Freshman Vankoski Hitting Pretty for Harvard Baseball

After Tuesday's 12-3 embarrassment by Boston College in the Beanpot, the Harvard baseball team can do little more than utter that timeless cry of baseball fans and players alike: "Wait' till next year!"

In Harvard's case, however, future prospects of success may be more than an empty battle cry.

Despite the team's disappointing record (6-16 overall, 4-8 Ivy League), the Crimson has seen a number of freshmen step up impressively into prominent roles.

The outfield has been a particular area of overhaul. Freshman Brian Ralph has stepped in admirably in center field after junior Marc Levy went down with an ankle injury early on, starting all 22 of the team's games.

Fellow freshman Aaron Kessler has also seen expanded time in left field as the season has progressed, earning a spot on the Ivy League Honor Roll for the previous week.

Of all Harvard's Whiz Kids, however, no player has had as big an impact as freshman right fielder Brett Vankoski.

Entering Tuesday's Beanpot opener, Vankoski was a prominent resident at the top of Harvard's stat sheet. He led the team in runs (11), total bases (38), triples (two), home runs (two), and slugging percentage (.543), and his .343 average ranked second on the team.

Despite the apparent ease with which the Wallingford, Pennsylvania native has burst on the scene, Vankoski has surprised himself with his lofty numbers.

"The first year is always a tough break-in year," he said. "I didn't come in expecting to start. If I did well I thought I'd get a few shots. I just got into a bit of a hot streak early on.

"I knew I could hit, but I've done better than I thought I would so far."

Midway through his rookie campaign, Vankoski has also been amazed with how well he and the other freshman have been received by the entire team.

"The seniors have been absolutely outstanding--you couldn't ask for anything more," he said. "The way they've treated us has been great, and they've never been unfriendly. I'll be sorry to see them go."

Senior catcher Bryan Brisette says that the team has been sensitive to the demands placed on its young players, and tried to make the transition as smooth as possible.

"They came in and a lot was expected of them," he said. "It can be a tough situation, adjusting from high school to Division I baseball. It took them a little while to get their feet wet, but they've made the adjustment.

"From day one, it's not like they were freshmen and deserved to be treated like freshmen. We're a team, and we treated them just like anyone else."

Vankoski also appreciates the opportunity that coach Leigh Hogan has extended to the newcomers.

"He's been playing us, and it's given us a great shot to contribute," Vankoski said. "We all get along great, and all of us seem to be doing the job. We just love playing."

Although it's now tough to imaging the Crimson line-up without Vankoski, the freshman phenom entered his senior year of high school expecting to attend Ivy arch-rival Princeton, and was also contacted by bigger name programs such as West Virginia, Wake Forest and Alabama.

Vankoski fell in love with Harvard on a recruiting trip last year, however, and his mind was made up from that point on.

"One they expressed interest, I knew there was no other place where I'd want to be," he said. "[The level of play] is not too far behind, and I liked the coaches and guys on the team."

Despite Harvard's poor showings in recent years, Vankoski was lured to the Ivy League both by the promise of playing time and the prospect of a rapid turnaround.

"Especially with the Ivy League, it seems that things can change from year to year," he said. "Look at Cornell--two years ago they won about 6 games, and now they came up here and beat us in both games [of a doubleheader]."

At this point, however, Vankoski is not at all satisfied with what the team has accomplished. Harvard is currently mired in third place in the Ivy League's Red Rolfe division, a distant five games behind front-running Yale.

"It's tough to be pleased so far," he said. "The team has been into it every time, but we've gotten beat in a lot of close games."

"We have a lot of good young players, though. We can get it together and win some games, and eventually an Ivy League title."