April 19, 2016
 
PENSACOLA, Fla.  –  The daily grind of a student-athlete's schedule is well publicized in collegiate athletics. However, for several members of the University of West Florida baseball team, their day-to-day routine was put in perspective when visiting children undergoing cancer treatment at nearby Sacred Heart Hospital.
 
The team's initiative started when beginning its fundraiser with the Vs. Cancer Foundation, a charitable organization that donates half of its proceeds to national childhood cancer research, while sending the other half directly to children undergoing cancer treatment at a nearby hospital.
 
So far, the team has raised $2,262 by setting up individual fundraising pages and publicizing them on their personal social media accounts. Several players have raised more than $200 individually.
 
About four weeks ago, all 35 UWF players and coaches shaved their heads completely bald to raise awareness about pediatric cancer and the team's effort with the Vs. Cancer Foundation.

Since that point, the Argos have been boiling-hot on the field. The team has won 14 of 17 games since the new look and controls its own destiny in hosting the Gulf South Conference tournament as the team sits one game ahead of Delta State and West Alabama in the race for first place.
 
In support of the fundraiser, six players on the UWF baseball team visited Sacred Heart Hospital to visit the children they have been fundraising for. The players walked around the halls of Sacred Heart, bearing gifts for the surprised children. For one of those players, senior catcher Ben Emery, his visit hit a little closer to home than most could imagine.
 
Emery, a cancer survivor of over five years, was diagnosed with Stage 3 Non-Hodgkin's Burkitt's Lymphoma heading into his junior year of high school. Now, Emery leads all UWF bench players with a .423 batting average and has been a key offensive player for Argonauts in later stages of the game.
 
"Some of the parents I talked to on the side, just to see how their days were going," Emery said about his visit to Sacred Heart. "I know how those visits can go and they definitely can put more stress on the parents than the kids. I just talked a little bit to them to pass along a couple words of wisdom."
 
A leader on and off the field, senior infielder Jimmy Redovian has noticed the team's on-field success since joining together and going bald in support of the cause.
 
"We brought up how it brought up a feeling of solidarity and how it brought a feeling that everybody on the team was the same," Redovian recalled about the head-shaving event. "We sometimes complain about how tired we are or not wanting to go to practice, but then you go and you walk around in a hospital and see these kids that are in bed, resting and sick, it really just humbles me and makes me realize I really don't have to complain about going to practice."
 
As seniors, both Emery and Redovian will conclude their collegiate playing days at the end of the 2016 season. As the UWF athletic department puts an emphasis on community engagement, both players recalled how important community service and engagement are to the student-athlete experience.
 
"Doing stuff for the community is the coolest part of being a college athlete," Redovian stated. "To be looked upon as, I wouldn't say a hero, but a mentor to the younger kids in the community because they're following us and supporting us is really uplifting."
 
Emery has similar thoughts and feelings when reflecting on his time as a student-athlete.
 
"I think giving back and letting people know we appreciate their support and trying to give our support back to set an example for not only the school, but for our lives in general," Emery vocalized.
 
Closely complimenting UWF and NCAA Division II's focus on community engagement, last semester the Argonaut baseball team volunteered at the annual Pensacola Marathon and took part in the Pensacola Dragon Boat Festival to benefit the Gulf Coast Kids House, a local children's advocacy group in Escambia County.
 
UWF baseball will be accepting donations to its fundraiser with the Vs. Cancer Foundation through the end of the season. To donate, visit vs-cancer.org.