Sept. 28, 2011
RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif. - The University of San Diego baseball teamed up with The Miracle League of San Diego for the third consecutive year this past Saturday. The entire team volunteered and provided a Skills Clinic for 20 passionate players with physical and mental disabilities at the Engel Family Field in San Dieguito Park. The clinic offered participants instruction and the opportunity to rotate through different stations to practice hitting, pitching, fielding and running the bases.
Using baseball as a means to connect with The Miracle League our student athletes quickly discovered the impact and value of giving back to the community and lending a helping hand. Junior outfielder Austin Green, summarized the morning by saying, "I enjoyed watching the kids have the time of their lives playing the sport they love. I will never forget the enormous smiles, the high fives, and the genuine personalities that each and every kid possesses." Jon Hotta, a senior outfielder stated, "I know we all enjoyed watching them play and have a good time; it was a lot of fun. Just seeing the smiles that we put on their faces was the most memorable part of the day".
USD Athletics and our community service programs present our student athletes continuous opportunities to personally develop and participate in the sharing of gifts, skill, and friendship with the youth, families and community of San Diego. "Another awesome weekend at The Miracle League enabled my son to feel special, successful at playing baseball (his favorite sport), and give many high fives to an amazing group of young men. The 2 stations set up allowed for all players to strengthen their skills in batting and running the bases - Matteo had his first pickle and we had so many home run hitters!!. In-fielding (getting the USD baseball players out was a hit!!), pitching (balls, and strikes were practiced - even some curves), and out-fielding (pop fly practices were fun). I want to thank the USD baseball team for all coming out and supporting our players, teaching them valuable skills for them to be better baseball players, and incredible role models to emulate. There were tons of smiles, thousands of high fives, slides, home runs, and most of all, many, many happy faces. Thank you from a mom and player who really appreciate your time, commitment, and passion for baseball. Thank you as well to The Miracle League for hosting this event, where our players could feel spectacular"!!
The Miracle League of San Diego is a charitable organization that provides special needs children with mental or physical challenges the opportunity to fulfill their dreams of playing baseball. The custom-designed field is completely flat with a cushioned, rubberized surface to accommodate wheelchair-bound or visually impaired players and is Southern California's only field designed specifically to accommodate participants with special needs.
