Baseball Q&A: Casey Serna
Today GoDucks.com
has caught up with Casey Serna, a 6-foot-1 pitcher/shortstop from
Just weeks away
from graduation at St. Bonaventure High School, Casey has had a busy year
quarterbacking the football and baseball programs into the playoffs.
Most recently, St.
Bonaventure finished its baseball season at 26-5, as Casey recorded a 9-1
record on the mound with 76 strikeouts. At the plate, Casey hit .500 and
produced 30 RBI to go along with 16 doubles, three triples, five home runs and
15 walks. He set school records for career games played, RBI, singles and runs
scored.
On the gridiron, Casey
quarterbacked the St. Bonaventure football team to a 14-1 record, including a
trip to the CIF State Division III Championship Bowl game, where he scored two
touchdowns en route to a 35-21 victory. The Seraphs ended the year as the
seventh-ranked team in the state according to MaxPreps.com, while Casey
finished the year with 1,111 yards of total offense and 12 touchdowns.
Go
Ducks: Can you give us a quick recap of what your baseball season has been like this year at St. Bonaventure.
Casey Serna: My baseball season was probably team
wise, one of the best teams I’ve been able to play with. We broke the single-season
wins (26) record, and we were the first baseball team ever to go undefeated in
league.
Individually,
I broke quite a few records, but I don’t know all of them. I batted .500 on the
year, and that was the first time for a player from St. Bonaventure. I am very
fortunate to say that I was a part of the 2008 St. Bonaventure baseball team.
GD: What is it like splitting time
between pitching and playing shortstop?
CS: I love splitting time between
shortstop and pitching, because I can get a feel for the game much more by
doing both. I can relate to the pitchers on my team as well as the infielders. I
also feel more in control when I pitch. I love feeling that the team is on my
back and I am carrying them.
Shortstop
has its benefits and pitching has its benefits. There is nothing like striking
someone out looking, and there is nothing like turning a double play to end the
inning.
GD: Do you think you have an advantage because you
have an understanding of what it takes to pitch and be a position player.
CS: Yes I do. I can relate to my teammates
and have a much better understanding since I do both. I also can get a better
feel when I am batting as to what the pitcher might want to throw or what his tendencies
are.
GD: You and St. Bonaventure have had
a lot of success this year on the diamond, what do you attribute that success
to?
CS: I would like to say that our
success has been because of our team chemistry, but that would be a lie. I
think we did so well because we had a very athletic team that had a lot of
individual talent.
GD: You have set program records at St.
Bonaventure in career hits, games played and runs scored, what do those records
mean to you?
CS: These records at first did not mean
that much to me because my focus was getting a ring for the championship, but
now that I look at it, I am very thankful for the records that I broke and that
are now in my name. The people that held them before me were standouts, and I
feel honored that my name is next to theirs in the record books. It is what I
have left to keep a positive note on our season.
GD: You also play football at St.
Bonaventure, give us a recap of last season.
CS: Wow, this past year I fell in love
with football. I never used to be big on football, but once I decided that I
wanted to go out for quarterback and I realized that we had a good shot and
winning it all this year, I didn’t look back.
This
football season is the greatest memory I have in my life. Our team made such a
strong bond it was unbelievable. When I went into the huddle everyone looked at
me and believed we could do it. They knew that they could count on me, and I
knew I could count on them. It was the greatest time of my life.
GD: Both the quarterback and shortstop
are positions that involve a tremendous amount of leadership on the field, why
do you think you have gravitated toward playing those roles?
CS: After playing quarterback at St. Bonaventure
and going to the state championship, I knew I could lead any team. I love being
in the spot that everyone is counting on, and you are the one who can make a
difference in the game.
I also love
how I can trust my teammates to get the job done when I am not in the position
to change the game. These roles are what make sports so close to me. I love the
hype you get from them; the adrenalin you get from scoring a touchdown or
laying out for a ball and coming up clean to throw the guy out. Being a leader
is what I love to do.
GD: What are you most looking forward
to for next year at
