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Baseball Spotlight: John Bini

John Bini

Elementary Education Major

Class of 2020
Position: Pitcher

What has been your favorite baseball memory?
The trip every year in the spring to Florida. It’s a long bus ride, about 15 hours, so being able to hang out with the guys on the bus, watching movies, making jokes, and playing games. When we get down there we stay in a condo or a house. It’s a great experience to get away from school with the guys on the team.

What is unique about Grove City’s baseball team?
Our coach is unique, Coach Royer has been coaching for a long time, he coached both DI and DII. He knows a lot about baseball and to get someone with that knowledge with a Division III program is unique, and how much he wants to teach the human being not just the athlete, he focused on character, respect, and responsibility.

What should a perspective baseball player know?
It’s more important choosing the school over the sport. Choosing a solid school that’s not going to make you a better athletes but a better person overall is very important. Look into the school itself and not just the baseball team.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?
We had a coaching change freshman year, and he [Coach Royer] turned the whole program around. I thought it would be fun and not too serious and I’d be here to get a good education. We are a team that’s about getting better at the sport and putting the time in.

What has your baseball experience been like over the past four years and how did baseball affect your collegiate experience?
It is a time commitment, so with any sport you will have time you can dedicate to your friends, socially it has helped them a lot because you met different people, in your classes you’ll meet people from your same major. With baseball you have that commonality but you meet different people in different majors and with different perspectives. I’m better structured during baseball season, so I can keep my class schedule and my study schedule. It’s helped me be more responsible

What advice would you give to someone who is on the edge of playing baseball at GCC?

The most important thing for a prospective student is to not get stuck on the DIII tag that they are a joke. Come to the school, see how we play, talk to the coach. The team as a whole is really committed to baseball, everyone on the team loves baseball and loves to play, and the knowledge you get isn’t something to can get anywhere else.

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Football Spotlight: Kyle Beyer

Kyle Beyer

Class of 2018

Elementary Education/ PreK-4 Major

Position: Safety

What has been your favorite football memory?

Definitely the night game against St. Vincent. We went into the game with a long losing streak. It was a game we knew we could get, and we had a huge crowd. When we won the game, the crowd stormed the field and it was a huge moment.

What is unique about Grove City’s football team?

The coaching staff and camaraderie on the team from the top-down: from the president to athletic director to the coaches and teammates, we have the same vision of brick by brick and we want to make that vision a reality. Brick by brick is when coach DiDonato came with the vision of winning, he knew we can’t do it in one game, but by starting with one practice, one game, and one season at a time.

What should a perspective football player know?

When you come to Grove City, you are coming into a great institution with a great coaching staff that will be there for you along the way and they will help you out with whatever you need.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective student?

The time you have to put in. College football is different than high school football. It takes time you to put in work with film study and with lifting. The mentality stuff that go into it: the playbook is thicker, but its cooler to dive into the football and get into the game in depth and become a real student of the game.

What was your football experience like over the past four years and how did football affect your collegiate experience?

I’ve had a great experience with football over the past four years. It has affected my life because I’ve built lasting relationships with my teammates and coaches. Football teaches a lot of about life and the real world, because you have to face adversity and overcome circumstance, setting goals and reaching those goals every day.

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Football Spotlight: Deion Minor

Deion Minor

Class of 2018

Business Management Major

Position: Linebacker

 

What is your favorite Grove City football memory?

The Thiel game. I was able to finish my career by winning the Mercer County Cup, and after what we went through for the past few years, it was nice to end with such a high note.

What is unique about Grove City’s football team?

The life lessons that Coach DiDonato teaches everyday at practice. He always talks about four second phrases, focus on your vision and not your circumstance, be where your feet are.

What is something a perspective football player should know?

Be willing to learn and be ready to have your life change by Coach D who is a fantastic coach. He just taught me that not matter the circumstance, how to pursue it and learn from the good and the bad and take it as a life lesson.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?

Everybody is good and everybody is fast, everybody was the best at their high school so you have to be better everyday.

What has your football experience been like over the past four years and how did football affect your collegiate experience?

My best friends are football football players, these players will be the ones at my wedding. It has enhanced my GPA here by all the resources that Coach D and the academic resources office brings here.

What would you say to a prospective football player that is on the edge of playing at Grove City?

Definitely give it a try, football here at this school can change your life, opportunities like this wouldn’t be around without this organization. Work hard, train hard over the summer and be ready to come in in August and get the ball rolling.

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Football Spotlight: Randall LaBrie

Randall LaBrie

Class of 2020

Finance Major

Position: Quarterback

 

What has been your favorite football memory?

I got an opportunity to become the quarterback and help the team, which was an amazing opportunity to step up.

What is unique about Grove City’s football team?

I think that it’s a group of guys that really care about each other, at other schools many kids are about themselves. Here, there’s a family connection between the guys and I think that is very special.

What should a perspective football player know?

It [the program] is in a positive direction. The team has a bright future in front of them because of the culture and the way things are developed there. There is such a strong connection of family and the Grove City College community backs us up so well. You have all the support in the world, all the way down from the president of the college to the players on the team.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?

In high school, you were kinda “the guy” when you are on the team, when you come to college you are having to find your role on the team all over again. That’s the big thing.

What has your football experience been like over the past four years and how did football affect your collegiate experience?

I’d say a lot of ups and downs, Through coming in and not being a starter and not playing and then now I am playing and starting and winning games. I remember where I was and can see where I am going. Being on the team has helped me stay focused and the guys on the team help a lot with academics. If you are in a class, the older guys can help you out. We had study huddles that the freshman go to to get help.

What would you say to a player that is on the edge of playing football at Grove City?

Play 100%. No matter what your role is on the team, its a family, being on the team you’ll find that, and it’ll open up so many doors for a young freshman’s life. Just by being on the team and a part of something.

The coaching staff is some of the most important people in my life, Coach DiDonato is one of those most inspirational people I’ve ever met. The coaching staff does everything. Coach D doesn’t just coach football: he teaches life. It’s not just football, football, football; we learn a lot of life lessons, and there is stuff you can take away from what he teaches and preaches. It has shaped my life differently from meeting him and playing for him.

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Football Spotlight: Daniel Sedjo

Daniel Sedjo

Mechanical Engineering Major

Class of 2018

Position: Right Guard

What has been your favorite football memory?

The Geneva game. That was always a frustrating game to lose in the past. I tore my ACL during the game sophomore year. It was really satisfying to beat them this year. It was finding our identity as a team, especially as an offense. The beginning of this year last season, we didn’t really know who we were.

What is unique about Grove City’s football team?

I think we have a great leader with Coach DiDonato. We have great expectations and there’s a great vision he puts in front of us. He can articulate it and present it so well and that is something real special.

What should a perspective football player know?

The visual that Coach D has set for the team is a bold one. The goal is to become PAC champions and that will happen in the next couple years. It’s where the team is currently going under coach D and we got to see that growth this season.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?

I came here and wasn’t sure I would play football in college. When I came here, I watched a game I wasn’t too impressed. What surprised me was the camaraderie and the brotherhood on the team. The first couple years had some aspects that weren’t great but what surprised me was the camaraderie.

What was your football experience like over the past four years and how did football affect your collegiate experience?

In season it takes up a lot of time so it is a commitment. I think that it has affected me socially. The friends I have on the football team are friends I’ll have for the rest of my life. The experience of going the first three years of not winning and the adversity, and then finally breaking through this year. Coach D says focus on the visual and not your circumstance and it sounds cliché, but over the past year that’s become a real meaningful statement. It was tough with the time, but the upside to it was that with other engineers on the football and with the support they gave was encouraging, it makes you manage your time well. It helped me a lot with my time management.

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Men’s Swimming: Brett Gwynn

Brett Gwynn

Accounting Major

Class of 2018

Butterfly and Sprint Free

What has been your favorite swim team memory?

The Moraine Park picnic, where we all go and introduce ourselves to the freshmen and we have a good time in the water.  We do a watermelon game where we cover a watermelon in gelatin, we gather up in teams and see who can get the watermelon to their goalie. It’s a good team bonding exercise where we see who can get the watermelon to their person with a new group of swimmers and divers.

What is unique about Grove City’s swim team?

It’s a very close team, we are close knit like a family. If anyone has any issues or problems with homework or a personal life issue, we always have someone who is there to respond and help them with the issue. We also do meals together and study in STEM (the Science Technology Engineering Math building) together. We have weekly bible studies.

What should a perspective swimmer know?

One thing that I believe is that it’s not the times on the board you’re going to remember after we graduate, it’s going to be the times that we had as teammates with your friends. So, spending times with them is a lot of fun; they are a great family and a great team. It is times where we have movie nights or Moraine picnic are the the times you will remember, you may have a good race sometime and you’ll remember them, but the times spent with the team are the ones that will bring a smile to your face.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?

So, in my high school, we focused more on just getting yardage in on a fast interval. Our coach works on technique, it’s not quite about garbage yardage and time, it is about how well you can swim the stroke and how efficient.

What has your swimming experience been like over the past four years and how did swimming affect your collegiate experience?

I like to think that swimming has helped me to schedule my time a lot better, it takes up a chunk of time so you have to do you have to do your homework in the time slots it lets you have. It has definitely helped me to organize my time schedule better and I problem have better grades when I’m swimming than when I’m not, because its helping me to prioritize things like homework and studying.

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Women’s Golf: Ashley Winters and Molly Arendt

Ashley Winters 

Class of 2018

Biology Major

Molly Arendt

Class of 2019

Marketing Management Major

What has been your favorite golf team memory?

Ashley: We pranked one kid on the team, we went out to winter the night of PACs (Presidential Athletics Conference), we sang happy birthday to him and he didn’t know that we knew his real name was Nicholas. Surprise!

Molly: Last PAC’s we went to see the guys and all the girls just sat on the hill facing down watching the guys and hung out.

What is unique about GCC golf?

Molly: The girls team is really close, very fun and energetic!

Ash: It’s like a family thing, we get dinner together and we kinda are like each others sisters, we want each other to do well.

What should a perspective golfer know?

Molly: They should really meet with the team and have dinner with us. It’s a lot of fun, its probably the most fun sport on campus.

Ashley: You think it is going to be so much more intense, and its really not that bad, you don’t have a set practice and you get to go out when it works with your schedule, very flexible.

How was the program different from what you thought it would be coming in as a prospective athlete?

Molly: I didn’t know we had a golf team. I thought it was going to be more intense.

Ashley: I thought it was going to be super intense and competitive, yes it is competitive and but it is very laid back and a ton of fun.

What was your golfing experience like over the past years and how did golfing affect your collegiate experience?

Ashley: The people you wouldn’t have met many people on the team, and now they are my friends forever. You get a bonding experience with people you’d never have a relationship with.

Molly: If I wasn’t here I’d be studying all the time, it is stress relief.

What would you say to an athlete on the fence about golfing at Grove City?

Ashley: If you are on the fence at least meet us and try it. Give it one or two practices and it’s just a fun time.

Molly: It is basically like a free country club membership and that’s an experience I would never have.

 

 

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Living with “Random Roommates”

I came in to Grove City College not knowing anyone here. I am from a town in southern Maryland and the closest Grove City student to me was about 40 minutes away. It threw me out of my comfort zone and I was forced to meet new people. I had a lot of friends I made coming in that roomed with friends from high school and are continuing to room with people they knew for the next year. I am one of the few students that actually connected with a random roommate for my sophomore year. Here is that story of why and how that ended up (Spoiler: you may consider connecting with a random).

I was applying for Colonial Apartments (an on campus living option that is apartment style living). The process involved an application and then finding roommates. I was planning on applying with two or three other freshmen in my class (for our sophomore year). Then, a week later they decided to drop out. With my heart set on living in the apartments, I still turned in my application and decided to just go figure something out. I got involved in the roommate finder (an application that is available for incoming students to find a roommate). Through that the Student Life and Learning office had me on a list of students looking for a roommate for the next school year. A sophomore at the time went to the office looking for other students looking for roommates that were “alone” at the time and would be interested in coming together to have a better room draw number (I will explain this later) for getting an apartment. I received an e-mail from him and instantly replied. I got connected with him and another junior and we decided to go together for a triple in the apartments.

It came to room draw and we had a good number. Since we had a current junior at the time, seniority applied and we ended up getting to choose an apartment alongside most seniors. Luckily we got the apartment we wanted: a triple on the second floor. Here is a little bit about my roommates:

Roomie #1: His name is Noah and he is currently a junior Computer Science major. He is a piano prodigy and can decorate an apartment pretty well.

Roomie #2: He goes by Abram. He is currently a senior Physics major. He transferred in his junior year and was behind most (by two years) for making friends and meeting people. Operates a non-smart phone. (IDK how he does it).

Me: Sophomore Entrepreneurship major with a Design and Computer Science minors. The coolest out of all my roommate and the most humble.

For a “random roommate” situation we got along amazingly well. We were all slightly introverted, but were social. Our schedules were very different so we usually would not see each other until late at night after I would get out of practice and we would all be finding food around 10 p.m. We all were in the same Humanities class so we talked a lot about that and ended up becoming friends. A friend of Noah’s who would come by would say that we are hilarious and could have our own show because we have three distinctly different personalities: me, the dramatic crazy one, Noah, the reserved classical guy, and Abram, the guy who gets way too into online solitaire. We got along amazingly and it has been a highlight decision of my sophomore year.

It can be scary finding someone new to basically share your living space with, but here are the points I have gotten out of it. 1. No matter where you go in life, you will have to meet and learn to live or be around new people. Why not get practice now? 2. Getting out of your comfort zone can often lead to the greatest rewards. I had zero expectations out of this living situation and ended up loving it. 3. Do not go with what everyone else was doing; do what you want to do. A majority of my friends went into fraternities and housing groups. I wanted to stay independent. It is scary to do that when all your friends are not with you, but it ended up paying off for me.

 

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How Chapel Saved My Grades

Most schools do not have a chapel requirement. Grove City is one of the few that does. Every semester students are required to attend 16 chapels. Chapels are held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:25-9:50 a.m. with an optional worship time from 9-9:25 a.m. There are other chapel credit opportunities available such as Vespers which are Sunday nights and other lectures/worships/events can also give credits. It may seem like a hindrance in addition to the other classes but chapel has done great things for my experience at GCC.

First, chapel has saved my grades. I was the student that was not a morning person. I did everything I could to schedule my classes for later so I could sleep in. This past fall semester, I did not have a class until 1 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. What a horrendous idea. I would sleep maybe 10 hours that night and wake up at 11 to get dressed, eat and head to class by 1. What I struggled with most was that after class I always had diving practice. I would get so exhausted afterwards all I wanted to do was eat and then lay in bed and do nothing. Notice anything missing from my daily activities? Homework and studying! That is kinda important to do. Having chapel got me up and dressed to be there at 9:25. Instead of going there and heading back to sleep, I would head over to STEM (the Science Technology Engineering and Math building) and in those three hours until class I would get my homework done, have time to eat before class and have social time. Utilizing this schedule I did not have to pull any all-nighters to study for tests or get projects and essays done.

Secondly, it made me a more social morning person. Having the chapel set in my schedule made me plan around that. I would grab breakfast with my friends right before or after chapel. I would plan to sit next to them and worship with them that brought me deeper in the relationships I had with my friends. Afterwards, I went to study with them where I was able to have social time now and allowed me to get social time out of the way to study later after practice if I had to.

Third, it brought me closer to God. Since I was an athlete, Saturdays I was forced to get up early for meets. That made Sunday my only day to sleep in, which I definitely did. I needed my sleep-in day, but because I slept in I could not go to church. Chapel, as it is not a true replacement for church, was a way I could have worship time and spend time with God and with my Christian family.

Yes, you can do the math and find out that I did not need to go to every chapel, but as you will hear, many students actually go over their chapel limit because chapel is more than a requirement, it is something that students at Grove City College gain a lot from.

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Major Switching at Grove City College

It is said that on average a student will switch their major three times. I switched my major twice. It is a scary idea to think about: taking classes, then switching your major and those classes becoming pointless. Will I still graduate on time? Is the switching process so complicated? I have the answers to alleviate the stress.

A little bit about my switches. I had my first major switch before I came. I applied for Marketing and switched to Computer Science (a switch between the School of Arts to the School of Sciences). I decided first semester to add a high-tech entrepreneurship minor (we are getting complicated adding minors now). I decided halfway through that first semester to switch my major and my minor. I was then an entrepreneurship major with a computer science minor. To top it off, this spring I am adding a design minor to go along with it.

Here is the process was for major switch one (marketing to comp sci over the summer before coming in freshman year)

Steps:

  1. I sent an e-mail
  2. I received a reply that said I was switched and my schedule was automatically changed.

(Yes it was that simple. no crazy paperwork and no horrible scheduling change). As freshman you are mostly taking core and gen-ed classes so there is not that many major-related courses in your freshman year schedule.

For major shift 2: Computer Science major w/ high-tech entre. minor -> Entrepreneurship major with a computer science minor)

Steps:

  1. Print major switch form or grab one from Registrar office (available on front desk)
  2. Write in your info with major and minor switch
  3. Go to department chair office hours (posted under myGCC or on office doors) to get the form signed
  4. Turn it into the Registrar office

That is it. After this, I just had a meeting with my adviser where we mapped out how my courses will work over the next seven semesters and I was nowhere close to being behind. I still had room to add another minor if I wished. So, when the new design minor is coming out Spring 2018, it is getting added to my schedule before graduation.

Grove City College has really allowed me to explore my academic and career interests. It is understandable that you may not have that same plan for yourself after you have gotten a chance to see your major and take some coursework. From my experience, it has been a super simple process to change your academic plan and have your schedule be accommodating to such. Rarely will you need extra semesters and the process is extremely simple. There is a reason Grove City has such a great graduation and retention rate.