Did someone say hit? When it comes to baseballs, that's not an almost. He can definitely do that.

"It's almost like the ball makes a different sound coming off his bat," coach Tim Ginter said. "He really hits 'em hard."

The 5-11, 170-pound Conroy, although only a sophomore, is already having a large impact.

He began the season at the No. 6 spot in the order, has since advanced to cleanup, and yesterday went 3-for-3 with a walk, two triples, three RBI and a trio of runs scored (although courtesy runner Dustin Kology officially did the honors) as visiting Judge bested Cardinal O'Hara, 7-2, in a Catholic Red game.

Perhaps you're saying to yourself, "Not bad."

Well, next you'll be reading this: Conroy, a righthander, also worked the first five innings in his initial mound start, holding the Lions to one run on three hits (two of the infield variety) while recording six strikeouts.

He keeps this up, Judge's administration will assign people to carry him back and forth to school.

"That was fun," Conroy said. "I had a couple good hits and the pitching went OK, too."

In all sports through the years, Judge rarely has featured prominent sophomores.

"We had plans for the kid all winter," Ginter said. "In fact, if our season had gone a little longer last year, you would have seen him then. He's a talented kid. When you're not sure whether a kid is better at hitting or pitching, that's a good problem to have."

It also helps that Conroy, who finished this game at first base but is a natural shortstop, exhibits quite the low-key persona.

He comes off as a kid who barely realizes he's playing varsity ball, let alone emerging as a future (partially current) franchise.

"Well, I knew I would make the team," Conroy said. "And when coach put me sixth in the order for our first game, against Chestnut Hill Academy, that was a good feeling. I'm just trying to help our team.

"I've always been a pitcher, too, but hitting's what I like best. I don't see that ever changing."

When Conroy was asked how he fit in with his older teammates, he said, "I expected things to go OK, and then they did . . . Well, they did bust on me on a little." He smiled. "But now they're even nicer!"

Conroy opened the second with a walk and Kology later scored on a single to center by Eric Tropea that barely cleared leaping shortstop Sean Coogan's glove. He also led off the fourth, this time with a ringing triple to center, and Tom Carey collected the RBI on a groundout.

Then came the fifth. With the Lions already teetering, thanks to a pair of errors that yielded a run, Conroy deep-ended them with a bases-loaded blast to right that upped Judge's pad to 6-1. Kology scampered home two batters later on Carey's sacrifice fly.

"Those pitches were down and away, kinda," Conroy said of his triples. "I just went with them. I figured [lefty Joe Sessa] would start me with breaking stuff, then try to get with me fastballs from there. I tried to be ready."

Conroy's own pitching approach differed.

"I used fastballs to get ahead, then kept them guessing from there," he said.

Although a very strong wind blew pretty much straight in throughout, Conroy's rockets were unaffected.

"And when I warmed up," he said, "coach McGerry [Kevin, former minor leaguer who handles the pitchers] had me face the same way I would on the mound, so I'd be used to the effect of the wind. That helped me. He also has me working on a two-seamer. And I learned a changeup last year; still trying to get that right."

O'Hara's runs came in the fourth (Kevin Sack's sac fly) and seventh (Coogan's single). Dave Walkovic pitched the last two innings for Judge.

"This being Conroy's first start, we had him on a limit - four innings or 75 pitches," Ginter said. "But his pitch count was still low after four and he was really itching to go back out there for the fifth.

"He did a great job today. At both of his jobs."

Won't be the last time. *