More on Vilardo's Road to Purdue: Suburban Life Media | Daily Pennsylvanian
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Chicagoland native and 2014 All-Ivy League second baseman Michael Vilardo has had his graduate transfer waiver approved by the NCAA and is eligible to play for Purdue baseball during the 2015 season.
Vilardo was a two-year starter at second base for the University of Pennsylvania from 2013-14. He batted over .300 both seasons and led the Ivy League with 55 hits in 2013. The Cary, Ill., native graduated with a bachelor's degree in philosophy, politics and economics last month.
Vilardo was a standout performer in baseball and ice hockey at Cary-Grove High School in the northwest suburbs of Chicago. He played for the Team USA U18 hockey team during the 2009-10 season, was recruited to play hockey at Ohio State and began his college experience as a member of the baseball team at the University of Richmond in the fall of 2011. But after departing Richmond and a stint playing for the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League, he decided to pursue a baseball opportunity at the University of Pennsylvania. However, to be eligible for the 2013 college baseball season at Penn, he had to earn an associate degree before enrolling. He did so by taking two years of credits in one calendar year, graduating with an associate's in general education from McHenry County College in Crystal Lake, Ill.
Midyear baseball transfers are typically not eligible to play in the spring semester at the Division I level. But as a college graduate, Vilardo's situation is unique. He's only a junior in terms of athletic class despite already having his associate's and bachelor's degrees. He took classes in the summer of 2014 at Penn and a full course load this past fall to assure he would graduate at the end of the 2014 fall semester. He'll have until the spring of 2016 to use his remaining two seasons of collegiate eligibility in baseball. After graduating with a 3.4 grade-point average at Penn, he's pursuing a master's of science in management at Purdue.
Graduate students are not permitted to compete for intercollegiate athletic teams at Ivy League institutions, another factor in Vilardo's decision to transfer.
Vilardo batted .304 with 17 extra-base hits and 23 RBI to earn Second Team All-Ivy League honors and help lead the Quakers to a 24-17 record in 2014. Penn finished tied for first in the Ivy League's Lou Gehrig Division with a league-best 15-5 record. As a freshman, he was named the Big 5 Rookie of the Year after batting .320 with 19 doubles and 31 RBI. Philadelphia's Big 5 consists of LaSalle, Penn, St. Joseph's, Temple and Villanova. The second baseman was also a two-time All-Ivy League selection by College Sports Madness, highlighted by first-team honors in 2014.
As a high school senior, Vilardo was named the Northwest Herald's Baseball and Hockey Player of the Year as well its overall prep Athlete of the Year for 2010-11. He was a First Team All-State honoree by the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association and Prep Baseball Report as a senior after batting .436 with 15 home runs, 57 RBI and 30 stolen bases as a senior. He finished his prep career with a Cary-Grove record 21 homers. On the ice as a senior, he recorded 73 goals and 43 assists in only 28 games to garner Illinois Player of the Year honors from Hockey Stop.
Vilardo becomes the 13th current Boilermaker to hail from the Chicagoland area, joining a list that includes the likes of fellow upperclassmen Eddie De LaRiva (Blue Island), Joe Eichmann (Libertyville), Patrick Kenney (Gurnee), Mike Lutz (North Barrington), Tim McElroy (Roselle), Jack Picchiotti (Oak Park) and Kyle Wood (Orland Park). Vilardo and Kenney at one time were teammates on the Reds Midwest Scout Team.
Meanwhile, Vilardo also joins a group of transfers striving to make an impact for Purdue this season. Shane Bryant (Indiana Wesleyan), Brett Carlson (Austin Peay), Brian Ghiselli (Miami Univ.), Justin Gubser (Cañada CC), James Jewell (Wabash Valley), Alex Lyons (Vincennes), Daniel Sander (Vincennes) and Robb Woodcock (Palomar CC) are also expected to make their official team debuts this spring after beginning their college careers elsewhere. All have at least two years of eligibility remaining.
The official start date for full team practices around the country is Friday, Jan. 23. The 2015 season begins Friday, Feb. 13. The Boilermakers open with a three-game series at Western Carolina.
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