Some athletes have a simple pathway from high school to college, whether that’s staying in-state or only traveling a short distance from home. For senior shortstop Gavin Roy, that journey has been more… unconventional. The 5-foot-9 infielder from Sudbury, Ontario took the junior college route before eventually landing at Washington State.
“Starting at my junior college, I didn’t really know what to expect,” Roy said. “Baseball is a challenging sport, there’s gonna be challenges everywhere you go.”
Roy started his career at Cloud County Community College in Concordia, Kansas. There he tallied a total of 121 hits, 48 stolen bases and an average of .326 in his two seasons of playing for the Thunderbirds. As a freshman, Roy ranked first on the team in both stolen bases and runs.
In his time with Cloud County CC, Roy led the Thunderbirds to a 37-23 record in 2023 and a 40-21 record in 2024. In both seasons, the team made the National Junior College Athletic Association Plains District Tournament.
While playing in Kansas he met current WSU teammates Scott Rienguette and Cam Macleod. Roy also played in high school at St. Charles College with Rienguette. For Roy, playing with his former teammates is a dream come true.
“It’s something I’ve always dreamed of,” Roy said. “Especially with Scooter [Rienguette]. He’s kind of been my guy since I was young. I made some great connections at Cloud ] and it’s been cool to see them transfer over here.”
In summer of 2024, Roy made the decision to enter the transfer portal and pack his bags for Pullman.
“I liked what the coaches were doing, and I liked where the program was trending,” Roy said. “The culture was a big thing for me and the morals all aligned with what I wanted and with how I was trained at JUCO.”
With the Cougs, Roy became an everyday player, starting all 54 games at shortstop in his first season at WSU. In his first season playing Division I ball, he hit .288 and led the Cougars with eight stolen bases. On March 21, against San Diego State, Roy hit his first home run with WSU in a 13-3 win for the Cougs.
Roy also received the Mountain-West Conference Scholar-Athlete Award in 2025.
Gavin Roy celebrating at Bailey and Brayton during a Cougar home game.
“You gotta stick to the process and find a way to focus everyday and get better every day and that’s been the goal,” he said.
So far in 2026, Roy has been one of the best hitters not only for WSU, but in the Mountain West Conference. Currently, he ranks ninth in average, tenth in on-base percentage and seventh in hits in the MWC. Roy leads WSU in all three categories, recording a .345 average, .447 on-base percentage and 60 hits.
Roy has not just loved playing for the Cougs, but also being a part of the culture at WSU.
“It’s a big university, but it also feels like a small, tight-knit community. The support from everybody here just means the world,” he said.
His favorite memories during his time on the Palouse have happened off the field.
“Wins in the locker room, those are ones that stick,” Roy said. “It’s more of what we’ve built as a whole and the culture we have. Obviously road trips and playing games on the bus and hanging out with the boys all the time. Those are the ones that stick with me.”
The support has been something Roy has fallen in love with here at WSU. One of his favorite games to be a part of as a Coug was the opening series sweep over GCU.
WSU middle infielder Gavin Roy throws the ball to base against University of Nevada, March 29, 2026.
“Anytime you sweep it’s awesome,” he said. “Vibes are always high.”
After graduation, Roy plans to continue playing baseball in any way that he can. Over his collegiate career, he’s built up a strong resume as a premium defender and on-base machine.
“I’m trying to take baseball as far as I can, so we’ll see where that takes me,” Roy said. “Baseball comes to an end at some point, but I’d like to stay in the states. If that’s around sports, perfect, but if not I’m gonna play it by ear.”
As his time at WSU comes to a close, Roy wants to be remembered as the ultimate vibes guy who brought juice to every team he’s been a part of.
“I’d like to be known as a guy who brought good energy every day and was consistent,” Roy said. “Something I strive to work for is to be consistent every day and try to be the same guy every day.”
From Ontario to Kansas to Pullman, Roy’s path to WSU has been a little unconventional, but each step along the way has helped shape him into the consistent everyday shortstop WSU has come to love.
