Konieczny came a long way to Pitt

The recruit who traveled the longest distance to come to Pitt last year was freshman Phil… The recruit who traveled the longest distance to come to Pitt last year was freshman Phil Konieczny.

The only thing the Arizona infielder knew about Pitt was what he’d heard about the basketball team prior to the call from head coach Joe Jordano in the winter of his senior year.

“We received a file on him, and we were very impressed with his credentials and with the way he played the game,” Jordano said.

Konieczny finished his high school career with a .394 batting average, 17 home runs and 123 hits. In his senior year he recorded 11 home runs, 54 hits, 46 runs and a .450 batting average.

In his junior year, he stole 15 bases, and overall he set a school record for most walks.

Jordano also said he was impressed with Konieczny’s academic record.

In high school, the 19-year-old was commended as a National Merit scholar and was named an AP Scholar.

Konieczny received a full-tuition honors scholarship to Pitt for academics because of his high SAT scores and QPA and another from the engineering school.

Despite majoring in a strictly scheduled and difficult major, Konieczny says he doesn’t have any problems keeping up at Pitt.

“It’s a lot of work and you have to make sure you budget your time and put in the time,” he said.

“But as long as you do that it’s no big deal.

“It’s tough, but I really enjoy it so far. Besides the weather it’s been amazing. It was a good decision for me.”

Konieczny said other than the weather, he also misses watching the Diamondbacks play in Arizona and still tries to catch them every time he’s home.

His favorite baseball memory of all time was watching them win the World Series in 2001, and his favorite personal memory is playing as a high school senior with his best friends.

The team finished fifth in the state that season, earned the state accolade of best offense among 5A programs and set the state record for team doubles in a season.

During his senior-year recruiting process, Konieczny said one of his main priorities was making sure Jordano was OK with his future engineering major.

“Most coaches don’t want you to do engineering,” he said.

“I don’t miss any practices, but every once in awhile I have a test I have to take, and he’s been really understanding.

“It’s really cool to be here and be able to do both.”

Konieczny has recorded 15 at-bats this season, two hits and three RBIs so far.

Nine other freshmen are on the team this year. Seven are from Pennsylvania.

Infielder Joe Leonard and outfielder John Schultz are the other primary freshmen who have seen a lot of field time.

Leonard averages .318, had 88 at-bats, 28 hits and 15 RBIs.

Schultz totes a .250 batting average, 32 at-bats and five runs.

Leonard hails from nearby Connellsville, where he was a four-year letterman with a career batting average of .449, and Schultz distinguished himself in Reading, Pa., with a .457 batting average and the honor of 2007 Berks County Player of the Year.

“It really doesn’t matter where [a recruit] is located,” Jordano said. “However, it is sometimes more difficult to evaluate a player properly if he is a great distance from campus.

“That’s why the majority of our roster is made up of individuals who live within a five-to-seven-hour drive of campus.”

However, that doesn’t stop Jordano from recruiting nationally if the investment is worth it.

“We have a world-class university that attracts some of the best student-athletes in the country. Philip is one of those student-athletes.

“When we have the opportunity to sign on, we definitely take advantage of that opportunity.”