Chops ties the knot!

Blue Devil all-time games played leader Kyle Adams, a.k.a Chops, tied the knot in Dunkirk this past weekend, marrying the former Amy Pencek. Chops also served as an assistant coach for the Devils for four years.

Chops is one of the most loyal people I know. He was also my first-ever recruit at Fredonia State. He set the tone and played the game the right way. He deserves a lot of credit for raising the standards for our program.

Both he and Amy are teachers in the Dunkirk School District. Our team has helped out Kyle the past two years with his after-school math program, and Kyle has worked our summer camp every year since he graduated.

Other FSU teammates there were:
Brother Tommy Adams (Best Man), Dave Ickowski and a bearded Bryan Recchia (wedding party), as well as Phil Gavin (retired rapper), Noah Huard, Mike Austin and Dr. Shane Morrison. Matt Baudo made it up the night before, but could not make the wedding.

Mario Muscarella and Jim Quinn, who both teach in Dunkirk, were there as well. They graduated a few years prior to Kyle's freshman year.

Of course, Mario brought up the infamous "Sellmeyer Hangup", Nick Fiorella getting cheered after getting hit in the head by a pitch, and the "This is why I play baseball" quote. Good times.

Bonge looking to go big time

Former FSU bench coach Chad Bongiovanni had a nice article in the local paper. He is becoming quite an accomplished umpire. He was selected to do the Section VI playoffs this year. Read more HERE.

I'd like to give a shout out to Doc, Mr. Bongiovanni, who has been to a lot of Chad's games.

The real Wolverine... The Ian Gallagher Story

Our final senior is Ian Gallagher. Ian was one of the best leaders I have ever coached. He also looked like Wolverine from the popular X-Men movies. I checked out to see what Wolverine's special powers were. Apparently, he had advance physical powers (opposite field home run), keen senses (great baserunner, a lot of diving catches) and advanced healing powers (Ian bounced back from leg, shoulder, arm, and lower body injuries, and several large scratches and bruises). Ian truly was our Wolverine this year.

He was also very versatile. He started his career as our JV second baseman. He played third and short before settling into the outfield. He batted at just about every spot in the order, and fit any role he was asked to do. He always had a gung-ho attitude on the field and at practice. The only time you'd see him down was after a loss.

Ian was the definition of the word gamer. A total team player, he was one of the Original 5. When I think of his time here, I'll remember a dirty uniform, and, unfortunately, jorts.

Ian finished his career strong with an excellent showing in the SUNYAC Tournament. He was 5 for 11 (.455) in three games, to go along with three walks (.571 OBP %). He came up big in the biggests games.

During the season, he batted .339 for the year and played in more games than any other player this past season.

It took a while for me to update the blog for our final senior profile. Next time he is in town, I'll owe him a Coke.

Ian's plans are to return to Pittsford and begin grad school this fall.