larsen, the Sea Kings’ ace and one of the top pitchers in Orange County. Di Ferdinando called a good game, handling a staff that went a combined 21-5 with a 1.05 ERA and 151 strikeouts in 180 innings. Through the first nine games of the season, Di Ferdinando caught 37 scoreless innings. He batted .309 with 12 RBIs, four doubles and one triple. Di Ferdinando garnered second-team All-Pacific Coast League laurels and started in the Ryan Lemmon Senior Showcase game between the Pacific Coast League and Freeway League.
John Olmstead
Newport Harbor
The freshman split time at second base and shortstop, giving the Sailors range and a reliable fielder up the middle. Olmstead shared the Sunset League Rookie of the Year award after he helped Newport Harbor to a 7-8 record in league, the program’s best finish during its 10 seasons since returning to the Sunset League in 2007, and second 13-14 overall season since 2014. He batted .244 with one home run, 10 RBIs, 11 doubles and 16 runs. Five times in league, Olmstead recorded multi-hit performances. Olmstead is one of five starters expected to return to Newport Harbor.
