St. Mary’s baseball standout, Josh Doney, has found his new home in Lowell as the All-Star pitcher committed to play baseball at UMass Lowell. After his senior season, Doney will trade in his Spartan uniform and become a River Hawk.
The lefty will be playing at the highest collegiate level and can’t wait to get onto campus.
“It feels great. Division I is the highest level that I can be playing at next year so I’m looking forward to seeing how it goes,” Doney said. “Since I’ve been young it’s always been my first dream to get to the Division I level. I’d say it’s honestly a dream come true.”
When asked what attracted him to UMass Lowell, Doney talked about the feeling he got when he took his official visit.
“I went to Umass Lowell and right when I got there it gave me an “at home” feel. I love everything about it. The campus is nice and spread out and they have a pretty good business program there and the field is beautiful,” Doney said. “Head coach Nick Barese made me feel at home and it was the best overall fit for me.”
Edward A. LeLacheur Park won’t be new to Doney. In June, St. Mary’s faced Tantasqua Regional in Lowell where the Spartans punched their ticket to the state championship game after a 1-0 win.
“It’s an unreal field. All the facilities are really nice. It’s a dream come true to be able to play at that field,” Doney said. “It used to be a Single-A field and now it’s theirs. It’s unbelievable.”
Doney said he’s been playing baseball for as long as he can remember. One memory he recalls is the time when he got his first glove.
“It all started when my dad brought me home a glove and I remember going out and playing catch with my younger brother Kyle,” Doney said. “Ever since that day, I fell in love with the sport.”
Kyle has been Doney’s catcher for as long as he can remember and he believes baseball has made them even closer.
“He’s my catcher so it feels really good knowing that whenever I pitch he’s the one catching for me. He’s the most comfortable I’ve ever been with, he’s my favorite catcher ever,” Doney said. “We have a really good relationship and it’s got better all because of baseball.”
In addition to Kyle, Doney said he’s had an “amazing” support system as he was making his decision on his next home.
“My family has been really supportive. They’ve always been supportive of me and everything that I’ve done and they were really happy to see me commit,” Doney said. “I’ve talked about it with my parents my whole life playing Division I baseball so when I announced my commitment, they were really happy and supportive.”
Doney also took time to thank his coaches for helping him develop into the player he is today.
“Coach [Derek] Dana and coach [Tim] Fila at St. Mary’s helped me a ton to develop. In the summer playing for my club team the Expos, under coach [Derek] January and [Rich] Gillbride they both played a role in my development,” Doney said. “I don’t know where I’d be without those coaches.”
Although Doney said he’s excited to be a River Hawk, he said he has one more thing to accomplish before he graduates from 35 Tremont St.
“The number one goal is to win a state title for St. Mary’s. We lost in the state championship this year and it was a tough loss,” Doney said. “We lost four seniors so everyone else should be coming back. We’re using the loss as motivation for next season.”
