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Duarte Stretching To Be Best

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By CLIFF GILL

Tribune correspondent

Published: July 13, 2008

SPRING HILL - High school baseball coaches constantly instruct their hitters to make every plate appearance count. Former Bishop McLaughlin player Marcel Duarte appears to have taken that advice.

He had a team-leading 29 hits in 79 at-bats for a.367 average. He also had 34 RBIs and 11 stolen bases while displaying solid defensive skills, making it easy to see why the center fielder earned all-state recognition for the second consecutive year.

"I love the challenge of going one-on-one with the pitcher," Duarte said. "At the plate, you have a responsibility to do your part for the good of the whole team and to be mentally tough enough to step up when your team is counting on you. You must stretch to improve."
Duarte is familiar with stretching.

During workouts before his junior season, he tore cartilage in his throwing shoulder. Following surgery, his rehabilitation included exercises with rubber therapy bands three times a week.

"At the rehab clinic, I was forced to stretch a little more each time," he said."Making progress motivated me to return to full strength."

Hurricanes coach Nick Rodriguez helped supervise the progress.

"Coach Rodriguez was always there for me," Duarte said. "In addition to warming up my arm, he spotted me in the weight room and constantly encouraged me to improve."

This season, the Hurricanes were improved, starting with a 15-1 record and receiving a state ranking. Rodriguez credited Duarte's leadership for much of the team's success.

"Marcel brought a mature, confident attitude every day," Rodriguez said."He would strive to be the best, and the younger players followed him. He led by example and motivated his teammates."
Duarte was also motivated in the classroom, posting a 3.9 grade-point average. He was also a member of the national honor society all four years while taking Advanced Placement classes in English, biology and calculus. This fall, he will attend Johns Hopkins University, where he plans to major in public health with hopes of to ultimately becoming an orthopedic surgeon.

"My goal is to work in a third-world country, providing free medical care to the underprivileged," he said."I want to start clinics to help people and improve their quality of life."

At Bishop McLaughlin, Duarte started a club for student-athletes to become positive role models. The club, Athletes for Christ, met monthly in the school cafeteria. The emphasis was on playing hard, playing fair and demonstrating good sportsmanship.

"I felt the school needed a club for Christian athletes to do the best they can both physically and morally," he said.
Duarte also volunteers on Sunday evenings as a youth minister at his church in Tampa. He leads discussions with high school students on relevant topics, such as alcohol and sex.

"We follow Biblical principles on making correct decisions," Duarte said. "We discuss learning from your mistakes and putting them behind you. In baseball, you can fail to get a hit seven of 10 times and you're considered an excellent hitter. Take time to practice, make right decisions and stretch to be your best."

Teachers, coaches: If you would like to nominate an outstanding student-athlete to be featured in an upcoming In The Community article, contact Cliff Gill at reportercliffgill@yahoo.com or (727) 860-4903.

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