Worzel Thrilled To Be Staying Near Home At UConn

Zach Worzel LHP / 1B / Fletcher Academy, CT / 2024

MILFORD, Ct. - The “hometown kid” is staying at home. It is what Zach Worzel always wanted.

“I had a lot of interest from schools around here but when UConn came around, being a Connecticut kid, that’s been my dream since I was 10,” Worzel said of his commitment to the Big East Conference university. “My mom graduated from there and I have cousins going there now. We were season ticket holders for football growing up. Being a hometown kid, it’s where I wanted to be. I like that feeling of playing for the hometown team in high school. It’s important to me to be close to home.”

The decision to post-grad at Fletcher Academy played a big part in helping the 11th-rated 2024 left-handed pitcher in New England connect with UConn.

“I went to Foran but mid-year there I decided to post grad,” the 2023 Foran grad explained. “That’s when my recruitment started. I got interest in the summer at some tournaments, with Fairfield my first offer. I went to a PBR and (associate head) coach (Jeff) Hourigan saw me there. They came to watch a practice and then the pitching coach saw me. It was all in a span of 2-21/2 weeks. They brought me to campus and that’s where I committed.”

UMass Amherst and Holy Cross also offered while Columbia was in the mix, but the sixth-ranked 2024 left-handed pitcher in Connecticut felt it was not a difficult decision.

“The big thing for me was the coaching staff,” Worzel explained. “It’s the longest tenured staff in the nation, they’re pillars. That’s big for me. A tribute to so much success they’ve had are those pillars.

“I went to a lot of campuses, and facility-wise it’s the best in New England,” the 18-year-old continued. “Their training facilities are big for me to be able to have indoor facilities in the winter to make sure I’m developing.”

UConn has an admiration for what the 6-1 210-pound southpaw can do on the mound.

“They like how I’m able to pound the strike zone,” Worzel noted. “Coach (Joshua) MacDonald (the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator) likes guys that throw strikes. Pound the zone, trust your stuff, that’s what got me with them.”

The choice to not go straight to college after Foran proved beneficial in connecting with the UConn staff.

“Doing post grad changed everything for me,” related the 41st-rated 2024 in the state of Connecticut. “I always pictured myself D-I, but was only getting D-II and D-III interest so I did post grad to give myself an extra summer to get recruited. That’s when it all started.

“I used PBR to trust my benchmarks and look at how much more efficiently the ball was moving the past two or three years. Using those tools help you know where you need to be and what to change.”

Coach Patrick Vigilio and the Baseball U staff, coach Anthony Giano at Cheshire Academy and coach Garrett Walker at Foran are credited by Worzel with helping the cause in developing into a pitcher with the ability to be part of the UConn program.

“When I step on campus I’m going to work hard to prove myself. just doing what I can do,” Worzel said. “I’m going to bring competitiveness and pitch with desire. With UConn being a top 25 school, you come in and do what you can do and excel at, and they’ll build you into being a player.”

Admittedly, when Connecticut became a potential college it was like an elephant in the room.

“When the whole UConn thing started, the family tried not to talk about it,” Worzel related. “But it was serious. I went on a visit with my dad and we’re sitting in Jim Pender’s office, who I watched every week. It was so surreal having him talk to you. He’s really a personal dude. When you meet a person of that caliber you’re not sure what to expect. It was really a dream come true.”

Worzel, who completed Foran with a 4.2 GPA, plans to major in exercise science at Connecticut.

“I’m looking forward to being on the baseball field and in an atmosphere where I can focus on something I’m interested in with academics,” Worzel concluded. “Being an athlete at UConn is going to be amazing, but to study exercise science at such a great place, I’m just so grateful and blessed.”