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| Photo Credit: Vinny Messana |
Some players take some time to get acclimated to playing at the collegiate level. Between the top-tier talent, grueling season and more aggressive coaching styles, freshman can sometimes be overwhelmed. Most freshman aren’t like Stony Brook’s Andruw Gazzola, however.
The 6’0″ first baseman is one month into his college career and has already been named America East Rookie of the Week twice. He has compiled a .298 AVG (17-for-57) with six RBI, four walks and only six strikeouts through Stony Brook’s first 16 games.
He has filled in commendably for the recently-graduated Kevin Courtney, who was a mainstay in the lineup.
Players like Gazzola see that as an opportunity to excel, not an excuse to tread water. He was a four-time All-League player at Longwood high school. He was a three-time All-County selection and was named All-Long Island last year when he hit .420.
“There`s been some small mental adjustments I’ve had to make in the transition. The speed of the game is much faster than it was in high school, so I`ve had to get used to that,” he said.
He was thrown into the fire right away, as the Sea Wolves traveled down to Gainesville, Fla to take on nationally ranked Florida Gators.
“The road trips have been memorable,” he said. “ I think playing against Florida and facing their tough pitching staff has helped us offensively as well.”
Gazzola, who comes from an uber-talented family–his father played for St. Joseph’s, his sister plays softball at Delaware St. and his brother, Bobby, plays at Reinhardt University–stated that the team had bonded quickly. With 14 incoming freshman, “it was important that we worked hard to get our chemistry as high as possible.”
Stony Brook has gotten off to a mediocre start by their standards, but there is a ton of baseball to be played. With a deep lineup that features players like Gazzola, Bobby Honeyman, Cole Peragine and Johnny Caputo, the Sea Wolves will certainly make noise in the America East conference.
