North Vermilion’s Durke signs with Cajuns

North Vermilion pitcher Hayden Durke signed a baseball scholarship with the University of Louisiana at Lafayette on Early National Signing Day.
“It was a fun day, a good experience,” said Durke after signing the scholarship in front of his parents and his baseball teammates on Wednesday. “I wanted to go to UL because I love the culture, and they have a good baseball program. The program has good coaches, plus, it is close to home.”
Durke, a right-hander, stands 6-2 and weighs 210 pounds. He is considered one of the top 25 right-hand pitching prospects in the nation. He is a top-five baseball prospect in Louisiana.
The reason he is a top prospect is because of his fastball. Durke, who is related to NV graduate Todd Noel, can throw the heat. He has a 94-mile per hour fastball, and over the summer, his fastball was clocked at 97 during an all-star baseball game in Fenway Park in Boston.
He played in a New Balance Future Stars Series doubleheader at Fenway Park. He pitched two innings in the second game.
“That was one of the best memories I will ever have,” said Durke. “Pitching in the stadium makes you want to perform.”
In three years of pitching at NV, he has an overall record of 18-8 with 189 strikeouts.
He earned run average over the three years is 2.80. Last year he completed his junior year going 7-3.
While he can throw a fastball 94 miles per hour, the fastball is not his favorite pitch. He said his best pitch is a “12-6 curveball.” A 12-6 curveball is a pitch that starts in the 12 o’clock position and then drops to the 6 o’clock position when it gets to the plate.
He throws that pitch 84 miles per hour.
“That is my go-to pitch,” Durke said.
Heading into his senior year, Durke is healthy. Since eighth grade, that has not been the case. He has dealt with injuries to his wrist and a broken finger on his throwing hand in the last four years.
“My senior year, I am injury free,” he said.
Durke joins former NV baseball player Connor Dupuy on the Cajuns’ baseball roster.