As the fall weather begins to creep in, the Quincy University Hawks baseball team wrapped up their outdoor fall season with an exciting annual event known as the Hawk World Series. The series is intended to be friendly, but it never is. These players are so driven to win, you cannot put them in a competition and expect them not to compete.

The Hawk World Series is structured by holding a draft before the week begins. It is always set up as a three-game series, played on Monday, Wednesday, and a potential Friday showdown, if necessary.

“It’s a good way to finish the fall season, we only get so many days out here as a group—about 45 days—and it gives us a chance to draft teams and compete. It’s kind of the exclamation point, and hopefully, we see good baseball that puts everything together that we’ve worked on all fall,” Matt Schissel, head coach, said.

While the competitive nature was there during the series, the off days provided players with a chance to let loose and have a little fun. In an interesting twist, the Hawks participated in an out-of-position scrimmage where pitchers attempted to hit and field. While, position players moved around the field and played out of place as well.

“It’s been a lot of fun and a lot of laughs. Some guys just don’t know how to swing it,” Roman Harrison, junior pitcher, said.

While it was all fun and games during the off days… the atmosphere snapped right back into competition mode when it came down to game days. These players aren’t here to mess around, they want to come out and perform at their absolute best to prove themselves to their teammates and coaches.

“We’ve been working all fall, so for us to come and compete and show off our abilities to those around us is really great. You know, we come here day in and day out to get better, and then when we finally get to prove ourselves on the field against each other, it just makes us better. Iron sharpens iron,” Matt Mateo, junior outfielder, said.

The series ended up finishing in a sweep, one team goes into the winter victorious. As for the other guys, well they will probably have a foul taste in their mouths for a few weeks. However, this whole fall series is about teaching the freshman and transfer players what the importance of winning is for this program. Ending your fall season on three consecutive losses should fuel some kind of fire going into the off-season.

As the fall season wraps up, the Hawks will transition into their winter program, which consists of indoor practices and tough workouts. With the weather growing colder, outdoor play will take a back seat as the team prepares for the spring season.

Fans are eagerly waiting to see what the Hawks cook up this winter after a solid season last year. So good luck to the Hawks and we will see you out on the field in the Spring.