It would make sense to start a story about
Tim Mackey on the baseball field.
After all, he's a senior third baseman who bats second for an Aurora University team that is expected to compete at the national level this year. Head Coach Shaun Neitzel considers him a complete package as a player.
But that might make it appear Mackey is defined by the game he has played and loved since he was a child growing up in Rosemont, Ill. And Mackey is anything but a one-dimensional jock.
“Tim is everything you want and expect out of a student-athlete and a whole lot more,” Neitzel said. “We've got a lot of great student-athletes on our campus, but he's near the top of the list as far as all he's involved with and how he represents our program, our department, and most importantly, our university.”
Mackey takes his academics as seriously as anything in his life. A business and marketing major with a professional sales minor, he carries a 3.62 grade-point average despite the demanding schedule of being a student-athlete.
He has been named a Northern Athletics Conference baseball Scholar-Athlete all three years for the
Spartans, and he is a lock to earn that honor again as a senior.
And last year Mackey was one of five juniors selected for the Aurora University Dunham Scholars program, a two-year opportunity that stresses leadership and community involvement. Students are “chosen not so much for their academic standing alone, as for character, work ethic and potential.”
“This has been one of the best experiences of my life,” Mackey said of being a Dunham Scholar, which includes a weekly two-hour leadership development class. “Just to be in a room with 10 people with such strong leadership abilities and to learn from fellow students is something you don't really get to do much in school.”
Mackey doesn't do anything halfway. The Dunham Scholars program emphasizes community service, and Mackey takes that commitment seriously.
Among his many involvements, Mackey organized a contingent of fellow Dunham Scholars and baseball players to participate in an annual walkathon that benefits Aurora-based Wayside Cross Ministries in February.
“He organized a group that ended up having the largest number of participants at the walkathon,” said Professor Shawn Green, who helps lead the Dunham Scholars program. “He made that happen.
“He genuinely likes to serve. He's very positive and constructive in his demeanor, so he's an encourager. He doesn't have to push people to do things, he encourages them. That's a good part of being a servant leader.”
Mackey said his participation in the Dunham Scholars program has benefitted him on the baseball field as well.
“I feel like I've become a better leader through the program,” Mackey said. “I get to use that on the baseball team, which has been great for me. Coming in as a freshman, I wasn't as vocal as I should have been. Now I feel more comfortable with my teammates, so I can communicate effectively.”
That becomes an even more valuable asset this season. As a senior, Mackey is automatically one of the team leaders. Younger players always look to the seniors for guidance. Mackey exhibited that early when the Spartans began practicing for the season, which started March 3 with a seven-day, 10-game spring trip to Florida.
The Spartans have made two consecutive trips to the NCAA Division III national tournament and have captured two NAC tournament crowns in a row. Many observers expect even more this year from a team that won 30 games a season ago.
“We got a lot of preseason hype, which is cool to see, of course,” Mackey said. “But it comes back to the senior leaders to keep everything in perspective. What you get out of preseason hype is a target, that's about it.”
What you get out of
Tim Mackey is a whole lot more.
— Paul LaTour
