Greensburg Central Catholic baseball on fast track to success

By: Mike Kovak
Sunday, March 10, 2019 | 7:19 PM

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If the 2019 baseball season if a journey, Greensburg Central Catholic expects to spend the trip in the passing lane.

The past couple of excursions for the Centurions lasted into June, each ending in the PIAA Class A semifinals. Along the way, GCC won one-run games, defeated out-of-district teams and tested its mettle against quality competition from larger classifications.

The Centurions made those runs with deep, talented rosters, and this year’s group shares those characteristics. But there’s something that could separate them from others in a program that’s reached the state playoffs the past four years.

“Of all the sports teams I’ve ever played on, this is the fastest group I’ve been a part of,” senior pitcher/first baseman/outfielder Bryce Kurpiel said. “We have a lot of kids who can run. It definitely will help us when we’re running the bases, but it’s going to help us out in the field, too.”

GCC coach Dennis Reist said Kurpiel runs 60 yards in 6.5 seconds, and though the team has yet to conduct timed sprints at that distance, when they ran 30s, “We have five or six kids who are only about a half-step behind Bryce. Six kids at that speed says a lot about this group.”

All that speed gives GCC ample opportunities with courtesy and pinch runners, defensive switches and hit-and-run situations, but it would be for naught if the Centurions didn’t have the talent to take advantage of it.

Kurpiel, a St. Francis (Pa.) football recruit, leads that charge, too.

He batted .582 with 31 hits, 28 runs and 23 RBIs last season. He’s an offensive catalyst with an expanded role this season as GCC’s primary pitcher. Kurpiel is part of a pitching rotation that includes senior Joel Lonigro, Tom Voelker and Ben LaCarte. Lonigro pitched in the WPIAL championship game two years ago, but no one in the group pitched heavy innings last season.

“The thing about this group as a whole is they work to get better,” Reist said. “They get better that day at practice, then the next one, they’re back to get better.”

Few WPIAL Class A teams have a better core than GCC.

Voelker, a junior, batted .381 with 25 runs, 25 RBIs, eight doubles and two homers last season. Classmate Paul Rice, entering his third season as starting catcher, batted .344 with 22 RBIs a year ago, and he’ll be tasked with helping the Centurions pitching staff along. Another junior, Tommy Salley, returns to GCC after attending the Kiski School. Senior infielder Brendan McGowan can play multiple positions. Add speedsters Dylan Sebek and Zach Kuvinka to the mix, and GCC boasts the athleticism and talent to duplicate and possibly better recent returns.

“One of the things about single A is it’s tough to get enough players to build a feeder system,” Reist said. “We’re able to get the athletes to come out. We get some JV games in, and that adds to the experience, especially for the freshmen and sophomores. Another thing we try to do is get those players and opportunity to gain varsity experience in key situations.”

That approach leads to a composed group with postseason expectations. GCC, which finished with a 16-7 record last year, will compete in Section 3-A with Clairton, Leechburg, Springdale, St. Joseph and Vincentian Academy, which defeated the Centurions in last year’s state semifinal.

“Honestly, we all want (to make the PIAA final). We’ve all gone through making it to the semis and losing, and that stinks,” Kurpiel said. “Everyone one this team has come together. We’ve meshed together well. We all have the same mindset.”

Tags: Greensburg C.C.