Matthew Howard '14 Recruiting Profile

My name is Matt Howard.  I am a 16 year old junior at Burncoat High School in Worcester, MA.  I have played competitive baseball since the age of 8 when I began Little League.  In my 4 years in LL I set a a city record for home runs; hitting 38 in four seasons in the major division.  When I was 11 I joined the Blackstone Valley Thunder AAU team where I played for 2 seasons, including playing at Dreams Park in Cooperstown.  My team finished 16th out of 103 and I competed in the King of Swat. I played for 2 seasons for the Worcester Heat Travel team when I was 13 and 14 playing for J.P. Ricciardi (ex-GM Toronto Blue Jays).  We played at the elite level, including the National Tournament in Orlando where we finished in the top 15 teams in the country.  I was the starting first baseman and # 2 starting pitcher, as well as clean-up hitter.  I have also be named as All-Team Offensive player at Triple Crown Sports in CT.  In my sophomore year of high school, I was selected to play varsity for our school team.  I was the only sophomore to make varstiy team, which was comprised of 11 seniors and 3 juniors.  Our team compiled a 21-2 record and averaged 11 runs per game.  I was the starting first baseman and #5 hitter, as well as the #3 starting pitcher.  I finished the season with a 5-0 record and a 0.90 ERA and .308 batting average.  In the summer of 2012, I was selected to play for Burncoat Senior Ruth League age 16-19 even though I was only 15.  I ended up starting pitcher in 4 games, winning 3 and no-decision on the other.  I hit four home runs and 10 doubles, 17 RBI compiling a .468 batting average in 20 games as the clean-up hitter.  I was also selected on both the 16 y/o allstar team, as well as the PNC Devlin 16-19 y/o allstar team (the only 15 y/o to be selected).  I was the starting pitcher in the Regional Finals against PNC Phillips.  I pitched 5 2/3, allowed 2 hits, 1 run and struck out 6.  I am currently training at a Frank Nash Systems, which includes strength, agility, plyometrics, cardio and sport-specific execercises.  I am alos organizing captain's practice for the upcoming spring high school baseball season.  I am a member of the National Honor Society and am taking honors and AP classes, as well as competing in robotics competitions.  My academics interests are to attend a prestigious engineering school since I have a strong aptitude in math and science.  I would also love to play college baseball as a pitcher and first baseman.  I have met or exceeded every expectation that has been put before me both academically and athletically and look forward to my last two years of high school in hopes of entering a top university.