Commitment To Fairfield Follows Velo Jump By Maiorano

BELLINGHAM, Ma. - A 20-pound weight game was followed by a jump in velocity for Ryan Maiorano. College interest then heated up with Fairfield making a strong connection with the Bellingham junior.

“It all started in the winter when I made a big velo jump,” reflected Maiorano, now an incoming senior at the high school located 50 minutes southwest of Boston. “I was 82-84 in the fall and went to 88-90 in the winter. My summer coach sent out a video to colleges and one of them was Fairfield. They wanted to see a full bullpen video of all my pitches and after that the pitching coach came and saw me at a high school game.

“We talked after that and I went on a visit a week later. It was then that they offered and that’s when I knew I wanted to go to Fairfield.”

Visits with Merrimack, Bucknell and Marist while also talking with UMass-Lowell, UConn and Rhode Island did not change the outlook the 17-year-old had about his college future.

“Fairfield really stood out,” noted Maiorano, who also had an offer from Merrimack the day after going to Fairfield. “I liked the relationship they wanted to create with me and how the program was one big family with how they all wanted to get better. They truly cared about my success and wanted me to get better.”

Fairfield saw a lot of promise in the 6-2 175-pound right-handed pitcher.

“They liked my projectability and also my ability to throw three pitches for strikes,” Maiorano said. “I can throw what I want when I want.”

The desire to play baseball at the next level had really picked up not long before colleges took notice in his ability on the mound.

“I really started to take it seriously my 15U summer,” Maiorano related. “That’s when I started to take a jump in my game and wanted to play for as long as I can. Late last summer and then in the winter coaches reached out to me instead of me trying to get a response.”

Maiorano credited his summer coach Joe Santos with the Northeast Longhorns in helping the cause in his recruiting efforts, which ended up in a commitment to the university located just less than 21/2 hours from his home in Bellingham.

“Getting in the weight room more and focusing on techniques instead of just general lifting helped me improve,’ Maiorano noted. “I gained 20 pounds from September to November/December and that’s when I saw a velocity jump.”

Maiorano believes he can make a big impact at the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference school.

“I have the competitiveness they like with my drive to win games,” Maiorano pointed out. “I’m excited to bring that to the program.”

Carrying a 3.7 GPA with plans to major in business, Maiorano admittedly was thrilled to make a college choice.

“It’s a huge relief to finally get that decision made,” Maiorano said. “I had great support from family, friends and my coaches and all the work and sacrifices from everybody really paid off.”

He looks ahead to his days at Fairfield with excitement and confidence.

“I’m looking forward to winning a conference championship and playing in the regionals,” Maiorano concluded. “I can’t wait to go there and win some games.”