The Hendricken baseball team just wrapped up its long journey to a fourth straight state championship last Thursday, but some of its players didn’t have long to rest up following the emotional run.

Just days after winning the title at McCoy Stadium, some Hawks were suiting up for Senerchia Post 74’s legion squad, starting a fresh season.

However, this summer’s team isn’t exactly a mirror image of the Hawks’ varsity squad.

It does have some key pieces from that team, namely in the pitching staff, but there’s certainly some youth throughout the lineup.

But that may not be a bad thing.

“I really like the makeup of our team and the balance that we have,” Senerchia head coach Chris Sheehan said. “We may not outslug teams, but I think we can manufacture runs. I’m excited about the youth that we have this summer because young guys can bring some excitement to the team.”

One player that will provide some stability will be junior shortstop John Willette, who was the Most Valuable Player of the title series last week.

Sheehan will look to the URI-bound middle infielder to serve as a leader both on and off the field this season.

“I’m glad to have him back,” Sheehan said of his All-State shortstop. “He solidifies our defense and he’ll hit in the three-hole for the most part. He’s big to have from a leadership standpoint and is making the young guys feel comfortable already. It’s nice to have him at the most important position.”

To the right of Willette, Jarrad Grossguth will see a bulk of the innings at third base. Grossguth, who recently concluded his sophomore year, helped lead the Hawks’ junior varsity team to a state championship this spring at shortstop. Grossguth will also see innings on the mound and is expected to hit somewhere in the middle of the lineup.  

On the right side of the infield, Andrew Ciacciarelli will man first base. Besides Willette, Ciacciarelli is the only other regular from this year’s Hendricken lineup that will lace up their cleats for Senerchia.

Junior Brian Cipolla will see a majority of the time at second base. Cipolla, who is a contact hitter, will bring some scrappiness to the lineup.

Freshman Nico Salvaggio will also see innings at second and on the mound. Salvaggio, who is the only freshman on the roster, has great potential, according to Sheehan.

Senerchia will be in good hands in centerfield, as former Hendricken captain Brady Chant will patrol that position. Chant just finished his freshman year at Suffolk University, where he plays for the Rams’ baseball team. He was second on the team this spring with a .283 average.

He will be accompanied by Brendan Conley and Dave Defusco at the corner outfield positions.

Defusco will provide some depth in Senerchia’s lineup. He transferred from Hendricken to Warwick Vets in the fall and lit it up for the ‘Canes this spring. He’ll find himself in Senerchia’s lineup either in the outfield or at designated hitter, and can also pitch if called upon. Defusco encountered a great deal of success last summer with Senerchia and Sheehan is happy to have him on his squad.

Billy Roberge is another outfielder that will certainly be in the mix, as he started in Senerchia’s second game of the season on Tuesday night.

Behind the dish, Colin McBride and Jordan Carvalho will compete for innings. McBride and Carvalho both served as backups to Gian Martellini for the Hawks this spring.

The biggest strength for Senerchia, however, will be its pitching staff.

Matt Kennedy and Anthony Cofone – two-thirds of Hendricken’s three-man rotation – will be mainstays at the front of Senerchia’s rotation this summer.

They’ll be accompanied by much of Hendricken’s varsity staff, which includes: Caleb Wurster, Marc Andrews, Kyle Barbato and Joe Maynard.

“Pitching is really the strength of our team, much like our high school team,” Sheehan said. “Pitching and defense is where we’ll shine.”

The staff has been effective already.

After two games, Senerchia has allowed just four runs – two runs in each game.

Wurster put forth a strong performance in Senerchia’s first game – a 2-1 loss to Upper Deck – Post 86/14.

Cofone then picked up the victory in a 4-2 win over East Bay/Riverside Post 10 on Tuesday night.

“The pitching has been good so far and I expect that to continue,” Sheehan said.

Sheehan will be assisted by Brad Van Fechtmann and Alex Vescera this season.

With two games in the books, Senerchia will now get into the thick of its schedule, during which it’ll play nine games in as many days.

Senerchia will play its third consecutive road game today at 5:30 p.m. at Renaud Field against Navigant Credit Union before returning home for its next two games – Friday at 5:30 p.m. against Navigant and Saturday at 10 a.m. against Hurd Auto Mall – Post 19.

It will take on Hurd again on Sunday at Manning Field in Scituate. First pitch for that game is set for 1 p.m.

Even though Senerchia has a relatively young team this time around, expectations haven’t been altered.

“I’m looking forward to seeing our young guys develop this summer, but we’ll definitely be competitive,” Sheehan said. “Hopefully we’ll be playing our best baseball heading into the playoffs.”