Senior catcher Lawson Alwan doesn't mind doing the dirty work at Notre Dame
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD/WYZZ) – Senior Lawson Alwan knows his days on the baseball field at Notre Dame are numbered.
And that number is getting smaller.
'I feel like over the last three of four years, every day I've been up here from 7 in the morning to 7 at night. It's crazy. It's weird,' said Alwan. 'I don't think it has hit me yet. I don't know when it'll hit me.'
Alwan, who will graduate from high school next month, has been a fixture on Notre Dame athletic fields for four years. He was a captain for both the baseball and football teams this year.
He's a guy who has never taken the easy way out, playing some of the hardest positions on his teams. He's a standout catcher in baseball and starred as a fullback on the football team, where he also played linebacker and was the team's kicker.
In a playoff game at Rochester last November, he blocked a kick, scored a touchdown, and made an extra point in the final 1:38 to help his Irish win.
'Fullback, that's the gritty work. I was blocking or getting the ball. I have to do my job every play,' said Alwan. 'Same with being the catcher. Every play, I'm involved. It's important to me.'
PND won five baseball games Alwan's freshman year. Last season, he helped the Irish win a regional and advance to sectionals.
And he's not just the guy tackling the dirty jobs on the field. He's also willing to do the dirty work away from the actoin.
Long after the final out of Saturday's one-run loss to Dee-Mack, Alwan grabbed a broom and was sweeping out the dugout.
'Even off the field, you don't realize the type of person he is. Why is he the last person in the locker room every night? He's in their doing laundry for the entire team. I learned that a couple years ago,' said Notre Dame baseball coach Jon Lowry. 'What kind of guy, who plays the hardest positions, is also doing laundry for his teammates? He's willing to do the work, no matter what the work is.'
It's just the way Alwan wants it.
'That's how I'd have it. I want these guys to trust me. I trust every one of them,' said Alwan. 'That's what a team is all about.'
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