Mar 18, 2015 5 min read

Perhaps it’s fitting that Trinity High School graduate Joey Havrilak is a biomedical engineering major.

The 2010 Observer-Reporter Baseball Player of the Year has engineered a fine baseball career for himself at the University of Akron.

Through hard work and perserverance, Havrilak, a redshirt senior, has transformed himself from a player head coach Rick Rembielak wasn’t sure was going to make it to one who is the heart of the Zips’ offense.

It’s something at which Rembielak, who took over the Akron program in 2012 after Havrilak’s redshirt season, marvels.

“I’ll never forget him,” Rembielak said. “I would be leaving the office and he would have the machine out and he’d be hitting inside the field house, pulling out the machines and tees by himself. He’d come in at 6, 6:30 a.m. before class. He made himself into a very good player. His work ethic is incredible. I’ve got to give him all the credit in the world because we were on the verge of cutting him. He came back and he was transformed.

“It’s just Joe. We call him ‘Sunshine’ like the guy from the movie ‘Remember the Titans.’ He’s just a carefree kid. And that’s helped him. He never panicked.”

The Zips gave Havrilak an opportunity to play in front of his hometown fans Tuesday night at Consol Energy Field when they took on West Virginia in a non-conference game.

West Virginia was originally scheduled to host Waynesburg University in the opening game of the Mountaineers’ new ballpark. But poor weather over the winter caused delays in the completion of the facility and the cancellation of that game.

With an open date on the schedule, West Virginia coach Randy Mazey saw Akron was scheduled to play at Pitt Wednesday and called Rembielak to see if he’d like to meet for a game at Consol Energy Park.

The Mountaineers, who play in the baseball powerhouse Big 12 Conference, handed the Zips, who compete in the Mid-American Conference, a 14-9 defeat in a game that took place in weather more conducive to hockey than baseball – temperatures hovered in the mid-30s. But it wasn’t because of lack of performance from Havrilak.

Havrilak went 3-for-4, hitting a three-run homer and a pair of singles and drawing a walk. The Zips’ right fielder also stole two bases hitting out the No. 3 spot in his first game at Consol Energy Park since his playing days for the Hillers.

“Senior year of high school. My freshman year in college, I played at Carmichaels (in the summer),” Havrilak said of the last game he played near Washington. “That’s about as close as it got. Last time I played (at Consol), it was all grass and dirt instead of the turf. It’s nice.

“It was a good homecoming. I liked it a lot. Could have had a better outcome. Some things I did well, but I want to see the team win.”

The Zips’ record fell to 8-8 but Havrilak is well on his way to a strong senior season. He’s batting .327 – well above his career average of .258 – with three homers, 10 RBI and five stolen bases while showing a keen eye at the plate with a team-best 12 walks. His home run and stolen base totals also are tied for the team lead, while his on-base percentage of .465 is far and away the best on the squad.

“He’s made himself into a very good player,” Rembielak said. It’s not been easy. With such a demanding major, Havrilak sometimes misses practices. But whether it be late in the evening or early in the morning, he’ll head to the team’s indoor facilities and work on his craft, hitting countless baseballs.

“I always tell myself that even if things are going bad or good, you can’t stop working hard, waking up early, going to hit, doing things extra, staying late after practice,” Havrilak said. “It’s a big motto I like to live by.”

Havrilak is hopeful his strong play will lead to an opporuntity to play baseball beyond his collegiate career. But he’s got a nice fallback option as well.

What exactly do biomedical engineers do?

“People ask me that all the time. It’s pretty much mechanical engineering in the medical field,” Havrilak said. “Baseball is actually first for me. I hope I can continue playing baseball. Engineering is pretty much a backup right now. If baseball doesn’t work out, I’ll just go on with my education and see what happens. Baseball is definitely is something I’d like to continue.”

Rembielak has seen enough of Havrilak over the past four years to know better than to bet against him.

Rembielak even put his money on Havrilak this season. A non-scholarship player in his first four years on campus, Havrilak impressed the Zips’ coach enough that he felt the need to put him on scholarship.

“Guys can barely get a tee out and he’s putting up the hitting machine by himself,” Rembielak said. “It’s things like that that turned him into a good player. He was a non-scholarship player. I was able to give him quite a bit of scholarship this year because he’s just a great success story. I’ll never forget him because of that.”