Cantwell brothers enjoying time together
SPRINGFIELD » A week after concluding a college baseball journey they’ll never forget, the Cantwell brothers were back together on a Delaware County diamond over the weekend.
Luke and Andrew Cantwell play for the Springfield Colonials of the Delco League. The Marple Newtown grads and All-Delcos play their collegiate ball for the West Chester University Golden Rams, who advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships this year.
“The last game I pitched in before (Saturday) was Game 3 of the World Series … against Angelo State,” said Andrew, a left-handed pitcher. “That was fun.”
Luke, the elder brother, finished his fourth year at WCU.
“I’m coming back for one more year,” he said. Andrew can’t wait.
“I’m lucky enough that I get one more year with him,” Andrew said. “We didn’t get to really do everything that we wanted to do, but definitely, playing baseball with your brother is a thing that you can’t really get back. You have to have fun with it for as long as possible.”
Andrew, who completed his sophomore season, saved his best outing for last in Cary, N.C. on June 8. He gave up one run on eight hits (all singles) with five strikeouts across seven innings as the Golden Rams staved off elimination with a 12-2 win over Angelo State. West Chester lost to top-ranked North Greenville two days later, 8-5.
“(Luke) helped me a lot in the field in that one game in North Carolina, which was a great experience,” Andrew said. “It was definitely one for the memories, for sure.”
Luke gained an extra year of athletic eligibility because his sophomore campaign in 2020 was canceled due to COVID-19. He will graduate next year.
“It’s awesome. One of the reasons I’m coming back next year is because I love the young core guys we have at West Chester, my brother included,” Luke said. “We will get to room together next year, too. So, it’s just more time to enjoy the young life when you can get that extra year. I’m going to start to work one day, and make money one day, but I’m just going to enjoy this for as long as I can.”
The Cantwell brothers were integral parts of the 2018 Marple Newtown squad that became the first Delco baseball program to win a PIAA championship. MN remains the only Delco school to win the whole thing. Who can forget the moment Luke Zimmerman delivered the walkoff hit in extra innings at Penn State University?
Back in those days
Luke was the starting catcher, and a great one, but he transitioned to the outfield in college. Andrew was a stellar two-way player for the 2018 Marple team, and emerged as one of the top pitchers in the area in 2019. After COVID-19 wiped out his senior year, he has focused entirely on pitching since joining his big bro at West Chester in 2020.
Luke and Andrew shared their memories of helping WCU advance to the semifinals of the Division II championships as they assisted with cleanup at Church Road Park after the Colonials played two games with Wayne Saturday.
“The whole atmosphere was incredible,” Luke said. “They really did a great job of making you feel like you were playing the biggest games you ever played in.”
Luke belted a teamhigh 12 home runs and slashed .305/.381/.542 for West Chester this season. He was named honorable mention. NCBWA All-Atlantic Region and second
team All-PSAC East.
Andrew made 14 appearances (three starts) and pitched to a 4.50
ERA with 20 strikeouts in 30 innings.
Perhaps the best part of Luke’s game is his flow. At the start of the pandemic, in March 2020, he let his movie-star blonde hair grow to peak Bryce Harper level. It’s a healthy mane that would
grade 80 on the 20-80 baseball scouting scale.
“It was my quarantine experiment,” Luke said, laughing. “I had long hair from my sophomore season and I just kept growing it. Last summer I went down south to play and I didn’t cut it, just kept growing it through the baseball season.” Fascinating.
You can catch the
Cantwell dudes crushing baseball and racking up Ks in the Delco League this summer. Then they’ll have one last chance to get back to the College World Series next year.
“One more year together, it’s great,” Andrew said. “I’m definitely looking forward to it.”