All your favorite teams and sources in one place

Build your feed

Your Teams.
All Sources.

Build your feed

© 2024 BVM Sports. Best Version Media, LLC.

No results found.
NESCAC Rookie of the Year DeMaria looks to continue strong play for Tufts
Peter DeMaria batted .361 and had 52 hits in 39 games in his first season with Tufts. He was named the New England Small Conference Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year. (Credit: Tufts University)

NESCAC Rookie of the Year DeMaria looks to continue strong play for Tufts

MEDFORD, Mass. (BVM) — Growing up surrounded by baseball is very intriguing for a young boy. Peter DeMaria grew up in Chatham, N.J. with his family, who are big New York Yankees fans. He would always watch the games with his grandfather who introduced baseball to him.  

“At the age of four, I immediately fell in love with it and I started playing and it took off from there,” DeMaria said.

DeMaria played a variety of sports growing up, including ice hockey, lacrosse, golf, soccer, and of course, baseball.  

“I am a big believer in being a versatile athlete growing up,” DeMaria said. “I don’t think anyone should just focus on one sport year-round. I believe that it is important from a social aspect, that everyone should try different sports, as they could meet their closest friends that way.”

In the summer transitioning into his freshman year of high school, DeMaria had a big decision to make. At Chatham High School, athletes are only allowed to participate in one sport per season. DeMaria had to choose between baseball or lacrosse.  

“Chatham is such a heavy lacrosse town, which made me lean toward lacrosse at first, but I knew that I loved baseball too much that I couldn’t step away from it, so I chose baseball”, DeMaria said.

DeMaria mainly played on the junior varsity baseball team during his freshman year, but he got called up to the varsity team a couple of times and made the most of those games. His sophomore year he played varsity full time and was very successful. He played first base and batted fourth in the lineup. He also happened to be one of the leading hitters on the team.  

“After the season, I started getting offers from Ivy League schools and competitive Division III schools and I wanted to keep my options open, so I did not commit to anything yet. DeMaria said. 

He tore his hamstring junior year, which took him out of commission for the 2016 season. Thankfully, he was all healed up and picked up just where he left off when he returned for his final season. In his senior year, DeMaria received an offer from Tufts University, which he ended up accepting.  

“I chose Tufts because of Coach Casey,” DeMaria said. “He’s a legend here. He has built a great program with a lot of legacy and tradition. Also from an academic standpoint, Tufts is very competitive, so I knew I would be receiving a great education, while also being able to play the game I love.”

DeMaria’s first season for the Jumbos was a golden one.  He had a batting average of .361 and 52 hits in 39 games. He was named the New England Small Conference Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year.  

“I feel that all of the little things that we do here during the offseason that are seen behind the curtains is what helped me accomplish that,” DeMaria said. “We work very hard during the offseason in preparation to perform at the level we all know we are capable of. But it did not really cross my mind, I was just going out there and playing and doing the best I could to help the team win and the next thing we knew, we were in the NESCAC playoffs which was a great feeling.”

Unfortunately, DeMaria’s second season at Tufts was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thankfully, DeMaria has two more seasons to play for the Jumbos and is very excited for it to get started again.  

“It’s important to not take anything for granted,” DeMaria said. “We saw how quickly our season got taken away from us last year because of COVID. We’re enjoying being around each other again and going to try and win the NESCAC championship and then make a run for the national championship. This is also an important year for us, we’re not just playing for the seniors this year, but we’re also playing for the seniors who were unable to play last year and we’re preparing for it to the best of our abilities.”

DeMaria and the Jumbos are ones to definitely look out for in NCAA Division III baseball.