Senior right-hander Declan Musil has always had a strong pitching repertoire, but the results weren’t always there earlier in his career for St. Laurence.
Musil confirmed that immaturity and an inability to keep his cool on the mound hurt him in the past. He felt he started to find the answer last fall, but not on the baseball field. On the golf course.
“People might not believe me, but I think golf helped me,” said Musil, who played the sport for the Vikings. “When I was on the course, I didn’t think about much. I just went out and played. One night I sat down and I said, ‘Why can’t I do that in baseball? Why can’t I just go out there and throw the ball?’
“It’s a game I love. There’s nothing to get mad about. People are going to get hits, they’re going to score runs, you’re going to lose games. It’s all a part of the game. That kind of really calmed my mentality down.”
The new, relaxed Musil is thriving. He reached a high point Tuesday, tossing a no-hitter as the host Vikings rolled to a 10-0 Catholic League Blue win in five innings over St. Rita in Burbank.
Illinois Wesleyan commit Evan Les went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs for St. Laurence (17-1, 3-0), while Ben Geary had a two-run single, Minnesota recruit Jameson Martin produced an RBI double and Diego Lugo added an RBI single and scored two runs.
Southwestern Illinois recruit Jackson Stanek drew two walks for St. Rita (11-7, 1-2).
Musil struck out five, walked two and hit a batter. The Black Hawk commit finished off the no-hitter with a strikeout.
“His ability and talent has always been there,” St. Laurence coach Pete Lotus said of Musil. “It’s kind of just been focusing and throwing strikes. When he’s in the zone enough, he’s tough to hit.
“He’s been very good all year, and it’s great to see that growth and see him step up as a senior.”
Musil worked out of the bullpen and made a couple starts last season for the Vikings, but now he’s earned a prominent role in the rotation. He improved to 4-0 with a 2.83 ERA.
He said it’s all due to a new attitude.
“Last year, I got caught up in the fact that I had some ‘velo’ under my belt,” Musil said. “It was like, ‘I throw 86 (mph) now. I’m the greatest guy ever.’ No. I got humbled very quickly last year.
“But I worked very hard in the offseason, and that maturity level is helping. I’ve got stuff to beat people, but yeah, let’s do that first before I get ahead of myself.”
Senior catcher Matthew Carrano, a Parkland recruit, has seen some big changes in Musil’s approach.
“I think his attitude on the mound has gotten a lot better,” Carrano said. “He’s attacking hitters early in the count, pounding the zone. That’s all we ask him to do.”
Musil gives Carrano credit for helping him get there.
“It feels good to have him behind the plate,” Musil said. “He’s good with me. He knows how to communicate with me. He knows how to settle me down and get me back in the zone. He really helps me focus back in after I walk a guy or give up a hit.
“Mine and his connection is special this year.”
Musil got plenty of run support Tuesday as the Vikings took advantage of two errors and scored five times in the first inning.
The offense kept rolling from there. And so did Musil.
“The confidence gets bigger and bigger every day,” Musil said. “The wins make me feel invincible. But I know I’m not. I know guys are going to beat me some days.
“But right now, my mindset is that no one’s going to beat me.”
