Student-athlete profile, Drew Hedman, Pomona-Pitzer baseball

DREW HEDMAN

Pomona-Pitzer

Baseball

The lowdown: The junior first baseman is coming off a week in which he earned Division III national player of the week honors. In 25 games he is hitting .452 (42-for-93) with 47 RBI, 32 runs, nine doubles and 13 home runs with a slugging percentage of .968. He also has a fielding percentage of .991. Was a first-team All-SCIAC, All-West Region and All-American selection as a junior when he hit .389 with 14 home runs and 56 RBI in 43 games. Also carries a 3.61 GPA.

Age: 21

Hometown: Redding

High school: Shasta High School, 2005

Major: Politics, Philosophy, Economics (with concentration on economics).

Favorite athlete: Travis Hafner, J.T. Snow

Favorite team: San Francisco Giants

Role model: My parents because they are honest, hard-working and generous people.

Most memorable sports moment: Last year on the last day of the regular season when our baseball team qualified for the regional tournament.

Most embarrassing sports moment: I was so excited for my first game as a freshman that I didn’t pay attention to the lineup and I went to the wrong position, only to have the person who was playing that position tell me I was in the wrong spot.

Person most influential in your athletic success: My dad. He taught me to play hard, to work hard at practice and to push myself in the weight room. He taught me to play hard but play smart. Many days when I was younger were spent throwing the ball in the backyard or hitting at my school.

Best advice anyone has ever given you: Don’t ne satisfied. There is always room for improvment.

Pre-game ritual or superstition: I always give my batting gloves to my first base coach right when the game starts. Even after checking the lineup and knowing the answer, I ask our statistician where I am hitting in the order.

Can’t miss TV show: The Office

Celebrity you most want to meet: Michael Jordan

Last good book you read: White Fang (while I was studying abroad in Spain it was the only book in English in my room).

Favorite food: Steak

Favorite movie: Gladiator

Favorite vacation spot: Anywhere sunny, warm, with a beach nearby.

Other hobbies: Working out, listening to music, playing the piano.

What’s in your CD player/iPOD: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Citizen Cope, Jay-Z, Tom Petty.

What do you want to be doing in five years?: I want to play baseball as long as I can. After that I could see myself getting my MBA and working as a sports agent or in a front office of a baseball team.

- Compiled by Michelle Gardner