Curtis Cassise: Playing Hard

By Kristopher Sarikas |Staff Writer|

Curtis Cassise, senior baseball player at CSUSB, is a well-rounded athlete from Riverside.

He has been playing baseball for the past 17 years and enjoys the competitiveness of the game.

“I love the competition and what it brings,” said Cassise.

He plays as an infielder and has a current season total of 10 runs, six hits, and five runners brought in.

Upon graduation Cassise will have earned a degree in history and is planning to become a teacher and coach.

In his earlier years he attended La Sierra High School where he was a four-year letter winner.

After high school he went on to play at Riverside Community College and during his time there he played at second and third base as well as shortstop.

During his junior year Cassise led the NCAA in sacrifice bunts, with a total of 19 sacrifice hits in 38 games.
He started 36 of 38 games and earned a batting average of .216.

He showcased his natural talents in game one of the season against the Albany Panthers while playing at third base.

He made five appearances at the plate, made contact once, brought in two runners and scored two runs.

Furthermore, the Coyotes ended the game with a victory and almost shut out the Panthers with a final score of 9-1.

Cassise finished strong in the game and knew that in order to come out with a win like that; practice, practice, practice becomes the main key.

According to Cassise baseball requires dedication and hard work.

He works hard to improve his game, either in the batting cage or out on the diamond fielding.

Cassise added that “any team can beat another team any day.”

In other words it does not matter whether your playing the worst team or the best team, you have to be ready.