Watkins Memorial graduate Depa starts summer school with Licking County Settlers
NEW ALBANY — Spending the summer at home was not a must for Dominic Depa, but it certainly is an added bonus.
Depa, a Watkins Memorial graduate, made his debut Tuesday with the Licking County Settlers. Depa had a hit for the Settlers, who dropped their season opener 15-11 to the visiting Richmond Jazz to begin their Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League schedule.
“It just worked out,” said Depa, who recently completed his sophomore season at Wilmington. “It’s a blessing how it all worked out, staying in my own room, staying with my family. It’s pretty cool.”
The left-handed hitting Depa hit into some tough luck in the bottom of the first inning for the Settlers, who are playing all of their home games at New Albany this summer. He bounced into a well-turned 3-6-1 double play with runners at the corners, but he smacked a single up the middle in second time up.
Depa has hit over .300 each of his first two seasons with the Quakers. He finished this spring at .303 with eight doubles and 18 RBIs in 32 games.
“It was good to get the first game out of the way, settle in a little more and just get rolling,” Depa said.
Depa played last summer for the Dayton ThunderBirds with several of his Wilmington teammates. The step up in competition in the GLSCL is something that motivates him.
Depa does not back down from a challenge. He stepped right into the college lineup and hit .353 as a freshman, totaling three home runs and 38 RBIs in 40 games despite playing third base for the first time, where he made a back-hand stop and long throw for an out Tuesday against the Jazz.
“I am looking forward to playing more competitive baseball. The guys in this league are pretty solid, so I will see how I match up against these guys,” Depa said. “Wherever they need me, I will play. There is something I can work on every day with whether it’s bat speed, lifting, fielding especially learning a new position. I just keep my head down.”
Licking County built a 6-2 lead after five innings behind left-hander Michael Lesiecki before the game flipped. Richmond scored seven runs off the Licking County bullpen in the sixth inning, and the Jazz, led by Jordan Daphney’s four hits and five RBIs, kept right on going.
Lesiecki is a returning player from last summer and appreciated the opportunity to take the ball on opening day. He and Heath graduate Marshall Flynn won a team-best five games apiece for Ohio Dominican during the spring, which finished as Great Midwest Athletic Conference tournament runner-up.
“I was just trying to set the tone early, get things going. It’s going to be a long season, so I wanted to start it off hot,” Lesiecki said. “I am going to be a senior (next) year. There are a lot of young guys on this team, so I want to show them the ropes and try to get them going.”
Lesiecki’s defense backed him up. Pickerington Central graduate Kielan LaMarr started a 6-3 double play at shortstop to end the second inning, and he fed second baseman Peter Jelenic to start a 6-4-3 double play to end the third.
“I got a couple bullpens in. It had been a couple weeks since my last start in the conference tournament,” Lesiecki said. “It felt good at the beginning. I was maybe a little fatigued there at the end.”
Center fielder Jack Whalen fueled the Settlers’ offense from the top spot, and LaMarr set the table from the bottom on multiple occasions for the Settlers, who finish the week with a four-game road trip before returning home to New Albany for a four-game homestand Monday through June 15.
Newark graduate Gavin Mangus made an appearance in relief, and more help from Licking County could be on the way for the Settlers. Lakewood graduate Christian Lothes just finished a run to the NCAA regional final with his Charlotte teammates, and Newark graduates Logan Swonger, a two-way standout at Tiffin, Ty Pangborn and Owen Poole are among those on the inactive list.
The Settlers are scheduled to pack 38 games into the calendar between now and July 24. The goal is to prepare them for a professional opportunity, a call Settlers alumnus Turner Hill recently received from the San Francisco Giants organization.
“It’s just sticking with it,” Lesiecki said. “We play a lot of games back-to-back, which is different than the college season, so you have to get into a routine and get a plan.”
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Dominic Depa starts summer school with Licking County Settlers
