Oct. 5, 2005

QUEENS, NY - When a player falls to injury, or in this case, illness, the reaction of his friends, family and teammates can be a very special thing. For St. John's baseball player Matt Tosoni, all of his supporters and about 40,000 others gathered in recognition of him and the over 140,000 other young people in America who suffer from Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. They met at Shea Stadium before the New York Mets took on the Atlanta Braves last month for the "Mets Strike Out Crohn's & Colitis" event.

Assistant baseball coach Mike Hampton helped gather the members of the Red Storm baseball team in an effort to support their teammate and raise awareness for Crohn's & Colitis victims nationwide. They volunteered their time and energy collecting donations for the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of Long Island, and they purchased their own tickets to the Mets baseball game that day to do so. By selling blue wristbands and giving away T-shirts, the players not only worked towards that objective of raising money, they also made the people who wear and see the items every day aware of its sometimes-crippling effects.

Before the game's first pitch, the entire St. John's team, children who suffer from the disease and their friends and families were recognized, and the Red Storm baseball team was commended days letter by Edda Ramsdel, Regional Executive Director of the Crohn's & Colitis Fourndation of Long Island, in a letter to St. John's administrators and coaches.

"[Matt] is a wonderful role model for any young person facing adversity and overcoming it, "Ramsdell stated in the letter. "Many unknowing people feel these children are limited by their diseases. Matt proves otherwise - that with determination, support, friendship and faith, they can do anything!"

Ramsdell went on to say that "the entire St. John's family should be very proud of the Red Storm baseball team" and that "coaches Hampton and [pitching coach Scott] Brown are to be commended for the excellent spirit of team work and camaraderie they engender in the team."

Hampton was glad to help the cause and showed the utmost optimism that Tosoni would make a full recovery and wear the St. John's red and white again.

"It was a great day for us," Hampton said, "especially after seeing what Matt has gone through over the last year or so. He's got 150% in his heart, and we're hopeful he can come back out and give us 100% on the field again."