Caelan Cunningham, now a member of Lourdes University's baseball team, spent five years with the Great Lake Canadians, leaving with very fond memories that he cherishes.

"My highlight at GLC was probably making friendships that are going to last a long time. Also winning the league championship in my 16U year was really exciting but I think my favourite part was when our team was in 16U and we played in a 17U tournament, that weekend at Grand Park was unbelievable, our team played incredibly," said Cunningham.

The right-handed-hitting outfielder committed to Lourdes University in late 2019 and is currently in his first term as a freshman. He was drawn to the school for a handful of reasons and viewed Lourdes as an excellent fit.

"Lourdes was a great fit for me, because the school itself has great academics, they have a really good connection with Med Schools...One of my good friends went there and he told me about the baseball team and how they were going to be good. It was Coach Bradford's first year coaching the team, his experience with baseball and coaching really influenced my decision as his philosophy was very similar to GLC," said Cunningham

In his brief time at the University, Cunningham has enjoyed his experience both on and off the field. "The baseball team looks great. I think we're going to have a really good season this year. The school has lots of events that are really fun to participate in with friends, such as Spikeball Tournaments, Ping Pong. Overall on the team I feel I have been accepted into the family there, that's what we are, a family. Everyone's got each other's backs, everyone's there for each other," said Cunningham.

Cunningham looks to contribute with his glove and "play the game hard and the proper way," while continuing to develop offensively. Ultimately, the number one goal for him is a championship, "I'm hoping moving forward I can eventually win a national championship with the team."

17U Manager & Infield/Outfield/Hitting Instructor, Brock Kjeldgaard, had this to say when asked abou

t his former outfielder, "Caelan is an extremely hard worker who always puts the team first. He is willing to go above and beyond to do whatever he can to help the team win. He plays the game the right way."

Cunningham's advice for the upcoming GLC players centres around hard work, in and out of the classroom. "Work hard and take school seriously. Work hard on and off the field, that will take you very far in life. No matter how down you get on yourself just push through, keep working hard and it'll start to turn around. Also work hard in the classroom, there are a lot academic scholarships out there that can definitely help you. You want your grades as high as they can be so you have the opportunity for every school to look at you," he said.

As Cunningham's focus is now on Lourdes University, he's thankful for his time with GLC and the program's impact on his development.

"GLC really impacted my career. The coaching staff helped develop my game in ways I wouldn't have been able to do on my own. They taught me to play the game hard and play it the right way, which overall brought my level of play through the roof," said Caelan Cunningham - 2020 GLC Grad.