Hello everyone, I hope you’re as happy as I am that the snow is gone. I can finally get my tan back! As the semester ends, finals arrive and they are no easy task. Just want to remind all of you to keep up on your course materials, so you can be well-prepared for that final test. Good luck to all and "God Bless"

Mounties baseball made the playoffs for the first time… in their first official year allowed in NCAA D3 baseball...The first round is on Saturday, May 2nd, vs Pitt Greensburg and the first game starts at 10:00 a.m. It is a best of three series...Please feel free to come and support the MAC baseball team...Good luck men!!!!...Pitchers hit your spots and you will be successful!!!

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 9:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello everyone, I hope all are doing wonderful!

Baseball season is here for the MAC baseball team and even though I’m not playing, I thank Head Coach Kevin Kime for letting me come around to help out with the pitching staff. I like the fact that I have the experience of playing at the college level and implementing my knowledge to the staff. One thing that I like about the staff is that they are very coachable. Their eyes are so wide open when I speak to them and they always have questions.

There is nothing in this world that makes me feel better than knowing that I helped someone. Actually, my brother and I are working on setting up pitching sessions for the summer for young kids that play midget league, little league and pony league. I was taught at a young age about baseball and I want to be the one teaching kids the right fundamentals.

Well I have to go do some work, so I will talk to you guys later. "God Bless"

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 8:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Good afternoon everyone, I hope all are doing well. I recently came back to MAC from being on spring break for a week. Let me tell you that the week went fast!

During my break, I spent a lot of time with my father. He is recently recovering from surgery and he is returning back to work this week. He is doing well and can’t wait to get back on the job.

I also have been spending time with my nephews and nieces. I’ve been teaching my youngest nephew how to play and read snare drum music. He's playing for his school's concert band and I want to make sure that he is prepared. If you all are wondering, I did, in fact, play the trumpet and the drums from 4th to 9th grade and had to stop because of sports.

If anyone has any questions or comments please feel free to leave one. "God Bless"

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 7:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

How is everyone doing this week? I have been studying a lot this week. In order to do well on tests, you have to put in the study hours to get that good grade. I have been doing great so far in all my classes and my goal is to finish the semester with at least a 3.3. Like I said before, classes at MAC are challenging, but help is always around the corner. Don’t be afraid to ask questions at MAC. People here love to assist one another with anything they are capable of.

On the baseball side of things, the MAC baseball team is heading to Virginia this weekend to play two games against Kings College on Friday and two games against Shenandoah College on Saturday. I want to say good luck to my boys and play your hearts out. I looked at the forecast for VA and it is between 38 to 49 degrees all weekend. That must be nice! I wish I could go outside and all the snow and cold would be gone! Please feel free to leave comments and ask questions. Well ladies and gentleman, I hope all have a good week and "God Bless"

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 6:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello everyone, I hope all are doing well. I'm doing excellent and still busy as usual. I've been spending most of my free time with my nephews and my niece; in fact, we all watched the Superbowl together. Even though my favorite team, the Philadelphia Eagles, lost in the NFC championship, I am sill happy a Pennsylvania team won it all. Congratulations to all of the Steelers fans.

Recently, I went to a job interview, in which I did really well. I have been asked to come back for a second interview and hopefully all goes well for me. Thanks to Mount Aloysius College for referring me to this major organization and helping me get my foot in the door. Over the years, I developed strong relationships with many faculty members here at MAC. I've learned that as long as you do your part, there are people here who care and will do anything they can to help. I would advise everyone to participate in a mock job interview when searching for a job. That's what I did and it helped me out tremendously. Any questions, please feel free to leave a comment. Until next time, have a good week and "GOD BLESS."

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 1:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello everyone! I hope all of you are doing well. I would like to take this time to invite all who might be interested in joining me on listening to a well known speaker talk about the history and legacy of the Negro Leagues. His name is Byron Motley and he is a lecturer, singer, filmmaker, photographer, and author. This event is on Wednesday, February 25, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. in the MAC Cosgrave Student Center. Please come join us while we learn about the Negro Baseball Leagues and the legacy that the leagues still hold today.

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 1:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Welcome back students and faculty for the return of another great semester here at MAC. I hope everyone had a wonderful break over the holidays. My time off from the holidays was well spent. I spent a lot of time with the family, including spending time with my nephews and my nieces. The kids are growing up so fast. Besides that I ate a lot of home-cooked food and hung out with friends that came in from school as well.

Baseball season is right around the corner here at MAC with the MAC baseball team going in full stride to have a successful 2009 season. Also, basketball is in season right now, and our MAC men's team is off to a good start. Please, ladies and gentlemen, feel free to stop at the games if you're in the area. For information, you can go to the school's website under athletics!

For any questions or comments please post them and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Thank You and GOD BLESS...

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello everyone! I hope you all are ready for Thanksgiving break, because I sure am. As the semester comes to an end, so does the warm weather. I wish it could be summer all year around, so I wouldn't have to worry about cleaning the snow off of my car. But, that's one of the downfalls you have living in the North. There are two weeks left in this semester and assignment deadlines are coming up. I have been working this past week on a bunch of papers that I have to turn in next week. One of my papers is about the billion dollar company Nike and the other is about the history of baseball. I really don’t enjoy writing papers, but in this case, I have to do the work to graduate and I've been very interested in those subjects for years now. Like I said before, college isn’t supposed to be easy. The more work you put in, the better the results will be down the road. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I have to go so I can hit the road to go home. I wish everyone a great and safe holiday. "God Bless"

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello again everyone, I hope school is going well for you. My classes are going well and graduation is nearing. Recently, some students have come to me with concerns about college life and school work. From experience, college is only hard if you make it hard for yourself. What I mean by this is that, here at Mount Aloysius College, the students have every opportunity to get assistance with their school work. I have had many meetings with my professors and I must say that it was time well-spent. Being that our classes are relatively small here, my professors could spend more individual time with me when I needed it.

Also, keeping up or even staying ahead with assignments can make your college life easier. The main thing is that you have to know how to prioritize your personal time, so you can do your school work. Being on your own comes with responsibilities and decisions. I dont want to sound like a parent, but they are right sometimes, if not all the time. The decisions you make will have an effect on your life now and will eventually have an impact on your life later. The more work and effort you put toward anything in life, the better the results.

I hope I gave some good advice and good luck during your senior year. Until next time, good bye to all and God bless.

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 9:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello everyone! Sorry it took so long to get back to you. Being involved with the many activities at Mount Aloysius College keeps me on my toes constantly. I saw while I was away some students had left some comments that I will reply to in this blog. One of the questions was, "Do you think Jeff Karstens is a good pickup for the Pirates?" Well, I think he was a good pick up for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He almost threw a perfect game, but yes he did struggle a bit. From my experiences as a Mounties pitcher, I know what it is like to pitch from behind also. If your offense doesn't give you runs, it is harder for a pitcher to keep you in a game even if that pitcher has his best stuff that day. When teams score runs, it takes away the pressure for the pitcher. I think that Karstens will get better over the years from experience and practice. Being a pitcher is just like school work. When you hit the books and stay focused on your school work, you will get good grades. Just like in pitching, if you work hard, work out, and practice you will get great results.

Posted by Durell Hutzell-Ellis at 2:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)