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Best friends, baseball and bleached hair

Mark Lauro and Pete Loch have been best friends since their freshman year of high school. They took that friendship and turned it into sharing their collegiate baseball careers together.

we approach the end of Division III Week, Albion Athletics is proud to celebrate what makes the DIII experience unique and rewarding. Baseball seniors Mark Lauro and Pete Loch have been best friends since their freshman year of high school. The two talk about the journey through University of Detroit Jesuit, transitioning to college and what it's been like navigating their collegiate baseball experience – together. 

Lauro is the first baseman for the Briton baseball team, as Loch has spent his career as a right handed pitcher. Lauro is currently hitting .300 with 33 hits this season. 

"We met freshman year in math class, Mark sat in front of me and almost all of our initial interactions he would turn around to talk to the kid who sat behind me," recalled Loch. "I didn't even know Mark at all, I would just be the middleman."

It went from math class to hockey before the pair became the left side of the infield for the UDJ freshman baseball team. Despite Loch being a pitcher only in college, the two were "a lock down left side."

With their friendship slowly blooming throughout hockey season, Lauro was the shortstop and Loch was the third baseman on the freshman baseball team. 

"He was the hockey manager all four years, and with that and baseball, we were spending a lot of time together," explained Lauro. "We were together for like 10 hours a day. There were days I saw him more than my own family."

Loch and Lauro made it through four years at UDJ just as close as they were since year one. Even their senior season of baseball was spent with Loch leading off and Lauro batting second. They were the captains for their high school baseball team, as Loch made the switch to center field. But the looming question lingered throughout much of their senior year – what happens next?

"We were both getting recruited and told to come visit Albion," remembered Loch. "Going into the process, I don't think either of us based our decision off the other, but it made the most sense for us to eventually be together."

"When I first came my mom immediately said no," said Lauro. "It was too expensive and in the middle of nowhere."

Loch on the other hand, was completely sold on Albion from the jump. Off the bat, he knew this was his landing spot for the next four years.

"I actually called [Coach] Carden at a hockey practice Mark was skating in," said Pete. "I committed in January and didn't tell Mark … or really anyone."

"Yeah I found out on Twitter," explained Mark. "I immediately texted him." 

Mark didn't make his college decision until May, when he finally settled on Albion. Despite what most may think or say about living with your high school best friend, the pair thought it was a no-brainer they'd be living together. 

"Naturally, we were going to live together," said Loch. "Everyone told us you can't do it with your best friend, but we knew we'd be fine. We're really similar people so it was really easy rooming together."

When Loch and Lauro arrived at Albion, the two found comfort in each other as they settled into college. Whether it was a workout partner, someone to throw with or just enjoying their first weeks of college, they always had someone to go with. 

"It was just nice to always have someone to go places with freshman year," explained Loch. "We're very similar people and we're on the same page when it comes to school, life, pretty much whatever I'm thinking Mark is thinking. 

Loch and Lauro are the two captains on the baseball team this year, as their leadership both on and off the field is something that cannot be replicated. Loch serves as the Student Athletic Director in SAAC, while Lauro is a guy constantly in the cages working on his swing. 

"I think for us, being the leaders of the team, we've been doing it for so long that not much has changed," said Lauro. "The example the upperclassmen set early on in our careers showed us the blueprint for how to do things and what the expectations and standards are."

This will be Loch's final season, as he will graduate in December. Lauro has already announced he will take his fifth year next season – the first time in eight years the pair will be separated.

"Being injured this year has been really tough, just at this point I have to gotta accept it," said Loch. "Whatever I have left, I'm going to leave it all out there because that's what I owe my teammates, especially Mark, Carden and Rix … those guys are the reason I came here."

There isn't a doubt amongst Albion baseball of the legacy the two will leave. The leadership they exemplify, from bleaching the team's hair to making sure everyone is at workouts and organizing batting practice in the fall, is something that won't ever be replicated.

Maybe that's all the proof you need to share your college experience with your best friend. 
 
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Players Mentioned

Mark Lauro

#2 Mark Lauro

IF
Senior
Pete Loch

#3 Pete Loch

RHP
Senior

Players Mentioned

Mark Lauro

#2 Mark Lauro

Senior
IF
Pete Loch

#3 Pete Loch

Senior
RHP