PEABODY — Ben Irvine’s athletic goal has always been to play baseball at the Division I level. He wasn’t quite ready to reach that feat when he graduated from Peabody High School in 2016 but after two stellar seasons on the baseball team at Northern Essex Community College, it’s mission accomplished for Irvine.
The Peabody native made his commitment to Division I University of Maryland official at the end of June in a somewhat unexpected turn of events. Irvine was sold on making another commitment before Maryland came calling in the late stages of the process. Once Maryland showed its interest, Irvine’s decision was a given.
“Going into it I was going to choose (Division II) Franklin Pierce,” Irvine said. “When Maryland came calling I immediately knew I wanted to go there. It’s Maryland, it’s a big time school.
Irvine added, “It felt great. I’m still going through the paperwork now but that’ll work itself out. I’ve been trying to pick a school for so long. I went through the same process even when I picked Northern Essex. It felt great to find a school and know I’m going there.”
An outfielder, Irvine will join a Terrapins team that finished at 24-30 this past season. The Terrapins, formerly of the Atlantic Coast Conference, joined the Big 10 in July 2014.
“Growing up I’ve always known Maryland was one of my dream schools,” Irvine, who plans to study business at Maryland, said. “They have a great program there.”
Irvine leaves Northern Essex after two strong campaigns with the Knights. This past spring, Irvine earned second-team All-American honors. He finished the 2018 season with a .342 batting average, two home runs, 32 RBI, 55 runs scored and 40 stolen bases in 39 games played. Irvine was the team leader in steals and ranked fifth in RBI.
His stellar season helped lead the Knights to the NJCAA Division III World Series, where Northern Essex was bounced by St. Cloud Technical and Community College. The Knights finished the season 26-16, going 13-2 in conference play and 11-0 in home games.
“It was a great year,” Irvine said. “We came up a little short and we didn’t finish where we wanted to but it was a great year. We reached one of our goals which was getting to the World Series.”
Irvine feels he’s ready to tackle the challenges that come with jumping to the Division I diamond. The past two years at Northern Essex, Irvine said, have allowed the former Tanner to grow both on the field and in the classroom.
“You go to Northern Essex and you get to play for two years. That allows you to get faster and stronger,” Irvine said. “It allows you to improve on everything in your game. I struggled a little but grade-wise in high school but I feel I’ve matured over the past two years.
“The past two years have given me the experience. It was great to play some college baseball before committing to a Division I program,” Irvine added. “I went in and started right away. The coaches want guys with experience out on the field so that definitely helps.”
