Nick Dazell (LH Bat, RH Pitcher) '18 Recruiting Profile

My select baseball career began in the summer of 2008 with a group of 12 other extremely talented eight year olds. I was privileged by playing with such good athletes at a very young age. On the other hand, I felt outshined by my teammates and lost confidence in my own athletic ability. I slipped into a slump, one that would span over several long, frustrating seasons. Eventually, our neighborhood team, however successful, needed to part ways. We joined one of the most prestigious programs in our area and stayed together until our 13u season. Several weeks after tryouts for the upcoming 2014 season, I learned that I had been cut from my summer team. I rushed to find other tryouts, completely unprepared. I soon was offered a spot on a 14 year old team that I knew very little about. As it turned out, my new team played on a much lower level than I had grown accustomed to. In no time, I was the star player of a losing team. I played on losing teams for my 14u and 15u seasons, but I hit better those years than I ever had in my life.

In retrospect, I can see that the most crucial adjustments I made at the plate were mental. Over the years, I have grown physically and tweaked my swing mechanically, yet the single modification that transformed me as a baseball player was confidence. Confidence has helped me rejuvenate my baseball career, and I am now batting cleanup for one of the best teams in our region.

They say baseball is a game of failure. My experiences with failure have shown me the power of confidence. This applies not only to baseball, but to academics and life as well. This lesson empowers me to be a star player in the classroom and will allow me to compete at the highest level on any baseball field in the country.