THE CENTURY MARK...Covington baseball coach Mitch Hirsch reached a milestone on Saturday with his 100th career win in the first game of a double-header with Russia.

He wouldn't let it show, but you could tell it was a special day for Mitch Hirsch on Saturday as his Buccaneers gave him his 100th career win with a 7-6 victory over Russia in the first game of a double-header.

After the Buccs swept the double-header with a 3-2 win in the second game, Hirsch minimized his coaching milestone by deflecting the attention from himself on to his team, who had rebounded from a poor showing a few days earlier.

"It's nice," he said. "But really, rebounding from the way we played Thursday (against Minster) was more important."

Maybe so, but the milestone had to be special to Hirsch because his team not only played well - his parents, wife and children were on hand (as they always are) to witness it. Plus, his close friend and former assistant Ruy Sotello was present in the press box to root on Hirsch and the Buccs.

And to top it off, Hirsch had three former players in the dugout - Brad Plank and Andy Johnson as assistants and Tyler Kanet to keep things loose and give support.

Still, Hirsch kept his feelings inside and took everything in stride - not making a big deal out of reaching the century mark in wins.

But it is a big deal in Covington because it's a reflection of how far the program has come and where the program is headed in the future.

Baseball in Covington was once a sport most kids did for something to do in the off-seasons of football and basketball. Now, it's a sport the kids work at in the off-season - along with football, basketball and even wrestling.

That can be attributed to a number of things Hirsch has implemented into his program - one being the weight room. He has worked closely with the basketball, football and wrestling programs to develop a lifting and conditioning program that works in conjunction with the other sports.

Another reason for the popularity of baseball is the fact that Hirsch and his high school coaching staff are visible at the youth and the junior high levels as well - all coaching either summer recreation or junior high baseball.

Plus, Hirsch holds a coaching clinic for other summer recreation coaches to get everyone on the same page as to what each age group should be taught and how to prepare the kids for the next level of baseball they will be playing.

So far the system has worked. Numbers are up in baseball at nearly every level - in players and wins.

101 and counting for Hirsch.