By Jack Butler, 12/23/22, 2:15PM EST
Each year, the NABF Scholarship Committee examines many scholarship applications and chooses the recipients of the NABF Scholarships. Below is the $1,500 scholarship winner from the NABF:
Mason Decker received the NABF Scholarship this year. After his first year at Baldwin Wallace University, studying Sports Management and playing baseball, he competed in his first Western Reserve Collegiate League (WRCL) season for Coach Don Bliss of T3 Warhawks this summer.
Decker helped the team win the 2022 WRCL Regular Season League Championship and reach the semifinals of the NABF College World Series for a 21-9 overall record. He was among the leaders in three different batting categories for the Warhawks, which included first in home runs with three, second in RBIs with 17, and sixth with a .418 slugging %.
Decker enjoyed playing in the WRCL and competing in the NABF World Series this summer. The best parts of his experience playing collegiate summer ball were the “good teams you were playing against,” he said, and “going to the NABF World Series.”
Playing in the summer led to Decker changing his pre-game routine. After struggling to find his swing early in the season, he discovered a new method that resulted in success. “A week into the season, I got warmed up before the game at the Baldwin Wallace University field,” Decker said. “Swing started to get better throughout the year.”
Besides finding his swing, he learned something important to apply when he plays at Baldwin Wallace. “Relax, have fun with it, and stay loose,” Decker said. He believes this will help him get some playing time at Baldwin Wallace.
When he finishes at Baldwin Wallace as a student and infielder in 2025, Decker hopes to “end up having a gym and own my sports facilities,” he said.
Decker will be back for the Warhawks next summer once his season with the Yellow Jackets is complete.