While many vacationed for Spring Break to enjoy the time off, the Point Park baseball team went to Florida to play in 12 games, compiling a 9-3 record.The trip allowed the team to bond and mixed fun with the competitive atmosphere.”We always get really excited to go down to Florida, that’s where we have our fun,” sophomore right-handed pitcher Sean Clark said in a telephone interview. “Our main objective is to win baseball games.”Sophomore outfielder Rob Novia enjoyed the trip, because it allowed him to go back to his home state.”I loved it, seeing as that Florida is my home it was great to go down there,” Novia said in an email interview. “I got to see some family and friends. As for baseball, it was great weather and playing ball was like a break for us. We’ve been practicing so hard, it was nice to put it all together and start playing games. We all had a blast down there.”While in Florida, the team experienced both highlights and lowlights during their 12.”Our pitching was definitely the highlight of the trip,” Head Coach Loren Torres said in an email interview. “They dominated down there and gave us a chance to win each game. We have to polish our defense a bit, we made some mistakes that caused us the three losses we have.”Novia was disappointed by one of the team’s three losses in particular.”My personal highlight was hitting a triple against Roosevelt and the lowlight was losing a game against Calumet College of St. Joseph (Indiana) which was on our last day,” Novia said.Clark did not see a lowlight on the trip and assessed the team’s energy.”The highlight would be the energy that the team has,” Clark said. “An example was the second game that I threw. I had a no-hitter going, and every time someone hit the ball, and the defense would make a play for me, everyone got really excited, and everyone knew what that play meant.”Junior right-handed pitcher Matt Palmer liked the team effort in the games, however was disappointed by the team’s losses.”We lost three games that we could have won,” Palmer said.All of the team considered the Florida trip a success as it prepared the team for conference play which begins in a couple of weeks.”We learned what our identity is going be as a team which is important to know as a team so that we have a plan each day,” Torres said.Palmer simply said the trip came was worthwhile”We went down there to win baseball games, and that’s what we did,” Palmer said.Clark meanwhile, made a bold prediction for the season.”Individually and as a team, I think we are going to have a special season,” Clark said.For any sports team it is important to show that take what you learn from previous games and apply them to the remainder of the season, and the Florida trip will set the tone for the team”We have to pitch well and play defense in order to be successful,” Torres said. “Our defense has to be consistent for us to win in conference.”Novia discussed the challenges that the team will have to face.”We were faced with some adversity and dealt with losses,” Novia said. “All season we will be faced with different challenges and being able to be faced with this in Florida get us ready for the grind of the season where we will face the same thing.”The team plays its home opener today against Penn State-Beaver.It is the first game at the team’s new facilities which were previously used by Duquesne’s baseball team before their program was discontinued.”I am so pumped,” Novia said. “We finally have a field to call our own. It is great to be closer to campus where students are able to come out to the games much easier. Both myself and the entire team are excited for the home opener.”For Clark, who played for Duquesne last season, going back onto the field will bring back some memories.”I’m pretty excited about it. A baseball field is a baseball field, but obviously I have some memories there from last year that I’ll take with me. I’m just glad to be playing for a team.”The Pioneers still have a lot of home games on their schedule and they hope that the student body will come and support the team. As Clark puts it, “… a season can only be better when fans are there to support you.”