Area’s Top Sophomore Players Give Back In Showcase At Dwyer High

More than 50 toys were collected for the Children’s Home in Tampa.

The holiday season is going to be a little brighter for some kids at an orphanage in Tampa thanks to the generosity of some of the area’s top sophomore baseball players, who came together Saturday at a showcase game at Dwyer High School.

Players who competed in the event were nominated by their coaches and had to have at least a 3.0 grade-point average. Each had to donate a new sporting goods item. About 50 players competed on two squads, north and south.

The sporting goods are going to The Children’s Home, which cares for kids ages 6 to 17. The children there have a gym and athletic facilities, but they lack equipment.

The event was organized by Student Athlete Community Service Network (SACSN), which was founded last year by Tristan McGinnis, a junior who plays for the Dwyer baseball team. He started the organization to help his peers fulfill their community service obligations by doing worthwhile projects, such as planting new trees and shrubbery. McGinnis, along with Dwyer assistant Marty Gonzalez and Dwyer manager Frank Torre, decided to host the showcase to help the players get their community service hours while at the same time doing something for a charity.

“I just wanted to help kids in need,” Tristan McGinnis said.

Participating in events such as the showcase and doing other community service projects keeps students busy doing good things with their time. Students who participate in SACSN also are looking to help their peers who don’t have family resources get involved with sports.

McGinnis’ father, Tom, helps run the organization.

“The student-athletes, it’s a tricky thing with the community service,” Tom McGinnis said. “A lot of them don’t know how to get involved. They have such busy schedules. They don’t know where to go. We’re trying to come up with group concepts.”

Gonzalez said there had been a lot of talk at Dwyer about doing an event like this that both gets students exposure and helps them to do something worthwhile for a charity.

“The idea to do this is something we’ve discussed and talked about for a while and it just kind of came to fruition now,” Gonzalez said. “The timing of it always seemed to not be right. Finally this year, we said let’s come up with a date, which is now, and it’s perfect because it’s right after the fall and everyone’s still in shape from the fall season. And also the fact that it’s between the holidays with the gifts for the kids, it kind of worked out perfectly.”

Dwyer manager Frank Torre hands out participation plaques to each player before the game.

Gonzalez said there’s a lot of showcases, especially in the summer, that allow players to put their athletic prowess on display, but there isn’t much that also takes into account their success in the classroom. In addition to that, Saturday’s showcase has helped to get SACSN exposure as well and is the first main event for the organization.

“With this, we can bring some awareness to the organization and do some good for the community, so it’s win-win,” Gonzalez said.

Torre said he is pleased to see the players coming together for a good cause.

“It’s exciting and I think it will be a great thing for the community as it gets bigger with all the donations we’re getting tonight,” Torre said. “We’ll be able to give those out to kids who need it and are less fortunate. I thought it was a unique idea, and I’m excited how its turned out so far.”

Torre said he’s hoping the event grows to become one colleges mark down on their calendars. He also hopes the players take away life lessons from the experience.

“There’s more to life than baseball,” Torre said. “I had a unique experience when I was younger of doing clinics with inner-city kids in Riviera Beach and down in Miami. That was a big impact for me. We have all this great stuff and the kids there are happy to get a used glove and they’re so excited. The idea of donating sports gear and be able to give it to those kids and have our kids participating and bring it themselves and know why they’re doing it and the bigger picture that it’s more than just baseball. There’s a bigger world out there. A lot of them want to go play in college and pro, and if they’re lucky, some of them will, but a majority of them will end up in the real world. It’s important to be a well-rounded person.”

Some of the players at the showcase said they were grateful for the chance to do something good for people less fortunate than them.

“I love distributing to charity and the event seemed pretty cool,” said Harley Sanicky of Palm Beach Gardens. “It feels good on my part.”

Robert Valdez of Jupiter said “it’s great to help out the community and play baseball. It’s what we love to do. I think it’s great to help out the kids less fortunate than us.”

Valdez’s teammate, Brock Minic, said “I can’t say I know what they feel because I don’t, but just from what I see and what you hear on the news, it feels good to be able to help out.”

The coaches who participated also were happy to be a part of the event.

“I thought it’d be a real thrill to come out here and coach some of the younger kids and for a good cause,” said Forest Hill manager Russ Milliken, one of the coaches of the South Team. “It’s a win-win situation for everyone. I was happy Marty asked me to come out and coach. It’s a great opportunity for kids to be seen in a high school setting with other high school players as opposed to travel league players. It’s also a chance to really give back to the community. I think kids at this age in this stage of life need to give and not necessarily always money. They come out and bring a present, so it’s something tangible.”

Dwyer manager Frank Torre presents the game MVP trophy to Triston McKenzie of Royal Palm Beach.

The game ended in a 3-3 tie because of rain. Triston McKenzie of Royal Palm Beach earned MVP honors after a strong pitching performance and hitting an RBI double.

Other standout players were Tyler Krull (Cardinal Newman), Ariel Diaz (Palm Beach Central), Austin Wilson (Palm Beach Gardens), Hunter Whitman (Dwyer).

NORTH ROSTER
Coaches: Frank Torre (Dwyer), Andy Mook (Jupiter), Mike Harper (South Fork). Players: Baylen Sparks (C) Benjamin School; Brock Minich (P/1B) Jupiter; Daniel Hein (RHP/OF) Suncoast; Carson Moore, Jensen Beach; Joey Barcia, South Fork; William Guay (RHP) Palm Beach Gardens; Thomas Szapucki (LHP) Dwyer; Logan Hollyman (RHP, 1B) Palm Beach Gardens; Zach Johns (1B/3B) Jupiter; Hunter Sanicky (SS) Palm Beach Gardens; Harley Sanicky (OF/P) Palm Beach Gardens; Ryan Nolan (P/3B) South Fork; Noah Meltzer (CF, 2B) Jupiter; Chase Coppersmith (P/3B) Dwyer; Robert Valdez (C) Jupiter; Hunter Whitman (LHP) Dwyer; Austin Wilson (P/OF) Palm Beach Gardens; Johnny Spring (P/3B) Palm Beach Gardens; Colin Wojtusik (P/1B) Dwyer; Connor Webb (OF) Dwyer; Jesse Cerri, South Fork; Dylan Mahwinney, South Fork.

SOUTH ROSTER
Coaches: Sean Comfort (Cardinal Newman), Russ Milliken (Forest Hill), Trent Pendergast (Seminole Ridge). Players: Robbie Hoyt (1B/3B) Cardinal Newman; Chris Busch (SS/2B) West Boca Raton; Ben Fagan (MIF) Santaluces; Kolten Palmer (LHP/OF) Wellington; Ariel Diaz (P/OF) Palm Beach Central; Jake Rathmanner (OF/P) West Boca Raton; Tyler Krull (RHP/OF) Cardinal Newman; Casey Carpinello (IF/OF) Boca Christian; Jacob Koos (IF/OF) Wellington; Chad Tworek (P/3B) Santaluces; Franco Comacho (C) Palm Beach Central; Triston McKenzie (RHP) Royal Palm Beach; David Carnicella (MIF) Seminole Ridge; Brandon Hernandez (C/SS) Royal Palm Beach; Spencer Diaz (3B/OF) Spanish River; Jesus Delgado (OF) Forest Hill; William Marion (LHP/OF) Spanish River; Erik Wiebke (P/1B) Wellington; Sean Malynn (C/OF) Royal Palm Beach; Blake Selogy (LHP/OF) Seminole Ridge; Juan Iglesias (C) Forest Hill.

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