West Boca’s Parker Danciu, Ryan Owens Sign With Florida, Winthrop

West Boca’s Parker Danciu (left) and Ryan Owens sign their college letters of intent Wednesday

For West Boca’s Parker Danciu and Ryan Owens, there is no feeling in the world that can compare to the emotions they felt when they were a part of the team that won a state championship this past season.

But Wednesday came pretty close.

The pitching duo shared the spotlight once again on Wednesday afternoon when they signed their college letters of intent on National Early Signing Day. Owens signed with Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Danciu inked with the University of Florida in Gainesville.

“It’s a great weight off our shoulders,” said Danciu. “We’ve been friends and teammates since we were freshmen and we both knew we had the potential and the ability. But to finally be here is just an amazing feeling.”

Wednesday’s signings come as the exclamation points for what has already been an exciting year for the Bulls program, after they won the Class 5A state title with a 2-0 victory over Lakeland this past season – a game in which Danciu was on the mound for the shutout.

Ryan Owens smiles proudly as he officially signs his college letter of intent Wednesday

“Coming from this program [at West Boca] has made us well-trained for the next level,” said Danciu, whose other major accomplishment last season came when he threw a no-hitter to defeat Dwyer for the District 14-5A title.

It is the first state title for the baseball program, which began play when the school first opened in 2004.

“It’s exciting to see the hard work pay off, especially when it’s for such excellent student athletes as these two young men,” said West Boca coach Nick Ciano. “The younger guys look up to them and they want to be in that situation too someday. Now they see what the outcome can be if you work harder toward your goals.”

For Owens, signing with Winthrop was an easy decision to make after he visited the campus and met with the coaches.

”The school has a beautiful campus and a really nice ballpark,” said Owens. “The coaches have told me that I have a great chance to play right away so I’m going to work hard to do that.”

Hard work and team play are staples of what Owens brings to any team, as well as humility and the willingness to make personal sacrifices for the good of his team. With his teammates Michael Kelly (who was drafted by the San Diego Padres) and Danciu locked in as the team’s top two starters last season, Owens accepted the challenging role of a middle reliever to help solidify the team’s pitching depth and also gain valuable innings of work. In only 22 innings on the mound in 2011 he allowed a mere four earned runs while recording 35 strikeouts.

“Ryan understood innings were hard to come by last year, but he helped us immensely towards our ultimate goal and filled an important role on this team,” admitted Ciano. “Hard work will supplement anything, and both these guys are an example of that.”

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