Baseball: St. Charles East grad Manske savoring his last season at Aurora U.

The clock is ticking.

In less than a month, Kyle Manske will have thrown his last pitch as a collegiate baseball player.

A 2012 graduate of St. Charles East, Manske is a senior member of the Aurora University baseball team.

The left-hander currently owns a 3-3 record after Saturday's no-decision against Lakeland College.

Aurora - 14-16 overall and 5-7 in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference action - swept last weekend's doubleheader by scores of 7-4 and 8-5.

Manske started the opener and allowed 4 runs in 6 innings, recording a season-high 7 strikeouts without walking a batter.

At this point, however, statistics lose their value behind a more significant number - there are roughly 25 days remaining before Manske takes off his baseball uniform one final time.

"I started playing baseball when I was four years old," said Manske. "I love the game. To me, there is no better feeling than going out on the field."

Thanks in part to baseball, Manske has had an opportunity to expand his horizons.

"I've traveled to New York, Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Indiana for games and tournaments," said Manske. "I've met a lot of people and have made a ton of friends throughout the years."

One of his most memorable trips came earlier this season when the Spartans traveled to Arizona.

"We took our spring trip to Tucson," he said. "It was one great trip."

On the field, Manske finished with a 3-0 record in Arizona with victories over MacMurray, Simpson and Bethany Lutheran.

The 6-foot, 240-pound southpaw tossed six innings of shutout ball in his season debut against MacMurray, fanned against Simpson, and went seven innings against Bethany Lutheran.

However, Manske will long remember the trip for other reasons.

"It was the first time I've played that far west," said the St. Charles native. "I saw the Cubs play a spring training game in Peoria (Ariz.) and got the chance to meet (Hall of Famer) Fergie Jenkins."

At St. Charles East, Manske worked his way to the top of the rotation during his senior year.

Playing for coach Len Asquini's team, Manske finished with an 8-2 mark as the Saints (25-11) captured Upstate Eight Conference River Division and Class 4A regional championships.

Manske fired a complete-game shutout during the Saints' 5-0 regional semifinal victory over Hoffman Estates.

He was a tough-luck losing pitcher in the Saints' 4-1 sectional semifinal defeat against Schaumburg at Boomers Stadium.

After graduation, Manske spent two years at Blackhawk Community College in the Quad Cities.

"I wanted to go to school and make an immediate impact," he said. "I wanted to make the top three in the rotation - and that's exactly what I did."

Manske then chose Aurora University primarily for his studies. He is majoring in criminal justice with a minor in Homeland Security.

"I want to have a career where I'm helping people," said Manske, whose father, Rich, is a longtime firefighter in Arlington Heights.

"All of the teachers here (at Aurora) have great backgrounds in the criminal justice field."

Last season, Manske compiled a 5-3 record in his first year at Aurora.

Staying relatively close to home, Manske has also had an opportunity to pitch in front of friends and family, including his mom, Lynn.

"I don't regret anything I have done," Manske said of going the junior college route after high school.

He has experienced his share of difficulties upon his return from Arizona.

"In one of our first games back, I got hit by a liner right above the kneecap," said Manske. "I was told that if it had been hit an inch lower, I probably would have shattered it (kneecap)."

One week later, he felt a shooting pain travel along his side while warming up in the bullpen before a game.

The diagnosis - a strained oblique muscle.

After suffering back-to-back losses to Concordia-Chicago and Concordia-Wisconsin, Manske got back on track with a quality start against Lakeland.

A self-confessed "huge Cubs fan," Manske has enjoyed his journey as a ballplayer.

"I love to play baseball," he said. "I don't want to give it up but I'm also starting to look at the big picture and at my priorities in life."

Manske will graduate on May 8.

"The real world is hitting me in about 3½ weeks," he said. "This is the last hurrah. I can't believe how time flies."

Manske realizes he has been extremely fortunate to play a game he truly loves for so long a time.

"I've never taken it for granted," he said. "I've been blessed to play this game."

Craig Brueske can be reached at csb4k@hotmail.com.