Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor

There’s something to be said about a strong first impression, or the gut feeling that just can’t be ignored. Recent Forest Lake High School graduate Drew Cremisino experienced these thoughts and emotions during his senior year when he was narrowing his list of colleges.

Last fall, when Cremisino spoke to the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, there was already the appeal of what the school could offer both academically and athletically. Top it off with legendary baseball coach Dennis Denning leading the Tommies to years of success and a string of postseason titles, and it was going to be difficult for another college to knock St. Thomas off its perch.

“They kind of started off at the top,” Cremisino said. “I knew that it would be a pretty good fit for me.”

Thrown into the discussion were schools interested in Cremisino’s all-conference basketball skills, along with Division II programs hoping he would bring his all-conference baseball talents to their campus. But when it all shook out, there was St. Thomas.

Cremisino said those other colleges just didn’t measure up when it came to academics, athletics, and “environment-wise.”

Cremisino’s track record suggests that he knows what he’s talking about: besides the Suburban East Conference awards, Cremisino also earned High Honors from FLHS, the St. Thomas Academic Scholarship, the Italian-American Club Foundation Scholarship, the Forest Lake Area Athletic Scholarship, the Hallberg Family Foundation Scholarship, and the United States Army Distinguished Athlete Award.

It’s safe to say that Cremisino takes the student portion of the phrase student-athlete rather seriously.

Same goes for the athlete part.

“I definitely wanted to go to a winning program,” Cremisino said. “Their program goes to the national tourney, (and) they win their conference every year.”

A quick look at the St. Thomas web site supports Cremisino’s comments: “The Tommies won the 2001 NCAA championship after placing second nationally in 1999 and 2000. They were ranked first nationally, for the first time in school history. They’ve had eight All-Americans in the last 10 years with four players picked in the MLB amateur draft.”

In addition to those statistics, St. Thomas also just completed its 11th 30-win season in 12 years.

We told you Cremisino knew what he was talking about.

Now he says he just has to perform once practice begins and he will be given a chance to earn playing time, most likely in the outfield. But Cremisino said he’s been almost too busy this summer to think about heading off to college.

“I’m excited,” he said, “but I’m also going to miss high school life.”

With exactly two months remaining until his fall classes begin, Cremisino can simply look back to that telling first impression that led him to St. Thomas.

It’s a good fit for him.

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