By: Joe Shouse, Sportswriter
HAVILAND – The baseball season got off to a rocky start for Wayne Trace senior Braden Zuber. It wasn’t suppose to be that way for the four-year varsity pitching ace. After struggling with injuries throughout his high school career that included three torn ACL’s, Zuber thought his senior year would be his best.
“I love playing sports and so I played both football and basketball but in the process I tore my ACL twice in my right knee and once in my left knee. It was tough and I had to go through a lot of rehab, but those days are behind me. So, I was looking forward to my senior year and being injury free,” he said.
Giving up football and basketball and concentrating on baseball, Zuber was excited to get the season started but it wasn’t easy.
“I struggled early in the season. Maybe I was putting too much pressure on myself but my coach, Ryne Jerome, helped me to refocus. He said to forget about the stats and just go out and have fun,” said Zuber. One particular stat that was on Braden’s mind was the career strikeout record for a Raider pitcher. Zuber knew he was close to setting a new record but he did as his coach suggested and on Tuesday, April 16, the “fun” turned into a record breaking performance.
Playing Green Meadows Conference opponent, the Edgerton Bulldogs, Zuber pitched his best game of the season and for that matter, the best game of his high school career. Zuber rifled 15 strikeouts, two better than his personal best and placing him at the top for career strikeouts at 176. The previous leader was Rich Miller who totaled 170 strikeouts in the mid 1980’s.
“I really didn’t know I was that close to the record. After the game Coach Jerome presented the game ball to me; for a quick moment I thought about how the pressure was now off and how I had the opportunity to be a starting pitcher as a freshman and now I am a senior, commented Zuber.
After the game and receiving the game ball the celebration was somewhat low key for Zuber and his team mates and family.
“Afterwards I went out to eat with some friends, other baseball players and some from the softball team. After spending time with friends I went home and just kind of replayed the game from memory with my mom and step dad and talked about past games – the highs and lows. It wasn’t soon that I started getting texts from classmates, friends, relatives and from my dad in Georgia, It was exciting to hear from so many,” Zuber said.
With his senior year quickly coming to a close, Zuber was quick to spread the credit for his pitching dominance.
“I owe so much to my coach. Coach Jerome has been my high school coach all four years. In fact, he started coaching when I was a freshman. He saw my potential early on and took me under his wing and helped develop me into a better pitcher,” Zuber commented.
When looking back on his four years wearing the Raider uniform, Zuber points to two other senior team mates who he refers to as “the best.” Playing together since the Payne Ball Association days, Zuber along with Korbin Slade and Grant Baumle have been through it all together.
“Korbin is our catcher and he has caught for me all four years. He’s a good catcher and has made me a better pitcher. I could never set the record without Korbin behind the plate. Like I said, he’s a good catcher but more importantly, he’s my best friend,” Zuber said.
For future plans Braden will attend Owens Community College near Toledo and will major in business management and will play baseball.
“I plan to go for two years and hopefully develop my baseball skills in order to transfer, work on my degree and continue to play ball,” he said.
In the mean time there is some unfinished business concerning the Raiders and the rest of the season.
“Our goal is to win the conference and right now we are 3-0 so we are hanging in there and hopefully will get the job done. We have not won the GMC since 1987. Also, we want to make a run in the tournament. Last year we made it to the district final and this year we want to have a deeper run,” said Zuber.
