This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
05/27/2021 12:00 AMAll that Luke DiMauro wanted out of his senior year of high school was for the Haddam-Killingworth baseball team to have a season and succeed. Luke and Cougars have exceeded those expectations and then some as H-K recently completed its regular season with a record of 15-5 and is looking good as it approaches the playoffs.
A senior captain center fielder, Luke has been at the forefront of the Cougars’ attack this spring. Luke is sporting a .483 batting average with nine doubles, one triple, six walks, 18 RBI, and 14 stolen bases on the year.
Luke stayed optimistic that H-K would get to play ball in 2021 after the 2020 season was canceled. Luke and the Cougars have stayed safe throughout a campaign that’s seen H-K continue its winning tradition on the diamond.
“Seeing the fall and winter sports play, besides football, gave me a sense of reassurance that we would get a season. I was worried that there could have been a spike in cases, but thankfully, that never happened,” Luke says. “Also, the contact tracing in school had me worried because, if I got contact-traced, I’d be out for 14 days, which is a large part of our season. But we’ve made it through the season with no troubles so far, and we hope to keep it going.”
Luke worked out rigorously during the offseason to ensure that he was ready for the start of the campaign. Luke spent numerous hours working on strength and conditioning with his teammates off the field. He also took his fair share of reps in the batting cage.
“During the offseason, I spent every day hitting, throwing, lifting, and improving my speed and agility skills. During the season, my teammates and I take countless swings after the end of practice with our assistant coach Ryan Fraser, who has always pushed us to get us better,” says Luke. “I also make sure I get into the gym, but not as intense during the season.”
Luke’s favorite moment of the season came on May 3, when H-K claimed a 2-0 win over Old Saybrook that marked Head Coach Mark Brookes’s 700th victory with the program. Luke produced a pivotal hit that helped Brookes reach his milestone.
“My favorite moment was definitely hitting a two-run double versus Old Saybrook to score the only runs of our 2-0 victory,” Luke says. “That was Coach Brookes’s 700th career win, and that might be one of the biggest hits of my career.”
Coach Brookes considers Luke to be one of H-K’s top players both at the plate and in the field. Brookes knows that the Cougars are in good hands with Luke sitting in the captain’s chair.
“Luke is one of our captains, as well as our starting center fielder. For the season, he is leading our team in hitting and has not made an error all year on defense,” says Brookes. “Luke is a critical part of our offense and defense.”
Luke and Coach Brookes have forged a great relationship over the years. Luke sees Brookes as someone who he can go to for advice in both baseball and everyday life. At the end of the day, Luke loves that he gets to compete alongside a bunch of like-minded athletes at Haddam-Killingworth.
“I feel like we have a strong connection and trust between us. I trust all of his decisions, and he trusts me to get the job done,” Luke says of Brookes. “My favorite aspect of baseball is competing with guys who all have the same goal as me and, therefore, bettering ourselves as athletes, teammates, and people.”
On top of his athletic success, Luke is also a high honors student at H-K. During the 2019-’20 school year, Luke earned an award for excellence in the subject of history and also received maxima cum laude recognition for his performance on the National Latin Exam.
As for the current spring season, Luke feels ecstatic about what the Cougars have achieved so far and feels optimistic about what they can accomplish the rest of the way.
“The season as a whole is going very well. We’ve had a couple tough losses that I think could have gone our way, however, a [15-5] record is nothing to be ashamed about,” Luke says. “We just have to continue playing well into the Shoreline and State tournaments. That’s when it really counts.”