Tireless drive to improve carries Greensburg Central Catholic baseball into state quarterfinals
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Wednesday, June 4, 2025 | 4:08 PM
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Ian Shipley celebrates after driving in a run with a triple against West Middlesex during the PIAA Class A first round.
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Anthony Grippo celebrates after driving in a run against West Middlesex during their PIAA Class A first round state playoff game on Monday, June 2, 2025, at Slippery Rock University.
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Ian Shipley scores as he slides into West Middlesex catcher Wyatt Hoffman during the eighth inning of their PIAA Class A first round state playoff game on Monday, June 2, 2025, at Slippery Rock University.
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Ian Shipley (14) greets Robert Smithnosky at the dugout after scoring against West Middlesex during their PIAA Class A first round state playoff game on Monday, June 2, 2025, at Slippery Rock University.
Practice ends and Greensburg Central Catholic baseball players break to greet the day ahead.
Maybe an afternoon by the pool awaits? A Sheetz run? Hanging out at a friend’s house?
No, it’s time to hit the cages.
What’s a little more baseball?
Training never seems to stop for the Centurions, who go their separate ways to stay sharp, not just in season, but year round.
GCC spent two hours Wednesday morning practicing on the turf at Latrobe’s Graham-Sobota Field before players filtered out to hit and train.
The Centurions (19-4) will take on Clarion (15-6) in Thursday’s PIAA Class A quarterfinals at Slippery Rock University, and they will be well-stocked with reps — lots of reps.
“They are all grinders,” GCC coach John Boyle said. “That’s the story of this team: hard work.”
Catcher Anthony Grippo can attest.
“That’s nothing new for us,” Grippo said. “A lot of players say they are going to start hitting more because they are in the state playoffs. We get swings in every day. It would bother me if I didn’t hit every day.”
GCC has a roster of players who did not grow up playing youth baseball on the same teams, but they share a common want to improve.
Grippo and Ian Shipley spend hours hitting at Industry Sports in Mt. Pleasant. Grippo estimates he hits 1,000 balls a week.
They recall a nine-hour day of hitting that was interrupted only by a break for Chipotle.
“The work ethic comes from everybody loving baseball,” Shipley said.
“Grip” and “Ship” aren’t alone.
Boyle said the team puts in the time at practice first, working on situational baseball and gameday prep, before branching off to voluntarily work on their own.
“Beau (Bossert) is going to lift, Jackson (McMullen) is going to (physical) therapy, Brody (Bothell) is going to hit, Tyler (Samide) is going to hit — they all work behind the scenes,” Boyle said. “A lot of our guys have hitting coaches, and our pitchers have pitching coaches. I have the keys to the Maserati. Just don’t drive it off the road.”
The coach said his team has made it this far because of its diligence and time spent in the batting cage.
Grippo, a Penn State commit, said the extra work is the reason GCC is two rounds into the state bracket.
“You don’t want to be 30 or 40 years old and be sitting on the couch … and wonder what you could have done better,” Grippo said. “You have to keep up. The sun is going to come up tomorrow. The moon is going to come up tomorrow night. It doesn’t stop for you.”
Shipley, who also is chasing a college baseball career, also doesn’t want regrets about his baseball career later in life.
“You have to work to get to the next level, and I don’t mean college or pros, whatever,” he said. “You want to get better for yourself. People are out there getting better while you’re sitting on the couch eating Doritos.”
The players don’t have to put in the additional time, but Boyle said they want to.
“They have character,” he said. “That’s the kind of kids we have.”
When GCC played at Jeannette, heavy rain forced a postponement. Boyle was trying to step over a large puddle when he hit his head on the bottom of a metal bleacher, causing a laceration on his scalp.
The bus went directly to AHN Hempfield where a bloodied Boyle got three staples. He told the bus driver to take the team back to GCC while his wife stayed with him.
“I look out, and every player came into the ER,” Boyle said. “They wanted to be there. When there is crisis, they are very cool.”
Boyle likes the makeup of his team, and his fondness goes beyond practice.
“This is the deepest team GCC has had since I’ve been coaching,” the sixth-year coach said. “And possibly the deepest since the Tommy Pellis, Liberatore brothers, Neal McDermott era.”
Another group that knew a thing or two about practice.
Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.
Tags: Greensburg C.C.
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