DIGITAL GCU Today AUG issue

GCU MAGAZ I NE • 29 service, that camaraderie and having something that is definitely bigger than yourself.” At the suggestion of a fellow travel ball coach who was a firefighter, Griffiths went on a ride-along and found his purpose. The next day he registered for EMT (emergency medical technician) training, then gained his certification, enrolled in the Phoenix Firefighter Recruit Training Academy, passed all his exams and was hired. “For me, it is like being on a baseball team,” Griffiths said. “Everything we do in a fire department is together, whether it is cooking, cleaning or working out. Everyone is helping.” Unlike other sports, in which athletes retreat to the locker room after competition, every baseball player has a post-game job: raking the field, tamping the mound, sweeping out dugouts and laying tarps. “It took the selfishness out of the team -- you just did the work that had to be done,” Moreland said. “It is the same at a fire station. Everybody pitches in to get the work done.” Similarities abound Five players fromMoreland’s era, 2002-04, became firefighters thanks to the influence of Neville, who juggled firefighting and a GCU assistant coach schedule. The adaptation to co-workers for 24-hour shifts, including trying to sleep in close quarters, was eased by the experiences of traveling with the same teammates on long road trips, from bus to hotel to three-hour pregame sessions. Moreover, the mental challenges are similar. “It is like dealing with a bad at-bat or booting a groundball. You move onto the next play,” Reiman said. “Stank (GCU baseball coach Andy Stankiewicz) said to us, ‘You can’t play this game like a middle linebacker, out of control and really fast,’ ” Griffiths said. “When I say fast, I mean mentally fast. To me, when we are going on a call, it is about slowing down my emotions and my thoughts so I can effectively do my job, whether it is taking a set of vitals or setting up a back board, or pulling lines (hoses).” Joey Bristyan never forgot his first at-bat as a Lope in 2009 because the bat flew out of his hands and landed down the first-base line. “To get over my nerves as a college freshman, I talked to older players,” he said. “As a rookie firefighter, I did the same thing. I picked the brains of the veteran firefighters.” Sampling of GCU baseball players who became firefighters NAME FIRE DEPARTMENT YEARS IN GCU BASEBALL Joey Bristyan Phoenix 2009-12 Ryan Freeburg Scottsdale 1990-92 Harlyn Griffiths Phoenix 2012-13 Ryan Holtorf Phoenix 1995-97 Troy Holtorf Phoenix 2002-03 Brian Imboden Phoenix 1989-91 Tait Mitton Sun City 1988-91 AustinMoreland Phoenix 2002-04 Jeremy Neville Phoenix 1992-93 Trent Otis Phoenix 2001-02 Mike Quill Phoenix 2001-04 Joey Reiman Phoenix 2002-03 The old Grand Canyon logo adorns the helmets of Trent Otis and other firefighters. photo by david kadlubowski