Peters Township student to play baseball in Disney
Nolan DiLucia is going to Disney for the holidays.
While that fact is not necessarily surprising, the Peters Township baseball standout is traveling on business as well as for pleasure. The McMurray Elementary School student will play for the 10U national team during a GameDay USA event being held Dec. 27 through Jan. 1 in Disney.
DiLucia, who is in the fourth grade, qualified for the GameDay USA tryout by winning a game MVP at a tournament held this summer in Indianapolis. He advanced to a qualifier in mid-August held in Sandusky, Ohio. This was one of seven tryouts across the east and midwest. More than 100 participated in the event.
The determining tryout consisted of three games. It also measured the player’s skills regarding arm strength, running speed and bat speed. Plus, there were skills competitions, including running and home run derby. DiLucia won the skills as well as Golden Arm competition for his age level.
DiLucia plays multiple positions (shortstop, third base, catcher and pitcher) for the RBI Redwings, coached by James Barton, and the Peters Township travel team, managed by Brad Hensler, who played in the New York Mets organization. As a 9U player, DiLucia competed on the Redwings’ 12U squad that consisted of older players in the sixth- and seventh-grade range. In addition to training with Barton (his hitting instructor), DiLucia works at St. Clair Fitness on speed, strength and agility.
The son of Michael and Jennifer DiLucia has two siblings, Alexis (17) and Jake (14), who also plays in the Redwings’ organization.