国标麻豆视频APP baseball players build bridges in Caribbean
Head baseball coach Drew Briese saw improvement in his student-athletes during the trip 鈥斅燼nd not just on the diamond.
From playing in a New York Yankees facility to community service at a children鈥檚 home, 国标麻豆视频APP鈥檚 baseball team had a whirlwind trip to the Dominican Republic to kick off its 2024 season.
The Colonels made the trip to the Caribbean during winter break 鈥 the first visit since 2020 for the team 鈥 sharing equipment and running a clinic for local youth, among other service activities.
鈥淭he purpose and reasoning behind the trip are far removed from baseball,鈥 head coach Drew Briese said. 鈥淭his is an opportunity for our players to grow, learn and mature 鈥 to break down barriers and have an experience where they鈥檒l get out of their comfort zone. And I鈥檒l say, these guys passed with flying colors.鈥
For Louisville native and Spanish major Will Kempf, the trip gave him the opportunity to utilize his major in a real-world setting.
鈥淭he first day, we played at a field that hardly had any fences, there were about 300 kids just standing around (the base lines),鈥 he said. 鈥淚t was a ton of fun, and that was our first chance to talk to the people there. But you don鈥檛 need to know Spanish to play catch, which pretty much happened every day.鈥
Each day consisted of baseball in the morning and some kind of service work in the afternoon. The first day was a visit to a local orphanage, which served as the perfect chance for student-athletes to get out of their comfort zone.
鈥淥ne of the greatest gifts you can have as a coach is seeing growth in your players,鈥 Briese said. 鈥淭hat could be personal growth, academic growth, skills as a player 鈥 but to see these guys lose their inhibitions and dive in, do a dance party at the orphanage, was unbelievable 鈥 I think it gives (our student-athletes) a lot of perspective about the world.鈥
Learning, leadership and service 鈥 three tenants of 国标麻豆视频APP鈥檚 motto 鈥 were on display throughout the trip, Kempf said.
鈥淚t was a full circle moment, especially for me as a senior,鈥 he said. 鈥淵ou hear about it all the time, it鈥檚 easy to think it鈥檚 just words. But we went abroad, we did new things, we helped 鈥 all of that came together in a natural way. I saw guys talking during team meetings who normally wouldn鈥檛, or getting choked up at something when they鈥檇 rather die than show an emotion somewhere on campus.
鈥淎nd one of the coolest things too, that emotion has carried on since we鈥檝e been back. There aren鈥檛 the same opportunities to get out of your comfort zone necessarily, but I can see the way teammates are interacting with each other, going about their day, that parts of the trip have stuck with them.鈥
Briese said he noticed a change in team chemistry after the trip four years ago 鈥 similar to what Kempf sees now. In 2020, the Colonels raced to a 13-3 start to the season, the best in school history, before the COVID pandemic cut the season short.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 do this for wins and losses, but we certainly feel the team grow closer,鈥 Briese said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 getting closer to teammates who might not be in your class or position group. The hope is, as a coaching staff, that we have long-lasting and transformational growth that will impact the team and these individuals.鈥
