Matthew Fink started playing baseball at age 6.  

Sixteen years later, he is still out on the field, now as a catcher on the club baseball team at the University of Pennsylvania.  

Fink’s been on the squad since his freshman year, when pitcher Doug Meyers, an economics major from Scarsdale, N.Y., was placed as his roommate. Today, they work together as co-presidents of the team.  

The role of co-president ended up being a lot more work than he originally anticipated, says Fink, who grew up in Lafayette Hill, Pa. But, as a result, he’s developed skills in budgeting, logistics, behind-the-scenes coordination, leadership and event planning, he’s made a diverse group of buddies along the way.  

“I have friends from every corner of the world, from completely different backgrounds and somehow Penn is unique and accepting enough for everyone I know to find their home here,” Fink says. “Many players on the team are from different majors, backgrounds and social groups, but, as a whole, we are all close and have a great time playing ball.”  

The co-presidents are in frequent contact with club representatives from the University to schedule practices and confirm invoice payments, Fink explains.  

“We have to run the budget for all of the fees, including equipment, fields, transportation, officials, the Medical Emergency Response Team and other safety precautions,” Fink, a biological basis of behavior major, says.  

They’re also frequently in touch with campus representatives from other schools to schedule games and confirm the availability of the fields on which they play.  

Part of the National Club Baseball Association, Penn’s club baseball team plays a fall and a spring season. The fall one runs from September to November and consists of a handful of games, but the spring season is when club baseball really picks up the pace, running from March through May and consisting of 13-15 games.  

The team plays in the NCBA’s Division II, District II South Region, which includes other nearby teams, such as St. Joseph’s University, Rowan University and Temple University. In addition to the league schedule, the team practices twice a week and plays other teams from the area.  

Fink says the baseball club is looking forward to a strong spring season.  

“We also plan social events and mixers with other club sports teams,” Fink says. “We host a big barbeque at the beginning and end of each season for all members.” 

Even with his busy baseball schedule, Fink has also had a work-study job at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania since his sophomore year. At HUP, he spends most of his time enrolling patients in research studies related to new ways for treating heart failure.

After he graduates in May, Fink plans to continue working in research at HUP and taking courses at Penn, but he remains undecided about what area of study to pursue in graduate school.