Nick Durso is heading to Florida for spring break, but not for relaxation.
Photo Courtesy: William Paterson Athletics
Durso woke up early Friday morning along with the rest of the William Paterson baseball team to report to the locker room at 2:30 a.m. before catching a 6 a.m. flight out of Newark. William Paterson is traveling to Davenport, a city about an hour south of Orlando, to play seven games in seven days in the Central Florida Invitational.
The Pioneers will face Division III teams from Iowa, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and upstate New York.
The games will not affect the team directly in the standings, but the Florida trip provides William Paterson an opportunity to build confidence and momentum heading into NJAC play. When the Pioneers return from Florida, they will begin conference play with a doubleheader against the 2025 NJAC champions, Rutgers-Camden, on March 28.
NJAC play continues throughout April and into May, and the conference champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, which begins May 14. If the Pioneers do not win the NJAC, they can still earn a tournament berth if they are ranked high enough based on winning percentage and strength of schedule.
Because of the early flight, the team arrives in Florida early and has time to relax before the games begin. The team stays in three or four houses in a small gated community, with each house sleeping about 10 players.
Many of the houses include backyard pools, large living rooms and garages converted into game rooms with pingpong and pool tables.
Having several players with similar majors makes it easier for the team to stay on top of schoolwork while in Florida. The team often gathers at the largest house to study and spend time together.
“We are all in the same boat,” Durso said. “We will all sit in the living room together and do our homework for an hour, and then we have time to mess around and have fun. Coach gives us our meal money at the beginning of the trip and lets us do our own thing. As a team, we go to the largest house and hang out there for the day. Last season someone brought their Wii down to play.”
After each game, players have free time. If family members are visiting, players can go out to eat and spend time with them, as long as they inform coach Mike Lauterhahn where they are going.
One of the team’s annual traditions during the trip is reconnecting with former William Paterson standout Rick Capozzi. After one of the games each year, Capozzi buys the entire team pizza and spends several hours visiting with players at one of the houses.
Capozzi attended William Paterson from 1988 to 1991 and earned All-America honors in 1988. That same year, he was named New Jersey College Player of the Year and NJAC Player of the Year. He graduated in 1991.
In 1997, William Paterson inducted Capozzi into its Athletics Hall of Fame. He ranks among the program’s all-time leaders with a .388 career batting average, 144 RBIs and 121 runs scored.
Capozzi now lives in Florida, about 10 minutes from the baseball complex where the Pioneers play their games, and he attends the team’s games each year during the trip.
Players are only required to inform Lauterhahn of their plans during free time. Curfew is set for 10 p.m., when players must return to their houses.
“It doesn’t mean lights out,” Lauterhahn said. “But it does mean you get back to your house and let everybody start preparing the way they want to. It’s a really good trip because it helps them come together.”
William Paterson opens the trip against Franklin & Marshall on March 14 at 6:30 p.m. and will conclude the seven-game stretch March 20 against Wisconsin-La Crosse at 10 a.m.
