In 2014, the North Hills Baseball Team made the playoffs for the first time in seven years. However, this year’s team has expectations above and beyond just making the playoffs; they want to win the WPIAL championship. Senior third baseman and 2014 All-Section Honoree, Vince Ruggeri, said, “We want to go deep in the playoffs; it is our year to make a run.”

Accomplishing that goal will certainly be a tough task; the team is in the WPIAL AAAA “section of death.” Every team in the section is a contender, as each team made the playoffs last season. On the difficulty of the section, senior catcher Tyler Pusateri said, “We know that we have tough competition, but everyone on the team is ready to compete and face the challenge.”

The newfound competitiveness and dedication within the team starts at the top with third year head coach Randy Miller. On the importance of Coach Miller, Pusateri said, “He has helped build a work ethic for everyone on the team. Everyone is now committed to the program.”

Senior leadership is at the forefront of the dedication to the program. This year’s graduating class has been with the coach since his start at North Hills, and the class has given Coach Miller commitment, along with a lot of talent. All seven returning starters from last year’s team are now seniors. The lineup is almost completely made up of seniors, with right field being the only spot up for grabs. Boyd Bestic, Andrew Bly, Jake Bruder, Brandon Wagner, Tyler Volz, Tyler Pusateri, and Vince Ruggeri create a potent lineup for the Indians.

But pitching is another story for this year’s team, after losing Senior Chad Meyer; juniors Andrew Toplak, Alek Tesla, and Michael Serpa will be counted on to become leaders on the mound.

There is a certain buzz around the baseball team coming into this season, and the team is ready to meet expectations. Tyler Pusateri said, “We are all looking forward to our hard work paying off, and everyone on the team is ready to win a championship.”