School: Council Rock North
Baseball
Favorite athlete: Albert Pujols
Favorite team: St. Louis Cardinals
Favorite memory competing in sports: Playing at Citizens Bank Park during the Carpenter Cup playoffs
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: In my first year of Pop Warner football, I was playing fullback, and while running towards the end zone, I slowed down because I thought I had already crossed the goal line. I ended up getting tackled at the five-yard line.
Music on iPod: Little bit of everything. Lots of Linkin Park and System of a Down
Future plans: Go to college, considering career in either medicine or law
Words to live by: ‘Run hard when it’s hard to run.’
One goal before turning 30: Finish grad school and start a family
One thing people don’t know about me: I wake up around 4 a.m. most mornings to do my homework.
By Alex Frazier
He’s “that” kid.
That player a coach can’t do without.
That student every teacher wants in his class.
That unselfish person who thinks of others first.
That kid you’d like your son to be.
Council Rock North’s Mike Tentilucci embodies the best in today’s youth.
“He’s just one of those kids that does for everybody, just for the greater good of doing it,” said Council Rock North baseball coach Matt Schram. “What a great role model. He’s not caught up in the hype. He just does what he’s supposed to do.”
Tentilucci has been the starting centerfielder for the Indians for the past two years. At 5 feet, 6 inches and 140 pounds, he looks more like an infielder than an outfielder.
But his looks are deceiving.
As leadoff hitter, Tentilucci is almost guaranteed to get on base one way or another. His on-base percentage is above .400, and he has stolen five bases to date.
“He’ll put a bunt down; he’ll do whatever it takes for the team,” said Schram. “He’ll draw a walk, get hit by a pitch. He’ll do anything he needs to.”
He is even tied for the team lead in home runs with two despite being one of the smaller kids on the team.
“He’s sneaky strong,” said Schram.
Batting leadoff may seem like a lot of pressure, but Tentilucci loves it.
“You definitely have to take a different approach at the plate than you would if you were hitting second, but you get to see a lot of pitches, work a lot of deep counts and make sure everybody on the team gets to see what the pitcher’s throwing,” he said. “It’s been fun.”
Baseball was just natural for Tentilucci, who always seemed to be tossing a wiffle ball or playing ball with his family or friends at the beach at a very young age.
“I always loved it,” he said. “I wanted to keep hitting and going out there and throwing and playing.”
He was also involved in rec-league basketball and played Pop Warner football through ninth grade, but they didn’t hold his interest like baseball.
He started playing travel baseball for Newton at the age of eight.
One of his fondest and best baseball experiences came in 2005 when his team qualified for the Little League World Series in Williamsport.
Though the team went 1-2, the won-lost record paled in comparison to the magnitude of the event.
“We were caught up in the moment,” said Tentilucci. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Being able to play against teams from all over the U.S. and meet kids from all around the world was amazing.”
Tentilucci’s team shared a bathroom with the team from Guam.
“It was crazy to know we were that close to kids that we would have otherwise never met,” he said.
Eight of those Newtown players have remained united on the Rock North squad.
“It’s been great to grow up with those guys that have stayed in the same area,” he said.
Tentilucci has been the starting centerfielder for the Indians for the past two years. Schram said he is not a prototypical centerfielder; he’s more like a second baseman (which he has played in youth baseball).
“He’s probably one of the fastest guys on the field,” said Schram. “He has probably one of the best arms on the field. He’s all over the place. He’s a phenomenal outfielder; he’s one of the best outfielders I’ve seen out there. He defies all the odds.”
But Tentilucci is more than just a field player.
“He’s involved in every positive activity on the baseball field, whether it’s scoring a run, hitting a home run, getting an RBI, getting on base, stealing a base, whatever it might be. He’s always starting something out there. He’s so smart out there; it’s like having a coach play for you.”
In fact, coaching is something that Tentilucci enjoys. During the winter he volunteered to help Schram with his camps and clinics, including the Athletes Helping Athletes program.
“It’s really inspiring to see everybody interacting and helping out,” he said. “It’s fun to help teach them and be around them and get them interested in the game.”
“He’s great with kids,” said Schram. “If he’s not a teacher, he’s going to be one. If he’s not looking to become one, he’s a built in teacher because he’s so patient and he’s so positive. Kids just gravitate to him. You can tell he’s a guy that’s there to help you out. He’s going to hold your hand, put his arm around you. He’s just great with that.”
Tentilucci plans on playing baseball next year at Haverford College.
The Haverford coaches started observing him the summer after his junior year at college showcases and recruiting camps.
“He had seen me around, maybe at a couple of indoor events the previous winter,” said Tentilucci. “It seemed like every place I went to he was there, so we stayed in touch.”
Tentilucci visited the campus last fall and liked what he saw.
“It seemed like a great fit, athletically and academically,” he said. “I’d be able to get a chance to play early and a chance to possibly play for four years, but also to get a great education.”
He also liked the small campus.
“Forty percent of students that attend Haverford are athletes,” he said.
Tentilucci is well suited for Haverford academically. At the end of his junior year he was ranked 62 of 550 in his class. He has been a class officer for five years, vice-president from eighth grade through 10th and president his junior and senior years.
Tentilucci is taking advanced placement German, calculus and chemistry and honors English and philosophy.
He is a member of both the National Honor Society and the Science Honor Society.
One thing he has really enjoyed as a member of the Science Honor Society is visiting elementary schools and performing experiments for the students.
“We demonstrate them in front of the kids,” he said. “We give them a brief explanation of how it works. It’s a really good thing to do. It sparks interest from kids at a very young age.”
Extracurricularly, he sings bass in the school choir. He was also selected as one of 16 to sing in the new a capella group.
“That’s been a lot of fun,” he said. “Both of those things I would love to keep doing as I go through my next four years.”
Tentilucci has not yet decided on a major. Haverford doesn’t require a commitment until junior year.
“I’ve been interested in mostly math and sciences, possibly bio-chemistry,” he said. “I’m hoping to take some courses in politics and economics or government and see if they interest me, and hopefully make a decision in the next couple of years.”
His decisions have also made him “that” kid.
