And we do mean noooobody.

Funny thing about this: To become a prominent high school baseball player, your school must offer the sport and all the way through the 2005-06 school year, Masterman was among the not included.

"All through my time in middle school, I knew we had a lot of baseball players in our high school, and that we probably would have been decent in the Public League," said Hunt, who entered Masterman as a fifth-grader, its entry point. "I was always surprised that we didn't have a team."

That's why they invented arm-twisting.

"I always used to joke around with Mr. [Dave] Lieber about letting us have a team," Hunt said, referring to the school's athletic director. "When he said we were going to start one, with maybe a couple of months to go in my 10th-grade year, I didn't believe him. Then, when I knew it was true, I was very happy."

The euphoria has remained.

A year ago, Masterman - admittedly, it was in D, the Pub's weakest division - became one of the first teams in city history, in any sport, to post a perfect record (11-0) in league play in its first season of competition.

The Blue Dragons now compete in C and the winning hasn't stopped, even though coach Alex Dejewski's squad is that division's only Class A member.

Their record is 9-0 with two regular-season games left and only Esperanza Academy Charter, which visits today at 33rd and Diamond, in Fairmount Park, will pose a threat; Thursday's road opponent is Engineering and Science. The playoffs for the small-enrollment classifications (A and AA) begin next week.

Much of the credit goes to the 6-1, 175-pound Hunt, a senior lefthander who plays first base or rightfield when he's not on the mound. (His brother, Tyler, a sophomore, is the starting second baseman.)

In a PL opener, Masterman gave Kensington what has turned out to be its only loss, 9-0, as Evan twirled a two-hitter and went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBI and three runs scored. Later, he struck out nine in a five-inning no-hitter vs. Samuel Fels; one walk prevented a perfecto.

When asked what duty he likes best, Hunt responded, "A year ago I would have said playing the field. I didn't have great confidence as a pitcher. But now, when we play a big game, I want to be on the mound."

Fitting. He's also up there on the academic hill, and will attend Penn on a Mayor's Scholarship.

Getting that phone call from Mayor Nutter, whose daughter attends Masterman, must have been very cool, right?

"Actually, I found out from my counselor," said Hunt, who has not yet decided on a major. "They don't make it into that big of a deal. It's pretty cool to get it, though. Not the whole thing, but it covers a significant amount of the tuition.

"I applied for early decision at Penn. I also applied to Fordham and Temple. But once you get word from Penn, that's it. Great school.

"We've always had an academics-first family. That was why I went to Masterman and why I stayed after eighth grade even though they didn't have baseball then. All along [he also played soccer and basketball], if I didn't do well in school, I wasn't going to play."

Has he experienced momentary academic slip-ups?

"I'm not trying to jinx myself, but not yet," Hunt cracked.

Hunt, who lives near 25th and Fairmount, competes in outside baseball for the Fairmount Braves in the Department of Recreation's 19-and-under league. Several of his Masterman teammates, including fellow senior Adam "All My Children" Chandler, are also on that squad.

"The Fairmount thing is pretty competitive," Hunt said. "Things are a little more relaxed at Masterman. It's nice having my brother on the team, and being around a bunch of guys I've been friends with since the fifth grade.

"We're having a great time and we hope to keep things going a little while longer." *