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Blue Devils Sports Highlights
Now a senior, D’Aquila has played a major role in the Blue Devils’ success in the past three years. In his freshman year, he was named NEC Rookie-of-the-Year after finishing second on the team with a .354 batting average and leading the team with 45 runs-batted-in. D’Aquila was also named to the Honorable Mention Louisville Slugger All-America Freshman team. As a sophomore, D’Aquila finished the season with an All-NEC First-Team award, and a .341 batting average. Ranked fifth on the team, he also completed his sophomore campaign with 72 hits and 47 RBI’s. Last year, D’Aquila was named the NEC Player-of-the-Year and was chosen for the NEC First-Team All-Conference. He led the Blue Devils and the NEC with a .425 batting average, set a new school record with 79 hits, and was third on the team with 38 RBI’s. D’Aquila has also received honors as an American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings All-American and was an All-New England selection. In the three seasons D’Aquila has been a member of the Central baseball team, the Blue Devils have posted three straight 30-win seasons (the first time in school history), two back-to-back Northeast Conference Championships (2002 and 2003) and two appearances in the NCAA Baseball Championships (2002 vs. Texas, Lamar; 2003 vs. Arizona State, UNLV). After starting the season hitting just .237 (9-38) in the first nine games, D’Aquila has turned things around and is currently fourth on the team in batting. He was named the NEC Player-of-the-Week for the week ending March 21, after posting a 7-14 (.500) week with a triple, a homer, six RBI’s, and an .857 slugging percentage. D’Aquila credits hard work in the off season as a key to the Blue Devils’ success. “Many of the teams in the south have the chance to get out on the field in January and February,” he said. “Up here we’re stuck in the bubble until March, and some times we’re shoveling snow off the field just to practice.” — Daniel Ruede |
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Lat Modified: Thursday May 29, 2008 |
Joining the Blue Devils baseball team in his freshman year, senior Tim
D’Aquila has had quite a decorated career at Central. When he joined the
Blue Devils, the team was coming off of a 17-21-1 season, and
second-year head coach Charlie Hickey was looking for a way to boost the
team into a winning strategy. “The people that coach has brought in have
played a large role in helping the team to grow,” said D’Aquila. “He has
a little bit different coaching style than any other coach. We practice
all the possible scenarios so we don’t have to rely on coach to tell us
when to hit or to bunt and when to run.”