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No matter what Slade Hunt lines up on the diamond he finds a way to make an impact. The Callaway junior is having his most impactful season yet in red and black as he takes on an even bigger role this season.

Where Hunt has seen his role expand the most is on the mound. He got some spot duty in his first two seasons, but the team lost two starters from last year’s team and now Hunt is a bonafide starter this season, a part of a strong 3-man rotation with Blake Harrington and Jaxon Duncan.

“It’s been nice to have a bigger role, but I don’t feel any more pressure,” he said. “I’ve been playing with these guys for years and I trust them behind me, I trust our pitching coach and just go to work.”

The trio of pitchers have been helped by the return of starting catcher Luke Taylor, who missed the back half of last season. Taylor, also a junior, has built up a strong rapport with Hunt during their time together.

“I’m glad to have him back, plus he’s swinging the bat really well this year too,” Hunt said, grinning. “It’s so good I have him back out there.”

Hunt has been playing on the diamond for Taylor and some of his other fellow juniors for almost his entire baseball career.

“We’ve been playing travel ball together practically our whole lives,” he said. “It’s awesome to go back and look at old pictures of us when we were younger and just think back on all those memories and just how far we’ve come.”

Hunt is not just a pitcher, he has been a starter in the infield since arriving at Callaway High. That was not always the case as Hunt grew up splitting his time between the mound and center field. It was a somewhat difficult transition into the infield at first, but now Hunt feels like he can play just about anywhere on the diamond.

“They actually switched me and Wes(ley) Williams, I used to play center field and he used to play shortstop and they switched us,” Hunt said. “It was tough at first because outside of pitching I had been playing outfield my whole life, but the coaches saw something and I had to do what was best for the team.”

Hunt still plays in the outfield for his travel ball team while regularly lining up at third base or shortstop when he is not on the mound for the Cavaliers.

That versatility on the diamond serves Hunt well now and possibly in the future. The junior is starting to ponder just how much further he can take baseball.

“If I get an offer that I like I would definitely be willing to take it,” Hunt said. “I’d like to continue playing, but it is all about getting the right opportunity.”

While Hunt’s pitching has come along this season, he feels like his offense has been lagging behind. In a moment of humility, he admits that his bat could be better going forward.

“I had a lot more extra-base hits last year and my bat has just been slow to start the season, that’s baseball,” Hunt said. “I think it will pick up.”

Hunt’s faith in his offensive abilities was rewarded on Thursday night. The junior got himself out of a slump with an extra-inning walk-off hit to give the Cavaliers a 6-5 win over Lamar County.

“Nights like this are special, even if it’s a bit cold,” Hunt said with a chuckle after his walk-off. “I wasn’t at my best today, but sometimes you just have to find a way.”

With over a year still left in red and black Hunt isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.