Conquering cancer
Baseball helps Schepis defeat disease
When life threw him a curve, Tyler Schepis leaned on baseball to conquer childhood cancer. Diagnosed with Stage 3 Hodgkin lymphoma, the South Fayette infielder is in his first year of remission from the disease.
“In baseball you need perseverance, mental toughness and a lot of resilience to be successful because it’s a very frustrating sport. There is a lot of failure in baseball. A lot of ups and down,” said Schepis
“So I had to attack my cancer in a similar way to baseball. I had to have a competitive mindset. Be tough and focused. It wasn’t really a question of am I going to get better. It was I am going to beat this because I am going to fight as hard as I can. I was going to be a warrior. Do whatever it takes.”
In 2022, Schepis was doing whatever was necessary for him to excel on the diamond, but in April, he discovered some “odd-shaped lumps” on the left side of his neck. Because Schepis had just recovered from an illness, his mother, Brenda, who is a nurse, correctly confirmed the condition as swollen nodes. Nevertheless, blood work and a chest x-ray were ordered. Though the tests reflected “mostly normal” results, Schepis met with a specialist at the hematology/oncology center at UPMC-Children’s Hospital.
Adopting a wait-and-see attitude, Schepis exhibited no further symptoms until the middle of August when he experienced extreme itchiness in his feet and legs. “I was ripping my skin open because of how bad it was,” he said. Schepis also had “little bumps” in his neck, smaller than the original lumps.
An oncologist ordered a biopsy. A week later Schepis received dreaded news. The cancer, which started on the left side of his neck, had spread through his chest and down to abdominal organs and surrounding areas.
“There are four stages and mine was the third,” Schepis explained. “So I guess it would be considered the second worst.”
South Fayette baseball manager Ken Morgan recalled hearing the terrible news. “It was a Thursday in early September,” he said with clarity. Morgan was attending the “Backyard Brawl” between football rivals Pitt and West Virginia when his cellphone rang.
“It’s scary to get that call,” he said. “I was so upset I left the game. I didn’t know what to do or what to expect.”
Schepis knew exactly what action he would take. Stay the course.
“At first it’s a shock. There are so many raw emotions,” he said. “You’re wondering what’s going on with my life. Am I going to let this overcome me or am I going to fight back. For me the best thing was to keep things as normal as possible. Baseball was that one way to do that because it’s always been a part of my life.”
Schepis did continue to play. The Saturday after he had surgery to place a port into his chest and he embarked on the first of his 12 chemotherapy treatments, Schepis played in a doubleheader against Baldwin. He collected at least one hit in each of the fall ball games.
“It was an amazing day,” Morgan said.
During the ensuing six months, good days were few and far between. The chemo regimen, which started on a Thursday and continued every other week through the end of February, took its toll.
Though he continued to attend school and maintain a 4.1 GPA, Schepis took every Thursday and Friday off. Depending on how he felt after being hooked up to a machine that streamed 10 different types of medicine through his body for up to seven to 10 hours, a Monday absence was also allowed.
“The chemo that I received was very, very intense. Brutal,” Schepis said. “A lot of it is a blur but after one treatment after another I could slowly feel myself getting drained, more tired and nauseated. I just tried to persevere, push through and remember all the support I had while I battled through this adversity.”
Of course, Ron and Brenda Schepis were their son’s biggest advocates. They never left his side. His baseball coaches held a game in his honor. His teammates and friends created t-shirts and sold them as a fundraiser.
“There was an overwhelming amount of support and that gave me courage,” Schepis said. “It was really motivating and that really helped my mindset knowing that I had all these people pulling for me.
“My parents especially tried to encourage me and they made sure I was in good mental health because it’s a really lonely process,” Schepis emphasized. “That was one of my biggest takeaways. You are really alone. You can have so many people cheering for you and rooting you on but, at the end of the day, it really was just me by myself, especially when I was the one getting the treatments. Feeling sick and drained and trying to stay motivated are difficult, but the hardest thing to deal with is the loneliness.”
A social game
Since he started playing at age 4, baseball has been a way for Schepis to socialize. Because it was his father’s and grandfather’s favorite sport, they decided it would be an ideal game for him. Watching the Pirates play, however, didn’t necessarily sell Schepis on the game.
“When I picked up a ball and bat for the first time, I fell in love with the game,” he said.
Beyond Little League, Schepis’s passion for the game has spanned six additional years as he played AAU baseball during the summer months with the Pittsburgh Titans as well as varsity baseball at South Fayette.
“I love just being out there on the field with all my friends. We always have a good time. Obviously winning is a plus, but having fun is huge,” he said.
This spring, Schepis is having a blast. He is back to anchoring the infield at second base for the playoff-bound Lions. By virtue of its sweep against Upper St. Clair, 3-0, and 7-5, South Fayette finished runner-up to Bethel Park in the Section 2 standings and will commence with post-season play May 13 in the WPIAL Class 5A tournament.
Playing baseball, a sport in which he excels and that he loves, provides comfort for Schepis. He says it felt natural to him to be back on the diamond.
“I wasn’t like the sick kid anymore. The cancer kid,” he said. “I could be myself and the ball player I always felt that I was. I didn’t have to feel different. Like an outcast. I could keep doing everything I loved to do and that was play the game of baseball.”
Through it all, Schepis said that baseball has been his savior. The sport helped him get better and he wants to return the favor by helping the Lions compete for a championship.
“I saw the support my friends gave me immediately. So many reached out to me during my treatments. I just got to see how great people they really were. It inspired me.
“Whenever I was healthy and able to get back out onto the field, I really wanted to play for them. Whenever I would step up to the plate or whenever I would go to throw the ball, I would be thinking that I am out here for them. They really helped me get through a tough time. So I am going to do everything I can to help them too, now.”
Attitude, desire and dedication are the assets that Schepis possesses that aides the Lions most. They are more critical than his current .464 on-base plus slugging percentage.
“Tyler is a scrappy, blue-collar player,” said Morgan. “He doesn’t possess a large physical stature but he certainly gets the most out of what God’s blessed him with. He’s always dirty, diving and selling out for balls. He’s a kid who battles at the plate and is willing to do whatever it takes for the team to do well.
“Since he was a freshman, he has always been the first kid at practice. He’s a real example of dedication to always getting better and he’s one of our leaders. A vocal presence,” Morgan continued. “I’m extremely proud of him and how he’s matured into a well-rounded young man.
“His diagnosis was a huge shocker to everyone but to see him absolutely attack the disease with such a positive attitude is inspiring. It’s a testament to his will to overcome and that’s going to serve him well throughout life.”
Life after baseball
Because he will attend the University of South Carolina in the fall and major in mechanical engineering, Schepis will opt to play club or intramural baseball. Eventually, he hopes to earn a masters degree then work in a management position for an engineering company.
“I don’t think there’s been a more influential experience in life that will prepare you for the real world (than cancer) because it’s such a struggle. You go through the lowest of lows. You get to see what it’s like to go through hardships that most other people don’t. It’s been a real eye-opening experience. Now, I realize how insignificant some things really are and I have a more positive outlook when something inconvenient comes up. Overall, I think the experience has made me better off.”
The episode has also made Schepis an enthusiastic and energized crusader for cancer awareness.
While at South Fayette, he participated in Mini-Thon, which recently raised a national record $338,205.15 for Four Diamonds, an organization dedicated to the fight against pediatric cancer. Additionally, he led a team in raising more than $50,000 in funds for the Leukemia, Lymphoma Society. Plus, he served as a keynote speaker at a Coaches Vs. Cancer event, another benefit for the disease.
“We raised a ton of money,” Schepis enthused. “I think it’s important to give back to people who need it the most.”
What cancer patients need the most is encouragement, says Schepis. The biggest advice he offers is to “keep faith” because there is nothing more important than maintaining a positive outlook.
“Obviously, you don’t choose to get sick. When it happens, you can either cower in fear or you can say I am going to fight this and get better. Surrounding yourself with people who will lift you up and people who will love you is also extremely crucial.
“No matter what your situation, there is always hope, too,” he continued. “You should always keep battling and always do your best.
“I definitely wondered ‘why me?’ before, but then I realized that there are a lot of people that have it worse than I do. There really is no excuse, especially in this situation or in life in general, for making excuses. If you want you can have pity on yourself but you still have to deal with what you are given. At times, we are not given the best situations but it’s all about how you react to them and how you make the most of them.”