TEN QUESTIONS WITH...

The team started the year 0-7, losing three games to Kentucky and Georgia Southern before losing a game to George Washington. After that you won nine of your next 12 games. What helped the team turn the corner after the rough start?
I think we were just improved from playing good teams like Kentucky, Georgia Southern and George Washington. With the higher level of competition, playing good teams makes you better. After playing those three teams, we just got a little more game experience. Playing outside had a lot to do with that.

The Bulls have a chance to set a record for wins in a season since reinstatement (16) with four games left and 15 wins already. How much do you think this team has grown since you got here four years ago?
I think the team’s attitude is the biggest thing that’s grown up. Everyone has their slumps and everything, but our attitude is much better. The team is more of a whole than it was. Everybody is on the same page. Our defense has come a long way. Our defense has gotten a lot more solid than it used to be. It’s really improved a lot.

In the past two years, the Bulls have participated in the Big 4 Tournament at Dunn Tire Park with St. Bonaventure, Niagara and Canisius. How nice is it to get the chance to play in a premier facility like Dunn Tire Park for an event that tries to promote local college baseball?
It’s a great field. It’s the nicest I’ve ever played on. The stadium surrounding it and the playing surface itself is amazing. As far as those three teams that we play against, it’s nice to have all the local guys to play against.

Two weeks ago, you started off on a nine-game hitting streak that helped raise your average from .208 to your current mark of .255. What has helped you start to streak as the season’s begun to wind down?
I was struggling for the first half and a little more, really bad. I did a lot of work with (assistant) coach (Neil) Turvey and (assistant) coach (Ron) Torgalski also. It was just my swing had mechanical problems. I simplified everything and now I’m seeing it really well and I feel really confident when I’m at the plate.

You are a tri-captain with Joe Mihalics and James Kingsley, possibly two of the best players in UB history. To know that they have a legitimate shot at playing at the next level, what do you think that does for the program as a whole?
I think it’s great. It gives everyone on the team the belief that you can actually get to the next level. It’s great for recruiting when you see two guys that can get drafted out of the program, local guys, too. It helps a lot. They’re two great guys, too. They work really hard and they deserve it. It’s great for the young guys on the team, too.

You are a little more familiar with a few of your teammates than others, as you went to the same high school as sophomores Adam Ruszkowski and Mike Connelly and freshman Mario Roefaro. Has it been nice knowing that you have a bunch of teammates who’ve come from the same background as you?
Yeah, we have a lot of good old memories we can talk about from high school and American Legion baseball. It’s nice having those guys here. When you’re struggling, you have someone to talk to. They know you because they’ve played with you for so long. They notice things that some other guys wouldn’t. The Union-Endicott guys mess with us because they won the state championships and we came in third or fourth.

In your last two years at Proctor High School, your high school team went 52-6 and won Section III twice. How hard was it to come to UB and know that you would be part of a program that was going to take its lumps while building for the future?
I don’t know if I’d say it was hard, but I knew it was going to be a challenge. In high school, our team was already a winning team and we just had to uphold that. Bringing a team up from the bottom is a lot more difficult than starting from the top, but we knew it was going to be rough at times. We’ve been handling it pretty well.

You chose UB over LeMoyne, Niagara and Manhattan of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. What made coach Bill Breene’s program the right fit for you coming out of Proctor four years ago?
I like the guys a lot. The conference had a major part in it. The Mid-American Conference is so tough. There’s so many good teams and so many good players. I just liked the coaching staff and everything about this place more than the other places. It’s a great place to play.

As much as any other athlete that came here four years ago, you’ve seen UB adjust to being a member of the Mid-American Conference. You’ve gotten to watch the men’s basketball team reach the brink of the NCAA Tournament. You’ve watched Jenny Koeppel win the MAC cross country title and Jennefer Brankovsky earn MAC Swimmer of the Year honors among so many other things. How exciting has it been to be a part of UB’s athletic family as all of these remarkable things have happened?
It just makes you believe more and more that we’re going to get it done because of all the examples of the people who have turned the corner and made their teams winners. It gives you more belief that since all these great teams and athletes have been able to get it done that we should be able to, too.

What has been your favorite moment as a student-athlete at the University at Buffalo?
Just being able to go out and compete and play and win with my good friends. Being able to be out there with guys I really enjoy and play with them has been my favorite moment.

- “The 10 Questions With…” feature is compiled by Joe Guistina