“My baseball career leading up to high school went very well, the kids I played with in my hometown were very solid. We had a great group of young men who were very talented in many sports, but especially baseball, and I was one of the best pitchers on the team. When we got to high school the majority of them hit their growth spurt before me, so I kind of fell behind until my Sophomore/Junior Year. My velocity didn’t really take off until my senior year of high school. During my Senior year I got 1st Team All-League and 2nd Team All-State Honors.I only went on one college visit during high school, to Coffeyville Community College. On my visit I fell in love with the campus, facilities, and coaching staff and decided to commit there when they offered me. Since I was going to become a teacher and Emporia State is a great teaching school I decided to commit to Emporia State University; it was also a great fit because I was close to family. My college career didn’t start out the best, I didn’t throw as hard as some of the others, nor was I as strong as the majority of my teammates. My pitching coach actually had me switch to throwing sidearm, which caused my arm to hurt and I was terrible at it. However, I put in a bunch of time at practice, outside of practice, and in the weight room to get the hang of throwing sidearm and getting myself and my arm stronger. I wouldn’t be the man, teacher, and coach that I am today without my collegiate baseball playing experience. I learned a lot about coaching from the coaches I had, the intricacies of baseball, how to treat student-athletes, and so I use my time as a coach to pay back all that the many people in my life have. If I can help one of my students/athletes become a better player, student, or person than I will have succeeded. Hopefully I can be a positive role model like so many people were for me.”