Crusader is persisting
through the pain

By Melissa Yerkov
Times Sports Editor

After three solid years of play with the Father Judge High School baseball team, Tim Ashenbrenner almost missed his final season because of a torn elbow ligament.
But he wasn’t giving up that easily.
"I worked hard for this," said Ashenbrenner, now a senior third baseman for the Crusaders. "We all worked hard for this. I think we deserve a shot, so I’m out here playing every day. I’m not going to give up my senior year."
Late last summer, Ashenbrenner went to the doctor with complaints of an ongoing pain in his elbow. The diagnosis was a torn ligament; he was instructed to undergo daily exercises to strengthen the biceps and triceps in his arm.
"The doctor said if I want to play third base, I’ll have to do my exercises," said Ashenbrenner, who will have to undergo surgery after the baseball season to fully repair the damaged ligament. "So that’s what I did, so I could play. Because one thing I knew was that I did not want to miss my senior year."
The injury did force Ashenbrenner to make a tough sacrifice — his role as one of the Crusaders’ top hurlers. After three seasons of solid pitching, Ashenbrenner was forced to give up the mound to lessen the strain on his elbow.
"I know we have good pitching, but it really hurt me," he said. "I would love to be on the mound. But now I’m concentrating on my role and third base and hitting the ball."
His determination helped the Crusaders score victories in their first two games in the Catholic League this year. Father Judge beat North Catholic in consecutive games — 17-7 on April 2, and 2-0 the next day.
"The first game when we played them, we hit the ball real well," said Ashenbrenner, who smacked three RBIs in Judge’s 17-7 victory. "The second time, we didn’t hit as well, but we hit when we had to and we got guys in. I think we played real well small ball and had a good game all around."
In the second game, Ashenbrenner had two walks and a single, scoring the Crusaders’ only two runs in the April 3 shutout.
"The kids played well," said coach Tim Ginter. "Our goal is always to make the playoffs, and these two wins will help us get closer to our goal. We want to take it one step at a time. These kids are focused and they’re talented."
Following their 2-0 series lead against North, the Crusaders suffered a tough 10-1 loss to Monsignor Bonner High School at home on Monday. Father Judge was scheduled to play Monsignor Bonner again on Wednesday, as the Times went to press.
"There’s obviously a lot of competition out there," said Ashenbrenner. "St. Joe’s Prep — returning champs — is in our division now. O’Hara is a good team, and Ryan was real good last year. But I think people underestimate us in this league."
The Catholic League divisions were realigned this season, based on school enrollments, in preparation for next year’s run at the state championships.
Archbishop Ryan, Father Judge and North Catholic will be in the Red Division, which features larger schools like Monsignor Bonner, La Salle, Cardinal O’Hara, Roman Catholic and St. Joseph’s Prep, while Cardinal Dougherty will compete in the Blue Division against smaller schools.
"Every game is going to be a battle now," said Ginter. "There’s a good balance, and hopefully that will keep us competitive."
For veterans like Ashenbrenner — as well as the other nine seniors on the Crusaders’ squad this season — the new divisions offer more competition and a new chance to claim the championship title.
"There’s a bunch of great teams in our league, but I have no doubt that we can compete with them with the players we got," said Ashenbrenner. "We have high expectations for ourselves."
Following the final season with his beloved Crusaders, Ashenbrenner will have to prepare for a new battle . . . to become healthy again.
"I’ll have the surgery right after the season or the end of the summer," he said. "I’m not really nervous. It’s pretty common surgery. The reinjury rate is really low, and if you rehab correctly, sometimes you can come back and actually throw harder than you did before.
"You basically have a whole new ligament there, as if you never pitched before," he explained. "So I’m excited. I hope to be back pitching as soon as possible."
The actual surgery is expected to take two hours, followed by seven days of medication and limited movement for his arm. After that, Ashenbrenner will undergo a 14-month physical rehabilitation.
By then, the high school senior — who currently has a 4.0 GPA in class —plans to be a full-time college man, hopefully attending either Chestnut Hill, Gwynedd Mercy, West Chester or Temple to study sports medicine.
"I certainly know enough about it already," he said with a chuckle. "I know I’ll miss the guys at Judge. I like Judge, but I’m excited to start a new phase of my life. I’m ready for that." ••
Sports editor Melissa Yerkov can be reached at 215-354-3035 or myerkov@phillynews.com