Luca Valvo
(Courtesy of UW Athletics)
There’s no “I” in team, and nobody exemplifies that quite like rookie pitcher Luca Valvo. Last weekend, the baseball team shut out the Brock Badgers in Waterloo, 2-1 and 4-2. Valvo allowed just one earned run and struck out six Badgers, and is now among the top five pitchers in the OUA in terms of wins and walks and hits per inning pitched.
Playing alongside his older brother, outfielder Nico Valvo, the Niagara Falls native began playing at the age of seven and fell in love with the sport after watching his brother play.
With a few offers from American schools, he came to UW to pursue his passion for engineering, where he was welcomed with open arms by the baseball team.
“We encourage each other to play our best. I’ve been on teams that don’t [play well together] and teams that do, and this is one that does. The older pitchers like [Max Todd], [Carson Hepburn], and [Aidan Armitage] are proactive in helping the younger guys,” he said.
Despite being a rookie who’s in OUA all-star conversations in his first month of university, Valvo maintains his humility.
“Baseball’s a team sport, and I wouldn’t have this success if not for the team. We have faith in each other is the big thing, the whole team is defending, not just me.”
The team is putting up numbers academically as well. In 2024, 27 of 47 players were on the honour roll.
Valvo said he turns to his teammates when he needs help with schoolwork.
“I’d say academics is a huge part of our culture. I work on assignments after practice and our coaches understand when someone can’t go to practice because of school.”
The baseball team will finish its regular season on Sept. 27 in the Battle of Waterloo against the 2-7 Laurier Golden Hawks.
When asked about his team’s goal for the postseason, Valvo gave a heartfelt message. “We want to win the championship. It’d be huge for me as a first-year but also I think we deserve it. Our coaches work hard and they deserve it. We’re going for nationals this year.”
Zach Burt
(Courtesy of UW Athletics)
Another team with a winning culture, men’s golf player Zach Burt helped the team take home their first gold medal and first podium finish of the season at the Western Invitational on Sept. 15 with a low score of 67.
He then took home an individual silver medal at Sunday’s Brock Invitational, scoring a 68.
In his fifth year of recreation and sports business, Burt picked up his first golf club at age seven, and has been playing competitively since age 12.
He knew he’d be a good fit for UW. The team’s history of success, winning a championship in 2023 and five championships overall in the last fifteen years, and strong alumni support attracted Burt to the Warriors.
Putting his head down and getting the work done is how he got his silver medal and naming of athlete of the week for the second time in his career.
“I just focused on how I was playing. I didn’t care too much about scores or anything like that. This past summer was the hardest I’ve ever worked and it’s really nice to see it pay off,” he said.
He praised the team’s head coach Tara Savoie for creating an inclusive team environment. Even golfers who don’t attend events come out for practices and support one another.
The community effort will be necessary to win a team championship this year. Falling to eighth place in the second round of last year’s contest, the team is hoping to shoot back up to the number one spot. Suffice it to say, Burt is working tirelessly to get there.
The team is co-hosting an invitational this weekend with Laurier. Warriors fans should keep their eye out for Burt who’s looking to upgrade his silver medal to a gold one.
