The spring is an emotional time for seniors on WA Varsity Baseball. As the season comes to a close, many are faced with the reality that they will never play competitive baseball on a team again.

This, however, is not the case for WA pitcher and Worcester Polytechnic Institute Baseball commit Alex Mondro, as he will be one of the few athletes at WA competing in varsity athletics at the college level.

For Mondro, WPI offered him the perfect fit, both in school and on the baseball diamond. He expressed how both these factored into his decision to play for WPI over the other offers he had.

“They [WPI] have an excellent engineering program, and that’s really what I want to do […] I talked to the coach a lot and I met with the team and I think that’s what really helped sway my decision,” Mondro said. “I really felt like I fit on the team both athletically and with the school academically.”

To be able to play baseball at a competitive Division III school like WPI, hard work is a must, in and out of season. The hard work Mondro has put in to be able to play for WPI does not go unnoticed, as expressed by Varsity Baseball Coach Mike Parent.

“Alex is dedicated, committed and passionate in all that he does, including his dedication and commitment to baseball. His in-season and out of season commitment is the reason for his success.” Parent said.

Mondro has not been alone in his hard work, as Parent and his Dad both have helped him become the player he is today. Mondro is very grateful for all that they have and continue to do for him.

“He [Mondro’s dad] has spent countless hours with me poring over footage of [my] pitching, trying to correct my mechanics. […] My coach Mr. Parent has been super supportive of me throughout high school,” Mondro said.

Mondro also expressed thanks to his coach at North East Baseball, Scott Patterson, for not only helping him with his game, but also helping him to get in contact with WPI.

Moving from WA Baseball to playing in college will be a challenging transition, but Mondro is aware and prepared for the changes in the game lying ahead.

“The speed at which everything happens it ramps up the higher you go. Everyone can hit, everyone can throw hard and it’s a lot quicker,” Mondro said.

It may be hard at times, but according to Mondro, the most exciting part is the challenge of playing college baseball.

“I’ve been playing high school baseball for a few years so I am kind of used to that, so to be able to face new more challenging competition is intriguing,” Mondro said.

However, he will still be sad to leave his friends that make up WA baseball.

“They are a great group of guys, definitely gonna miss the community we have as a team. WA baseball has always been a close group of guys and I think that’s what I’ll be missing most,” Mondro said.

Mondro expressed that for WA athletes trying to play sports in college coming behind him, the most helpful thing one can do is to put themselves out there, even if they sometimes have a bad day. Mondro also expressed that hard work, even in the off-season is always needed.

Parent suggest to Monaro to keep doing the same things he has been going throughout high school in order to transition successfully to college.

“Be yourself. Continue to work hard and be the great teammate you have been at WA for the past four years,” Parent said.