Cabrini College

Cabrini men's basketball student-athletes Dom Farrello and Greg Zabel have just returned from a 10-day trip through Austria and Italy as part of USA Athletes International. Farrello and Zabel were part of a college division team made up of primarily players from the Philadelphia area and headed by Gwynedd-Mercy College coach John Baron. Below is Greg Zabel's account of his experience playing basketball and learning new cultures in Europe.

"Visiting Austria and Italy was an amazing experience, and one that I will never forget. I loved playing basketball overseas because I got to see how the game is played differently compared to the American style. Also, it was really interesting playing by FIBA rules.

"I really liked playing for our coach – John Baron from Gwynedd-Mercy College. My teammates were a really good group and six of them even play in the Colonial States Athletic Conference, so we were familiar with one another.

"As a team, we played great, finishing 5-0. We coasted in our first two games and held on to win a few closes one in the final three.

"I thought the food in Austria was very good – we ate a lot of sausages and weiner schnitzel. In Italy, the pizza and pasta was amazing.

"Overall, the trip was unbelievable because of the sights and famous places we visited. Playing basketball overseas, with a few our opponents during the regular season and against players we wouldn’t usually play against is something I will never forget."