TAMAQUA — Tamaqua senior baseball player Mason Ligenza was surrounded by family, friends and coaches Thursday afternoon when he signed his national letter of intent to play college baseball at the University of Pittsburgh.
“It’s always been a goal to play college baseball since I was little,” said Ligenza who signed to play at Pitt last December. “At the Division I level it’s even better. All of the summer games and events got me to this point and all the time I put in here in this little town got me to that point. Two summers ago I realized that if I put the time in I could get to this spot.”
Ligenza, a pitcher, first baseman and outfielder, started on varsity as a freshman for the Blue Raiders and hasn’t missed a beat on the diamond along with playing for Perfect Game and his travel baseball team, RCS Warpath.
“I worked for this and I always knew if I put the work in this was a possibility of happening,” said Ligenza. “When I play in big games and there’s big student sections I do have to remember I put the work in and I’m prepared. There’s no reason I should be nervous because I should be ready for the moment.”
He finished his junior season helping Tamaqua win a Schuylkill League championship title 6-0 over Blue Mountain at Stump Stadium in Pine Grove.
Ligenza pitched to the tune of a 6-2 record with a 0.96 ERA in eight games started. At the plate, he had a .493 batting average and had 19 RBI’s and eight home runs and stole a team-high 18 bases.
“We want nothing less than what we did last year and I’d love nothing else but to win the Schuylkill League again,” said Ligenza. “We only lost two seniors so we’ll be just as prepared this spring. I’m hoping for nothing less than a Schuylkill League championship again and then districts and anything beyond that.”
The standout Blue Raider couldn’t talk to colleges until August of his junior year, like every other high school athlete in the country, and got seven to eight calls on the first day. He originally visited Delaware but once Pitt called Ligenza had a good idea of where he wanted to take his talents.
“They’re the second best conference in the country so it means I’ll be traveling all around the country playing the top teams in the country in some of the best environments which is only going to make me better,” said Ligenza. “It’s hard to pass up playing in the ACC and playing college baseball.”
Ligenza officially committed to Pitt in December of 2023. He’ll be joining a Panthers squad which finished 26-29 in one of the best conferences in college baseball last year.
After serving as Tamaqua’s main pitcher and having ample playing time at first base as well as outfield the last three years, he’ll be playing outfield mainly when he takes the field in Pittsburgh.
“With all the experience the coaches (Pitt) had with prior players and different teams they work with it was a great fit,” said Ligenza. “The academics, because baseball will eventually end and I can fall back on that. The facilities they have are top notch to develop me as a player and the atmosphere they have there is a family feeling at the school and with the team.”
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