Titans’ Norris commits to NCAA Glenville State University Pioneers

December 21, 2023 · 0 Comments

Christmas came early for Owen Norris last week as the Aurora student-athlete realized his life-long dream to play NCAA College Baseball in the United States. Norris signed his letter of intent on Saturday to play for the Glenville State University Pioneers and will be moving to Glenville, West Virginia next Fall.

An outfielder and pitcher for the Titans Baseball Club of the C.P.B.L., Norris is the thirteenth Titan from the organization’s Class of 2024 to sign a letter of intent with a US College.

In September 2024, the Aurora resident will join two Titans grads currently pitching for the Pioneers: Cameron Byers of Newmarket and Aiden Hoffmeyer of Barrie. Byers and Hoffmeyer graduated from the 18U Titans program in 2023 and are in their NCAA Freshman seasons in West Virginia.

Titans’ Director of College Placement Denis Bailey appraised Norris’s readiness for NCAA baseball:

“Owen is a kid who has an amazing work ethic. I have personally seen his growth from our days on Zoom during COVID hitting lessons to the player he has become today. Owen has the potential to play both sides of the ball at Glenville as a pitcher and an outfielder and I look forward to watching him continue his growth in West Virginia.”

Norris provided many reasons why he committed to attend university and play NCAA Division 2 baseball in West Virginia.

“We visited Glenville State University on the Titans US College tour in October, and I was really impressed with the coach, field, and facilities. I was actually stunned by how amazing the facilities were. Coach Mullins, who is the Head Coach at Glenville, was such a great guy and very friendly–two attributes that I see in our coaches at the Titans which made me start to realize that this could in fact be the school I want to attend. Glenville offered me future baseball training, as well as the educational opportunities and programming. I felt immediately comfortable and confident that it was the place that I belonged.”

When asked what he was looking forward to the most about living in Glenville, Norris noted that “Playing baseball at a US university level has always been a dream for me, and Glenville has that small town university feel I was looking for. And the baseball season lasts just a bit longer the further south you go.”

The Aurora High School graduate has selected Kinesiology and sports sciences as his major field of study.

Norris—a four-year veteran Titan—expressed his gratitude to the baseball club for helping make his U.S. College Baseball dream come true.

“The Titans club has played a pivotal role in my baseball career. They have helped me improve not only my baseball skills, but have taught me to navigate the mental game of baseball as well. They have taught me that hard work really does pay off if you’re willing to push yourself. Coach Denis Bailey’s guidance, time, and energy have been crucial in this University process. From late night calls with my parents and all of their questions and uncertainties to him, even giving his personal time to the Glenville team to do some guest coaching in West Virginia, we would not have been able to find our way through this without him. A big thank you to Denis and to all the coaches that I have had the pleasure of working with over the years. Coach Eddie McKiernan was one of the coaches I had the longest at the Titans who really showed us how important it was to work hard and in doing so you will earn your spot rather than it being given to you. The Titans are so much more than a baseball team – we are a family!”

The 18U Titans Pitcher and Outfielder reflected on the highlight of his CPBL career so far and his selection was from this summer.

“My home run at the US Long Island Perfect Game tournament.”

He also discussed the importance of the connections he has made with the Titans since 2020: “Over the four seasons with the Titans, I have been able to make some really great friends. Some old, some new, we are all a family at the Titans but sometimes you have to have your favorites, and for me that’s a group of guys that I’ve been with most of my time there; I’m so happy that I get to call them my buds. Without each other, I don’t think we would have worked as hard or set our goals as high.”

We asked Owen Norris to provide advice to our younger readers to help them achieve their post-secondary goals as a student-athlete and offer them some tips to attain their US College dreams:

“Train hard, and train often, go above and beyond your practice schedule, and put in the time and energy [and] it will pay off. Listen and respect your coaches, be coachable and hear their advice – don’t dismiss anything until you try it at least once. And, of course, most of all remember to love your sport; at the end of the day, it’s still a game – the best game – so enjoy every minute of it.”

Until Owen Norris ships off to West Virginia in the Fall, he will be pitching and playing outfield for the 18U Titans Baseball Club on weekends in April, May, June, and July at St. Andrew’s College in Aurora.

By Jim Stewart