Photo by Sam Thiel Marshall’s Nick Macchio poses for a photo before signing his National Letter of Intent to play baseball at Mount Marty College on Thursday.

MARSHALL – With a quick scribble of the pen, Nick Macchio’s next step to his athletic career was complete.

The Marshall senior inked his National Letter of Intent on Thursday morning to play baseball at Mount Marty College in Yankton, S.D., surrounded by his family, teammates and coaches.

Macchio said he was relieved to have this day come and is excited for his next chapter.

“It’s a big relief,” Macchio said. “I’ve been waiting for this for a while, so it’s exciting. I’m excited to start my career there and it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

The past few years, Macchio has helped lead the way for the Tigers on the diamond, anchoring the catcher’s spot. He hit .353 at the plate with 18 total hits, including five doubles last season.

Macchio added it was a long process, but what drew him to the Lancers was the proximity of the campus and just felt at home with the program.

“I wanted a school closer to home and it’s within reasonable distance. I also wanted a school I could obiviously play baseball at and they have the major I’m looking for in sports management,” Macchio said. “It just seemed like a perfect fit; I love the coaches, they’ve got a great staff, a great facility, great program, so it’s going to be exciting.”

Macchio said his coaches and teammates have had a big impact on him and they’ve helped guide him both on and off the field.

“They’ve really guided me. Just every coach (coach Maxwell, coach Pollock, Schnaible), they’ve all helped guide me in a certain way and tell me what to do, what’s right and what’s wrong,” Macchio said. “Then my teammates for always having my back whenever and being able to play as a team and go at it with 100 percent.”

Before he dons the catcher’s equipment next year, Macchio still has one final season with the Tiger baseball team. He said he’s looking forward to having another opportunity to see what they can do as a team and hopes they can make another deep postseason run.

“We’re going to be a pretty balanced team this year. I think we’re pretty even all around, hitting up-and-down the lineup,” Macchio said. “I think we have a real shot to go far in sections and make it to state. It’s not as young of a team as last year, but there are still some pretty young players on it and we’ve got a lot of depth.”