On Friday, Feb. 21, 2014, Council Rock South seniors Greg Paprocki and Will Faccenda were recognized at a special breakfast/news conference for signing letters of intent to play baseball at the collegiate level. To view photos of the signing, please visit the Photo Gallery.
Cardinal Camera sponsors all SOL college signings on SuburbanOneSports.com. For additional information about purchasing a commemorative keepsake of the signing, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/forms/college-signings.
Greg Paprocki – La Salle University (Baseball)
Major: Accounting
Final list of colleges: La Salle, VCU, Monmouth, Marist
Reasons for choosing La Salle: “The campus, tradition and the baseball team.”
What was the progression that led you to play baseball at the collegiate level? “I have wanted to play college baseball since I was a little kid. The recruiting process started the summer before my junior year when I played for an AAU team called the Philly Bandits. With that team, it gave us the exposure to the college scouts.”
Coach Ted Kirner says: “The thing that sets Greg apart is his determination and drive to win. He’s a gamer. He’s a kid you want the ball in his hands when the game is on the line. He lives for big games and big moments, and he certainly proved any doubters wrong this season with the kind of season he had. He was just the most dominant pitcher in the SOL National.
“He’s pretty good at varying his pitches up, but he’s also very good at not wasting his pitches. He likes to challenge the hitters a lot. He understands the concept of keeping your pitch count low and challenging them. He had that movement on his slider where he was able to make certain guys dance. He didn’t like to pitch around guys as much as he loves to go right after them. He’s grown into a very, very smart ball player, and I’m extremely proud to say I coached him.”
About Greg:
Favorite food: Buffalo Wings
Favorite movie: Friday Night Lights & The Longest Yard
Favorite music: Country & Hip Hop
Will Faccenda – Mercer County Junior College (Baseball)
Major: Education
Final list of colleges: Mercer, Montclair State, Mansfield, Misericordia
Reasons for choosing Mercer: “Financially, it was the best fit, and I’ll be able to make an instant impact.”
What was the progression that led you to playing collegiate baseball? “Baseball has always been my favorite sport, and I love competing. It has always been a dream of mine to play baseball in college. The recruiting process started before my junior year when I started traveling around the East Coast playing baseball.”
Coach Ted Kirner says: “Will is going to Mercer County Community College, but don’t let that community college tag fool you. That’s a fantastic program – it’s a Division One junior college, and they get a lot of good names and big recruits. Will’s athleticism and the fact that he is so willing and able to play multiple positions really helped our team atmosphere. The one thing I love about coaching high school is that it’s team baseball. I think he played seven games in left field and seven games at shortstop. He doesn’t get the recognition of being one of the best players in the league because he wasn’t at one position the whole time. He led our team in stolen bases, and he has great reads on the ball. His baseball knowledge is through the roof, and he’s just an ultimate, ultimate competitor on the field. It’s night and day from the person he is to the player that he is. He’s kind of an animal when it comes to competition.
“We made a move to put him in left field to give one our underclassmen shortstop, and it just made our lineup better having them both in there. We had some injuries throughout, and he was bounced around. He mainly batted second in our lineup and just wreaked havoc on the bases. He found his way on way all the time, saw tons of pitches. I think Mercer is a great fit for him. Both of Will and Greg should be very proud of what they’ve accomplished.”
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