Michael Boswell ’10 sits in his office in the OVCS suite on the second floor of Cro. He is one of many alumni who have decided to join the staff at Connecticut College after graduating. After his long workday is done, four times a week, two hours at a time, Boswell gets to be a Conn student again. He’s a member of Connecticut College’s club baseball team.
Club baseball is one of the lesser-known athletic organizations on campus, but it is one with a deep and rich history that can be traced back to the school’s founding. The main reason why Connecticut College does not have a varsity baseball team is because the school does not allow varsity sports that traditionally exclude women. Thus, all interest for baseball on campus (aside from the Red Sox fanaticism, of course) is channeled into club baseball.
Says senior Nate Goldman: “The guys who do play, they played growing up, maybe even played in high school, and they really enjoy the sport.” This has changed from years past when a lot of the players were, according to Boswell, “looking to play baseball in between seasons of their varsity sports.” Interest in the team extends beyond the alumni community that lives on or relatively close to Conn’s campus. Boswell says, “A lot of alumni look forward to coming back and seeing how we’re doing.” Along with games against schools such as Fairfield and Yale, the alumni game is an annual staple of the spring season.
While the players seem satisfied with the team, the most common complaint seems to be that the team is ineligible to join a league that would allow for more regular game play due to the fact that it does not have a reliable field space. Says Alex Domeniconi, a team captain this year: “It was a goal of mine to enter the club baseball team into a league by my senior year, and unfortunately I haven’t been able to make that happen.” Making matters more difficult, a high turnover rate has resulted in a much smaller team this year than in years past. “So many players were from the Class of 2010; it was a big loss,” says Goldman, adding, “also, a lot of players are abroad now.” Still, Boswell, Goldman, and Domeniconi seem confident that the team will continue to thrive and grow when they are no longer a part of it. Boswell remarks on how easy it is to join the team: “My freshman year I noticed a student who lived in my hallway going off to practice with a glove. I went and grabbed my glove, and I have played ever since.” Domeniconi has a similar story; he found club baseball while he was walking by the chapel green one day during his freshman year.
Despite these present difficulties, the team seems bolstered by a positive attitude and good camaraderie. Domeniconi says, “I played baseball in high school, and I’m having more fun playing now than I ever did then.” It is clear that one of the greatest aspects of the club baseball team is that it is made up of people who know how to have fun. “There’s a lot of tomfoolery,” says Boswell, conceding that players feel comfortable joking around and making fun of each other. In discussing team dinners, he remarks with a smile, “Somebody cut into their Chicken Cordon Bleu the other day, and it just exploded all over him. It was just hysterical.” Sports teams at Conn are infamous for their family atmospheres, right down to post-practice team dinners in Harris, and club baseball seems to be no exception.
Ultimately, club baseball’s most glaring weakness seems to also be its greatest strength. For all its informality, it is an accepting and amicable environment for students who love to play baseball. Says Boswell, “Campus safety officers have come and hit; a professor once pitched in a game.” Domeniconi offers a challenge to those who shun the club on the grounds that it is not serious enough, saying, “I’m quite proud of our club’s inclusiveness and our interest in helping everyone to improve. To the baseball players out there who think our level of play is below them, I’d encourage you to come out. We’re doing things a little differently this year.” In the overwhelmingly competitive world of sports, it is refreshing to see a group of athletes take the field, not for screaming fans or the hope of hoisting a championship trophy, but simply for the love of the game.
Image From: http://www.campbellcountybaseball.com/
