Dream Big Grants in Action: QHS Baseball
How One Grant Helped Quincy Senior High Baseball Grow, Compete—and Believe in What’s Possible
By: Katie Rodemich ’02
For the boys of Quincy Senior High School baseball, the 2025 season was about more than wins and losses—it was about growth, progress, and pride. Behind that transformation is a powerful reminder of what a community can make possible.
Thanks to an $8,330 grant from the Quincy Public Schools Foundation, Quincy Baseball didn’t just receive new equipment. It gained safety. Confidence. Opportunity. And the results—on and off the field—speak for themselves.
Awarded in fall 2024, the grant provided vital upgrades that the program simply couldn’t afford through its regular booster funding. With limited fundraising capacity, nearly every dollar raised typically goes toward basic, annual expenses. This grant allowed the program to go beyond survival—and into real growth.
“This grant was huge for our program,” said Head Coach Rick Lawson. “Our booster club is small relative to other programs, and nearly everything we raise each year goes right back into that year’s expenses. Luxuries like the pitching machine, game balls, and nets would not be possible without this grant.”
The funding allowed Quincy to make several key upgrades that transformed the way the team trains and competes. At the center of those improvements was a Hack Attack Pitching Machine, which gives players access to high-velocity fastballs and advanced pitch types like curveballs and sliders—replicating game-like conditions during practice.
In addition, the team installed clay batting mats to provide safer footing during indoor workouts, replacing the slippery surfaces that previously raised injury concerns. Protective nets and durable field screens were also added, improving both safety and efficiency during drills. And with 20 dozen high-quality game balls from On Deck Sports, both the high school and junior high teams now have the resources they need for consistent, competitive training throughout the season.
These tools turned worn-out early season practices—once held with frayed nets and slick gym floors—into focused, efficient training sessions.
“The nets and mats have allowed us to practice safely indoors during the early months without the fear of injury from slipping on the gym floor or using our old nets that were worn out and full of holes,” said Lawson.
Perhaps the most impactful upgrade was the Hack Attack Pitching Machine. The advanced system allowed players to face game-like velocity and movement in every session, helping them develop timing, confidence, and consistency.
“The pitching machine elevated our training to a whole new level,” Lawson explained. “It allows us to see greater velocity on a daily basis, which helps improve our players’ timing and barrel percentage. It also allows us to set it up to throw different pitch types—such as curveballs and sliders, which adds a whole new level to our training.”
The value of that tool couldn’t be overstated.
“It’s greatly improved our hitters’ timing against quality pitching and made our practices far more efficient overall.”
The investment also rippled through the entire baseball program—including Quincy’s junior high team.
“Our junior high program doesn’t have its own budget, so everything they get comes through the high school,” said Lawson. “All of the advantages we’ve seen—better equipment, safer training, more efficient practices—will benefit them as well.”
That means future Blue Devils are now developing with the same high standards as the varsity squad, setting the tone for a stronger, more unified program for years to come.
The 2025 season didn’t begin with a winning streak. Quincy dropped 10 of its first 12 games, facing tough competition and early adversity. But armed with better training, improved equipment, and belief in themselves, the team steadily turned things around.
By the end of May, the Blue Devils had battled their way to a strong finish, winning 12 of their final 18 games to close out the season with a 14–18 record. The offense found its rhythm—scoring 41 runs across a key four-game stretch—while the defense and pitching staff settled into consistent form.
Nate Konrad, the team’s home run leader, emerged as a middle-of-the-order force—crediting the pitching machine for sharpening his swing. Jacob Salisbury delivered big hits in critical games, including a bases-clearing triple in a blowout win over Rock Island Alleman. James Day turned in one of the season’s top performances with a 72-pitch complete-game shutout against Quincy Notre Dame. Meanwhile, Mason Dent came alive at the plate in rivalry matchups, and top-of-the-order contributors Kade Parkhill and Trace Routh sparked the team with speed, defense, and leadership.
Though Quincy’s postseason run ended in the IHSA Class 4A regional opener against Belleville West, the team walked away from the 2025 season stronger, sharper, and more united. Their growth, both individually and collectively, was the true victory.
This season became more than wins. It became a story of growth—of grit—and of a team showing up each day determined to improve, no matter the circumstances.
This season, a grant changed the way Quincy High School Baseball trains, plays, and believes in what’s possible, and that’s the heart of the story.
To everyone who’s stood behind this team—whether through a donation, a kind word, or cheering from the stands—thank you. This season has been a powerful reminder of what’s possible when a community believes in its students. That grant didn’t just provide equipment—it brought safety, confidence, and opportunity to a program ready to rise. It gave our athletes the tools to grow and the belief that they belong on any field, against any team.
This is what your support makes possible.
This is how a team becomes a family—and a community becomes their foundation.
This is Blue Devil Nation.
