ROCK HILL - The 1992-93 college baseball season saw both the start of one career and the finale of another for the Appels of Rock Hill. Twenty-one-year-old Donald finished out his senior season at Hartwick College in grand fashion, batting .302 with three home runs and 28 RBI in 25 games. Hartwick missed out on the NCAA College World Series by one game, finishing the season with a 20-13 record. Donald was voted to the All-East Coast Atlantic Conference team and holds the record for most home runs in a career for the Oneonta-based school. Don batted over .300 for three of his four years at school, batting .325 as a freshman and a .305 during his junior season.

There was a good chance Hartwick would’ve qualified for the NCAA tournament had it not been for an off-the-field incident. On Mother’s Day, six members of the Hartwick squad were ambushed by twelve men. In the ensuing melee, Donald suffered concussions, the starting shortstop had his nose broken and the starting first baseman was lost for the season with a broken jaw. “We lost one of our better players out of the lineup and that loss cost us a shot at the NCAA’s,” relates Don.

The highlight of the season for the elder Appel occurred during the team’s Florida trip. Against Division II Hillsdale College, Don delivered a pinch-hit RBI in game one. Don finished the day with a three run home run and a grand slam in game two.

Younger brother Douglas kicked off his freshman season at Monmouth College, in West Long Beach, New Jersey. The younger Appel saw limited action behind the plate for the Division I club, garnering 5 hits in 21 plate appearances.

Monmouth’s starting catcher was the nation’s seventh leading hitter this season. There is a possibility of the No. 1 catcher moving to second base next season. Regardless, Doug looks forward to breaking into the starting lineup this fall. “We’ve got a new coach this year. Hopefully, with a new coach I could beat the other guy out,” states Doug.

Doug’s best game this year was a 3-for-4 performance against Manhattan. He had a double in that game.

Last summer both Donald and Doug played for the Newburgh Mets of the Hudson Valley Rookie League. After a slow start, Don finished the summer batting .360. Doug was voted to the all-star team and led the team in hitting with a .450 average.

This year’s summer league season was cut short due to a conflict with the team’s general manager, which led a vast majority of the players to leave the squad. However, Don and Doug can still be found in their front yard taking batting practice off their batting machine. While Don now just swings for the fun of it, his younger sibling takes aim at duplicating his brother’s college feats.