Zach Hare is an outdoorsman.
Hunting, fishing, kayaking. You name it, Hare is likely all about it.
As for good pal Christian Lucarelli, well, not so much.
“I’ve never gone hunting in my life,” he said. “I like golf and to just hang out with friends.”
The two might share different hobbies, but on the field the Riverside seniors are a lot alike. Both are hard-throwing right-handers for one of the WPIAL’s premier programs and form what is arguably the top duo of starting pitchers in the area and one of the best in the entire state.
Dan Oliastro has been coaching at Riverside for 57 seasons and has had quite a few standout pitchers over the years, but even “Coach O” doesn’t recall having a tandem quite like this. Lucarelli, a Duke recruit, has hit 97 mph on the radar gun this season, while Hare, a Slippery Rock recruit, has touched 93.
“Nothing like the velocity we’re seeing now,” Oliastro said. “When I started coaching, there were no JUGS guns. We’ve had some guys throw hard, but not like this. And both have been lights out.”
Throwing hard is one thing, but Lucarelli and Hare also understand how to pitch. And when they do, the results are typically excellent. The two are a combined 8-2 this season and are striking out an average of more than two batters an inning, fanning 130 in 62 frames overall. This 1a and 1b have played giant roles for a Riverside team that is 13-2 and won the Class 3A Section 1 title. They’ve helped the Panthers amass a record of 54-5 since their sophomore season.
“They’re both outstanding,” Oliastro said. “It’s not like we have a No. 1 guy. They understand that. They respect each other. And when they do bullpens, they challenge each other.”
The pair has helped the Panthers give up only 23 runs in 15 games, by far the fewest of any WPIAL team. Only twice has the team given up more than two runs in a game.
The story of Lucarelli and Hare is kind of like “The Tortoise and the Hare” in that Lucarelli burst onto the scene quickly as a freshman while Hare’s development was a little slower as he didn’t begin pitching heavily for Riverside until his junior season. Hare emerged as one of the WPIAL’s top pitchers last season when he went 9-1 with 86 strikeouts in 44 innings. This season, Hare is 5-1 with a 1.41 ERA and has struck out 72 compared to just seven walks in 34⅔ innings. Opponents are hitting just .119 against him.
Lucarelli said he loves watching Hare pitch and believes the two are the area’s top duo of starters.
“It’s good to have that confidence, but I would say so,” he said. “With the way Zach’s been playing, it’s unbelievable. He’s been going five-plus innings almost every start. He’s just been pounding strikes, racking up strikeouts. Low hits, keeping the walks down. He’s been doing a great job, and I think that’s definitely helped set the tone.”
Major League scouts have been flocking to Riverside games to check out Lucarelli, who could be selected in July’s MLB draft.
“For an 18-year-old to be on the mound and he’s got five guys standing behind the screen with radar guns, it puts a lot of pressure on him, but he’s handled it well,” Oliastro said.
Lucarelli most certainly has, as he has gone 3-1 with an 0.77 ERA. He’s struck out 58 and walked 22 in 27⅓ innings while limiting opponents to a .092 batting average.
Said Hare, “It’s good because I feel like on one team, if you’re that guy, that [No. 1] starter, you get complacent. We just push each other and that’s how you just keep on getting better.”
As the two primary starters, Hare and Lucarelli get the most work on the mound. But there’s another standout senior pitcher on the team, one who is used in a relief role. That would be lefty Hunter Garvin, another Slippery Rock recruit who’s 2-1 with two saves and a 1.29 ERA. Garvin throws a lot of strikes, evidenced by him striking out 29 and walking only two in 16⅓ innings.
“I think he’s huge,” Hare said. “Him being able to come in back-to-back days to pitch and close it out for us, he’s reliable. Every single time we know the same results are going to happen. And it’s huge for me and Christian because we come in, righties really over the top throwing harder, and then Hunter comes in submarine kind of from the left side. As a hitter, I’d never want to face that.”
“He’s really good. When he comes in, he has ice in his veins and throws nothing but strikes,” Oliastro added.
The senior trio of Lucarelli, Hare and Garvin have some impressive career numbers. The three are a combined 47-8 and have struck out 594 in 321 innings. Lucarelli is 19-4, Hare 16-1 and Garvin 12-3. Garvin also has seven saves.
All three have also been terrific at the plate for a Riverside team that is averaging nine runs per game. Garvin, an outfielder, is hitting a team-best .486 and has 16 RBIs. Hare is batting .423 with team highs of four home runs and 24 RBIs. Lucarelli is hitting .367 with 12 RBIs. When Hare and Lucarelli aren’t pitching, they play first base.
Riverside will be eyeing WPIAL and PIAA titles when the postseason gets underway next week. After becoming the first WPIAL team to win a PIAA title with a perfect record in 2023, the Panthers were upended by Avonworth in last year’s WPIAL Class 3A final before seeing their season end with a loss in the first round of the PIAA playoffs. The Panthers have won six WPIAL titles and their five PIAA titles are two more than any other WPIAL school.
“It would mean everything,” Hare said. “That’s all I can think about.”
Added Lucarelli, “That would be a dream to go off with a ring. This is such a strong group, especially with the seniors, we’ve been playing together for so long. There’s so many good connections. To end with a championship like that would mean the world to pretty much everybody.”
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.