Senior Andrew Gerhart will be taking his swing to Mary Washington next year to play college baseball.

Senior Andrew Gerhart verbally committed to Mary Washington on Nov. 6, 2018 to play baseball. Like so many high school athletes, Gerhart began his baseball career playing Little League from ages four through 12. During his Little League years, he played both infield and outfield until the age of 10, when he found his passion for catching.

Gerhart was selected as an All-Star athlete every year from ages seven to 12. After Little League, Gerhart began his travel team career and continued playing travel baseball throughout his high school years. “In Little League, I was shaped to become a better player because I was never the best player on my team,” said Gerhart.

Gerhart also found success at the next level on his travel team, C5T Elite, when they won the Perfect Game Virginia Championship. “My best memory from Little League was when I was 11 and the youngest on the team…I played a little bit, but I knew I wouldn’t play that much, so I did my best to learn from the guys older than me, which later shaped me [as a player],” said Gerhart. “During my final year, I was one of the best in the league, and that’s when I started to become more involved in getting better at the game.”

When not playing behind the plate, Gerhart is still in the line-up due to his offense production, also playing third base. Senior Aris Canellos and junior Jack Campbell, both returning players this season, had some insight on Gerhart.

“He’s always got energy whether that’s on or off the field. You can always trust him; he will always be there for you, and he is just overall real,” said Canellos.

Junior shortstop Jack Campbell has played with Gerhart since Campbell was a freshman. “Andrew contributes to our team because he’s  a very hard working person. His work ethic is contagious and the rest of the team picks up on it. He has a tremendous baseball IQ and is always doing what benefits his team and not himself,” said Campbell. “He always finds a way to pick up everybody up when they’ve made an error or struck out, and helps them focus on what’s next and not in the past.”

Gerhart’s fondest memory from his high school career is last year’s playoff game against Tuscarora when he hit a hit a three run double to win the game. “I was hitting sixth in the batting order that game and we got bases loaded, and our next two players struck out,” said Gerhart. “Three players scored, and I was able to make it to second base, and we won the game.”