The Owensboro Knights’ own Cameron Casey has signed with KWC to continue his academic and baseball career as a Panther. Casey and his family have a long history with KWC as he will be a fourth generation Panther.
Being signed to such a prestigious baseball program is something that Casey has always dreamed about. Casey basically grew up on Wesleyan’s campus as he said he has been around the school since he was a kid for numerous events and even helped with camps. Being able to show everybody what he can do at the collegiate level means the world to him, he said.
“Every young boy dreams of playing college baseball,” he said. “It’s something I’ve always dreamed about, especially playing for a good team like Wesleyan. They’ve got a great program with a really good coach and great history. It means the world to me to have the opportunity to show what I can and be able to go out and show that to everyone.”
KWC has been in the family for Casey since before he was even born. Casey will be a fourth generation Panther and will follow the footsteps of his mother, grandfather and great grandmother. He will be the first of his family to play baseball/softball at the school, however. Along with his deep familial connection to the school, Casey said he also was drawn to KWC simply because he really loves the color purple.
“Well, purple has always been one of my favorite colors,” he said. “Growing up I was watching them, and I watched them over the past few years. Growing up I was there for homeschool events and then I helped out with camps working there during the Summer for kids. I was able to see what the inside of campus looks like. It feels like, after being in there so much as a kid, it’s not as overwhelming as it is anywhere else. It feels like home and where I’m supposed to be.
Casey is a member of the Owensboro Knights which is a homeschool team that was formed in 2018. The team started out as a basketball team, but the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt on their debut season. Not long after the team started competing post-COVID, Casey said that Knights coach Dan Bitters wanted the team to venture out into baseball as well. Although Casey acknowledges that he had a different experience with the Knights compared to athletes in public/private schools, his time with them helped build him both as a player and as a person, nonetheless.
“I think my time with the Owensboro Knights was very different for everyone else,” he said. “We started as a basketball team, and we had some who knew how to play baseball and a couple that didn’t. Our coach wanted us to have a baseball team as well. He took us and taught us more than just baseball. He taught us that life is going to knock you down, but you got to find a way to get back up and put your faith and trust in God.”
To prepare for his collegiate debut and everything that comes with it, Casey said he will be focusing on working out and conditioning himself this summer. As long as he prepares himself the best he can, he is confident that the coaching staff at KWC will guide him to where he needs to be.
“I plan to be working out a lot this summer,” he said. “I’ll be working out my legs and conditioning to be prepared to go from the moment I get on campus, or the moment training starts. I want to be ready for them to get me to the point to where I’m playing.”
As for academics, Casey is interested in all things sports. Specifically, he is currently leaning towards venturing into exercise science or sports medicine. Casey will be in his hometown surrounded by his friends and family, something he has always dreamed of, he said. The support of his loved ones is what will keep him pushing as he enters a new chapter in his life.
“I’ve always dreamed of playing here in my hometown and being around my family and friends,” he said. “Growing up here my whole life, it’ll be interesting, but it’s definitely nice knowing I’ll be in my hometown. It’ll definitely benefit me to have all my friends and family be there to watch me, and it’ll keep me going through college.”
Looking back on his time with the Knights, Casey said that he will miss the close-knit community and the aspect of building friendships with everyone involved in the program. He won’t miss them too much however, as one of the perks of going to college in your hometown is that he won’t be very far from all the friends and families the Owensboro Knights have helped him connect with.
“I’ll miss my friendships the most,” he said. “The personal level of knowing everyone. Getting to know new players as they came in and older players as they left. We were able to pray for lots of people over the years in different family situations. If we knew of people who were in hard times, we were able to pray for them as we won or lost. Hopefully that’ll continue. I would say I’ll miss my family and friends, but they’ll be right here along with me, so I won’t have to miss them very much.”
