GLASSBORO, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — The Rowan University baseball team is rolling as it heads into the New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Division III Profs have won 10 games in a row and bring a 19-3 record into the NJAC Tournament, where they are the top seed.
There are a lot of reasons Rowan is enjoying so much success, but right up near the top of that list is the play of second baseman Alex Kokos.
A native of Wayne, New Jersey, Kokos is hitting .326 this season and was recently named Second-Team All-NJAC.
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A model of consistency, he has hit at least .300 every season he has spent in Glassboro with the Profs. For his career, he now has 217 hits, leaving him just 11 shy of the program record.
When it comes to having this success at the plate, Kokos says he tries to keep things as simple as possible.
“I really just try to go up there and hit the ball hard,” he said.
"This game of baseball, it’s tough mentally, so if you can go up there with as little thought as possible and just try to hit the ball hard, move your runners over, get on base and just try to win the game, it makes it a lot easier.”
Kokos is especially enjoying this season after the vast majority of the Profs' 2020 campaign was lost to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You really can’t explain it in words,” he said.
“Having the season taken from us last year, just the whole situation last year was crazy. I was a senior last year. I was lucky enough to have a family that supported me for coming back for a fifth year and just being out there with my best friends. You can’t really explain it. There’s really no words for it. It’s really amazing.”
The Profs are the team to beat in the conference tournament and Kokos talked about what they need to do to have success.
“Just having fun on the field,” he said.
“I’ve been on some teams in the past where some guys are pressing. If you’re not doing well, no one really has picked you up too much. This team this year is unbelievable. You can be having a bad game, our top guys not playing well, and the bottom of our lineup has just been so good for us, turning the lineup over. When the top of the lineup guys aren’t producing that day or maybe that week, there are always the guys in the dugout and in the bottom of the lineup just picking us up."
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Kokos said that the formula for winning in the tournament doesn't need to change much from its regular season plan.
"Just stay confident, one through nine in the lineup, and I think we’ll have no trouble being successful in the NJAC Tournament," said Kokos.
The Profs open NJAC Tournament play on Friday with a doubleheader against Stockton. The first game gets underway at noon in Glassboro.
The tournament winner earns an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament.