If you were to ask Southeast senior Matt Kruzynski what a typical day was like at his summer internship, you might hear him say, “I saw a triple play happen on the field at Busch Stadium, witnessed a pitching duel between Houston Astros pitcher Roger Clemens and St. Louis Cardinal pitcher Mark Mulder, and then gave an updated list of baseball stats to Mike Shannon.” Ah, all in a day’s work.
For the St. Louis native and Cardinals baseball fan, working with the Cardinals’ radio network was a dream come true. Matt completed a summer internship as an associate producer in the broadcast booth, working side-by-side with Cardinal announcers Mike Shannon and Wayne Hagin while helping producer Jim Jackson put together the radio shows. He started the internship in April.
“I had several duties with my job,” he explained. “I made sure the announcers had the stats, information and lineups before the game. I also assisted in setting up radio equipment in the booth.”
Getting the necessary information for the announcers required Matt to do a lot of running around Busch Stadium. On a typical game day, Matt arrived at least three hours before the first pitch. He had to retrieve game notes and media guides for visiting teams. He routinely visited the Cardinals’ clubhouse to get the starting lineups for both teams. It was not uncommon for Matt to see the team managers, players and reporters when he was in the clubhouse.
One thing Matt says he loved about his job was the spontaneity of each day. When he walked through the gates at Busch Stadium, Matt had no idea what was in store for him. Whether he was retrieving scores, setting up equipment or listening to Mike Shannon tell stories, Matt knew, at the end of the day, he would have learned something new.
“There are many things I did one day that I probably wouldn't do for the rest of the season,” said Matt. “I loved the fact that I got to watch Cardinal baseball and meet interesting people like Bob Costas, Bobby Knight and Harold Reynolds.”
Matt plans to graduate in May 2006, majoring in both business and mass communication. He owes a lot of his current success, he says, to his time spent at Southeast. Matt says his classes have educated him well.
“I think the college environment at Southeast has improved my thinking skills and strengthened my people skills,” he explained. “Southeast is great because of its diversity. This school has trained me into applying what I learned in class into everyday situations.”
Baseball is not the only sport Matt loves. He enjoys participating in various sporting activities, such as the campus rugby team. He also plays golf on the courses around town. If Matt is not playing competitively in a sporting event, he is announcing for one during the “Sports Brawl” on the campus radio station, KDMC, Rage 103.7. During baseball season, Matt likes to help announce for the Redhawk baseball games.
“The Redhawk games are always a rush to do,” said Matt. “The crowds are always big, and the fans have a lot of involvement.”
Matt’s experiences at Southeast have allowed him to make many long and lasting friendships. He spends time with his friends by golfing on Fridays, heading down to the river after class or staying up all day and night during Homecoming weekend.
He says he loves to travel, especially to southern California, where he can ride the wave on his surfboard. He plans to travel to France for New Year’s Eve this year, and eventually wants to visit Australia.
It is obvious Matt has made the most of his college career while at Southeast. He says college is about learning and about having fun. Matt’s best advice for future students is to get an education, but have fun while you are doing it. He says students should always go to every class because skipping class is the quickest way for a college career to end.
“Students should experience sledding down Academic Hill, always meet new people and get out of the dorm room once in a while,” said Matt. “It is important to make the best of your time in school because it will be over before you know it.”