Bellefonte Class of 2022 alumni Derek Fravel is spending his college days pitching at Seton Hill University. He was a Homecoming Court representative for hisSenior Class, a volunteer firefighter at the Undines, and he led the baseball team during his senior year to a 16-3 record while also being a 3x District champion. Since covid canceled his 2020 season, he very well could have been a four time district champ.
Derek opens up about his college experience and how he believes it is an easy time if you keep it together and hustle.
“College life is not as crazy as anyone else makes it seem. It’s a glorified version of high school that you get more free time. As long as you stay on top of your work and get things done you’ll be OK,” Derek said.
Derek volunteered as a firefighter when he was in high school, and when he is out of College he plans to pick it back up, but without the volunteering and changing his role.
“My major is criminal justice. I plan on using that after college. My plan after here at Seton Hill are to attend the State Police Academy and become a State Trooper.”
Derek has had some major success on the mound at the Seton Hill University, and appreciates the time he gets to pitch for his team.
“Being a pitcher for Seton Hill baseball has been going very well. When my opportunity comes to get on the mound at any moment, I like to be very grateful for what I’m able to do. I try to take every opportunity as if it’s my last and give it all out on the bump.”
Derek shared how the baseball team as a whole is doing, saying they stated off rough but after a trip down to Florida they caught on fire.
“Our baseball team is doing well this year. We started off rough and then bounced back on our spring break trip down in Florida berating a top rank team. Going into conference play we had some ups and downs being inconsistent. Our team motto is to get 1% every day no matter the wins or the loss, we want to play our best baseball when it matters the most,” Derek said.
Derek was on the varsity team for all four years under the leadership of head coach and middle school social studies teacher Mr. Jon Clark.
“What made Derek a great leader is he treated everyone equally. He never expected someone to do something he wouldn’t do himself. He was also going to be the hardest worker out there, leading by example.”
Derek stood out due to his leadership skills and his hard work mentality.
“I think what separated Derek from others was his ability to lead. His hard work and dedication to his craft. When you throw on his performance on the field, Derek was a special player.”
Mr. Clark had a lot of fun moments and memories with Derek.
“The one that stands out to me was from his freshman year. We were playing Huntingdon at Governors, Derek had a 3-0 count on him. I give him the take sign, and he either forgot or had another plan…he swung at the 3-0 fastball and crushed it over the left field fence for his first home run. We laughed about it afterwards as his dad was standing at the fence behind me, recording Derek’s AB and caught not only the homerun, but my reaction to him swinging with a take sign and then hitting the homerun. I think it is also worth noting that our end of game saying of ‘See Ya’ came from Derek. I am not sure of the origins but Derek made it part of our culture!”
Derek has some advice for current Bellefonte student athletes as the students move forward in their season.
“Never take a day for granted. I look back on my times in high school playing baseball and I wish I had done things differently. Never take a day for granted and never leave the field saying ‘what if.’ Leave it all out there because you have nothing to lose. At the end of the day, all you have is memories,.” Derek said.
