BYFIELD, Ma. - After diligent research, Hunter Kingsbury found that Bryant had everything he was looking for in a college.

“It has very good baseball and very good academics,” the Governor’s Academy junior said. “I feel it will build me up best for my future.”

It has the 12th-rated 2024 shortstop in New England delighted about a future on the ballfield at the America East Conference university.

“I’m looking forward to going out and showcasing my talent with some of the best players in New England,” Kingsbury explained. “I’m excited to go there and compete. Nothing is given to you at college, so I’ll be trying to get into the starting lineup. That competition will be awesome. The push I’m going to get will help me, not only in baseball but outside of it as a person. It will test my resilience. I’m just excited to get on campus and be with the team.”

The educational part is another plus in the eyes of the 17-year-old, who has a 3.8 GPA in high school and plans to major in business at Bryant.

“Their level of academics will do so much for me,” Kingsbury said. “It will set me up for my future outside of baseball.”

The opportunity to be part of the baseball program at the university located less than two hours from home began in the middle of the summer when Bryant head coach Ryan Klosterman saw the 27th-ranked junior from Massachusetts playing in a tournament with his Expos travel team.

“I put together some good ABs and played well in the field,” Kingsbury reflected. “We talked after and he said we’d stay in touch. I stayed in contact with assistant coach (Eric) Pelletier and he came to another tournament and watched. They saw me expand my skill set and show improvement.

“Coach Klosterman called after Sept. 1 and showed interest,” Kingsbury continued. “He invited me to a showcase camp in October for all prospects that he was heavily interested in. I played pretty well there, and showed off what I could do. The coaching staff was awesome, each one of them. A week later they called and offered, but I needed time. It was a big decision.”

However, soon after the 51st-rated 2024 from New England realized what was best for him.

“Bryant is one of the top programs in New England,” Kingsbury pointed out. “Coach Klosterman played in the pros and I thought he’d be a great mentor for me. A few weeks later I toured campus and it felt like home. The environment checked all the boxes and that’s when I knew I wanted to commit to Bryant.”

It brought an end to a recruiting process that had a slow start according to Kingsbury.

“Last winter at an Expos showcase I didn’t put up great numbers so I knew I had to grind after I saw others committing,” Kingsbury admitted. “I stayed humble, got in the weight room, changed my playing style, increased my strength and tried to get faster and more explosive.

“By spring I had a good season with Governor’s Academy but I got hurt and lost some interest. After that I went to a PBR and my exit velo went from 90 to 96.3 and my infield velo increased so much. I think how PBR shows that progression and having that out there for schools to see was huge for my recruitment. All summer I played PBR events and they were taking video of me which helped an incredible amount.

“The Amherst coach recruited me off my twitter and posts PBR had of me,” Kingsbury added. “What PBR does is the best for your recruitment with the platform you can go to. They did so much for me and helped speed my recruiting process up getting exposed to coaches.”

Massachusetts-Amherst, Maine and Northeastern were other colleges that the 6-1 175-pounder considered before making the decision to commit with Bryant.

“It was the best fit for me,” Kingsbury said. “Coach Klosterman had the most faith in me and that’s big. He separated himself from others to the point I knew it was home for me.

“I think with coach Klosterman, Bryant is going to be on the map with baseball. I feel I’m at the right place for me and I’m ready to go with the Bulldogs.”

Bryant found Kingsbury a perfect match for the program located in Smithfield, R.I.

“Coach Klosterman loves saying your best days are ahead of you,” Kingsbury related. “He told me I have raw talent, but I’m not the best baseball player I can be. He said he likes my physical stature and my base running, which is one of my best attributes, and he sees the potential of me getting better with the glove. He loves my bat, that’s one of the first things that caught his eyes.

“I have a lot of good talent already, but with the progression they put their players through he can see me really helping them,” Kingsbury continued. “He recruited me as a middle infielder but with the speed I have he thinks I can help in center field if needed. He views me as a very good athlete which is something I pride myself in.”

Kingsbury gave out credit to a handful of people in helping make his journey to play college baseball a reality.

“I always wanted to get to the next level, it’s been a goal of mine for so long,” Kingsbury concluded. “I owe it all to my parents, they sacrificed so much to get me to the level I am now. Moving to the Expos was also a big help. The advice I was given from Rich Gilbride and Derek January with recruitment helped get me to this point.

“To finally reach the goal is surreal,” Kingsbury added. “Being a committed athlete is such an honor and knowing I’m committed to a school that is best for me makes it even better. It’s awesome.”