By Fred Kroner
Travis Tiernan was often in attendance when his older brother, Cole Fauver, played in a baseball game.
Tiernan wasn’t there as a spectator.
“Every time he had a game,” Tiernan said, “I was throwing a ball around or hitting baseballs on the other fields.”
There was a time, however, that he watched from the stands – and was in awe.
“That was the first thing that my family took me to,” Tiernan said. “I remember going to my first professional sport at Wrigley Field.”
As his interest in baseball was developing, so were his skills.
In part, he can thank Fauver, a 2019 Oakwood High School graduate.
“I started playing baseball at the age of 3,” he said. “I was as good as all the other kids that were playing with me, but what made me stand above the others is when I would practice with my older brother.
“What kept me going was just me loving the game of baseball and being around it for the majority of my life.”
After being around it for so long – and playing on travel teams such as the Champaign Dream, the Illinois Braves and now the Champaign Yard Goats – Tiernan wasn’t anxious to see his career end when his upcoming senior year at Oakwood is over.
“I’ve always thought about playing in college since a young age, but I really started to strive for it in middle school,” Tiernan said. “It was my sophomore year when I went to a college showcase and that is the first time a college coach had ever seen me play.
“I received really good feedback about my pitches and my mechanics. It made me really think this could be a real possibility.”
And, it is.
The right-handed pitcher – who is also a capable hitter – has committed to Dominican University in the Chicago suburb of River Forest. Dominican is an NCAA Division III university with approximately 3,000 students.
A member of the Dominican University coaching staff saw Tiernan pitch in a summer tournament in Joliet, and sent him a text message in the fall of 2022.
“I couldn’t have been happier talking to a college baseball coach for the first time,” he said. “At first, it was exciting knowing that my dream of playing college baseball was starting to come true.
“It was also very stressful trying to pick the right school. I’m not really sure what I expected, but I was more surprised by all the things they showed me and how college is actually like.”
Tiernan made three college visits and had two scholarship offers. The first trip was to Dominican. He also checked out Danville Area Community College. His final visit was to Lakeland University (in Plymouth, Wis.)
“At first, I wanted to set a deadline for the end of (calendar year) 2022 to commit, but as more time passed, I realized that I wasn’t 100 percent on my decision,” Tiernan said. “Now that I’ve committed, I’m glad I did it now and not later because I didn’t want to have all that tension on my shoulders while playing baseball.
“I can just go out there and play the game I love without having that in the back of my mind.”
The decision was too important to rush, he said.
“It took me some time to pick the school I was going to spend the next four years at because I didn’t want to make the wrong decision,” Tiernan said. “One of the biggest things that mattered to me was the coaching staff. That’s where Dominican University stood above others.”
It was more than the coaches that led Tiernan to committing to the River Forest school.
“When I went up to Dominican for a visit, I talked with some of the players,” he said. “They were very friendly and looked like the team I wanted to be a part of.
“I’m going to fight for a starting spot and try to be the best pitcher and teammate I can be. The coaches told me they see me coming in and pitching in big games next year. They believe my past experiences in pitching in bigger games against really high level opponents all summer has gotten me ready mentally and physically for what is ahead.”
As a junior at Oakwood, Tiernan posted a 3-4 record with a team-high 74 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings. His earned run average (1.54) was not only the best on the team, but also placed him 10th on the school’s all-time single-season list. He ranks eighth for strikeouts in a season.
As a sophomore, Tiernan had a 3-2 pitching record and tied for second on the squad in victories.
The Comets are coming off back-to-back 14-win seasons.
Tiernan was one of several current seniors who were going to be promoted to the varsity as freshmen in the spring of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic changed that as the IHSA canceled all spring sports.
“I had him (as a player) in junior high,” Oakwood High School baseball coach Ryan McFarland said. “We were looking for him to pitch in some non-conference games as a freshman to get experience.
“He has put his time in away from us and is always ready, and always improving.”
Baseball returned to the high schools in 2021, but so did other sports that aren’t traditionally offered in the spring.
“His next season was a hybrid with football (overlapping),” McFarland said. “We didn’t have him full-time as a sophomore.”
Regardless of what sport was in season, Tiernan continued to put in the work for baseball.
“One of my strengths is my work ethic,” Tiernan said. “I love to work and know that I’m getting better even if it takes time away from other things.
“Another thing is the knowledge I have of playing baseball. Ever since I was young, I always wanted to know everything about the game of baseball, so as time went on, I used that to my advantage.”
He has incorporated the knowledge into his play on the field.
“He has made the transition from being a thrower to being a pitcher,” McFarland said. “He has a live arm and has started figuring out how he wants to attack a batter.”
Though coaches will often call pitches at the high school level, McFarland is not always committed to following that path.
“With certain pitchers, we do that less and less,” the coach said. “With some, you don’t want to call (pitches) because you want them to get into a rhythm.
“Travis is one we can turn loose.”
Part of that confidence in Tiernan is that he has worked with the same catcher with the Comets most of the past two seasons, current senior Matthew Miller.
There will likely be a change behind the plate this year. Miller is dealing with an injury that could limit him to serving as the designated hitter or playing first base.
Two sophomores are vying for time behind the plate, Bryson Marcinko – who also pitches – and Adam Watson, a transfer from Schlarman Academy, in Danville.
As a freshman, Watson was the starting catcher last year when the Comets played Schlarman.
Tiernan has a variety of strengths.
“He has three or four pitches he can work with and he doesn’t miss the strike zone,” McFarland said. “His command of multiple pitches, and hitting the spots is important. It’s good when you don’t let them get on (base) for free.”
Former St. Joseph-Ogden pitcher Colton Carr has joined the Oakwood coaching staff this spring and is helping to tutor Tiernan.
“Travis is able to pull some information off of him,” McFarland said.
Tiernan will take advantage of anyone who can assist him in moving forward.
“I just need to keep working hard like I have been, and reach out to get as much help and knowledge from people I trust about pitching to try and make this a reality,” he said.
When not on the mound this spring, Tiernan will remain in the Comets’ lineup. He also plays first base and third base.
He is thankful to finish his prep career with seven other seniors who are also playing baseball.
“I don’t really have a favorite moment, but I would say sharing the field with my friends that I’ve known since I was 5 years old,” Tiernan said. “We all know each other like brothers and playing with people that compete makes me better every day.”
Tiernan will concentrate on pitching once he reaches the collegiate level, which is fine with him.
“Pitching has been my favorite since middle school,” he said. “I love pitching because of how much you are involved in the game.
“You control the game, and you have to focus on every pitch.”
Once he devotes his energies to one position, he believes he will continue to develop.
“By focusing only on pitching, I think I will see a big improvement in the first year and the years to come,” he said.
Besides baseball and football, Tiernan has also played soccer.
“I’m not really sure how I got so into baseball,” he said. “My dad’s favorite sport was basketball and my mom played some softball, but not to the extent as I did.
“Personally, I think baseball is the hardest sport, so that made me want to be the best at it.”
In Tiernan’s early years in baseball, he didn’t see a long future with the game.
“When I was younger, I never ever thought I could be good enough to play a college sport,” Tiernan said, “until I realized that I was actually pretty good at baseball and could pursue it in the future.
“My freshman year is when I made it a goal for me to play college baseball. I never loved a sport the way I loved baseball.”
The distance from Fithian to River Forest is approximately 160 miles. That will add to his adjustment as he moves away from home.
“I do believe that will make it harder, but my family will always be supporting me even if they are hours away,” Tiernan said. “One of the biggest things I wanted before committing was the distance away from home.
“I didn’t want to be far from home because I’ve never been away from my family for more than a couple of days.”
The draw about Dominican is the proximity to Chicago.
“Chicago is my favorite city and being less than 20 minutes away is amazing,” Tiernan said. “My favorite team is the Chicago Cubs, so it’s great to be close to them.”
Tiernan plans on majoring in computer science.
As for his future, it depends in part on how far he can go with baseball.
“I see myself being a major league pitcher or being a software engineer,” Tiernan said.
