HARDWICK – The Hazen Union baseball team will have to navigate a tough schedule and some wintery weather early in the season as they develop a young team around a handful of returning upperclassmen in head coach Shaun Allen’s second season as skipper.
Allen will have a good mix of student athletes from both Hazen and Craftsbury Academy (CA) this spring as the Wildcats look to improve upon a 4-13 record in 2024. He’ll lean on the five juniors and a single senior to develop the six freshmen and a pair of sophomores on his current roster. He’ll have to fill the holes left by the graduation losses of Andrew Menard, Jake Davison, Dan des Groseilliers, Eliot Rosendahl, and Fenton Meyer. Juniors Grayson McNaughten, Jake Hayden, Landon Miller, Justin Montgomery, Owen Skorstad, along with senior Evan LaMare return with experience playing in the rugged Capital League.
“I feel confident that all of my upperclassmen will shine this season. They are all giving it 125% so far in our practices and have been great role models for our younger players on the team. I am hoping I’m wrong, but we may take some lumps along the way early on as we develop players with limited varsity experience. We’re excited for the season and will continue to work hard as a team throughout the season to improve our overall performance,” said Allen.
McNaughten is a rising multi-sport athlete from CA and has shone on both the soccer pitch and baseball diamond the past two seasons for the Wildcats. The hard-throwing righty should anchor the pitching staff, while also seeing time at shortstop and first base. Montgomery and Skorstad will bring experience to the rotation on the mound and solidify the defense up the middle at shortstop and centerfield. Hayden will lock down the hot corner at third base, while Miller and LaMare will share pivotal duties at both catcher and second base. Freshmen Jonathan Sicard and Avery Loomis should also see time on the mound for the Wildcats this season.
Weather permitting, Hazen is scheduled to open the season at home on Friday against defending Division III champion BFA-Fairfax. Bullet head coach and Hazen Union alum Mike Brown led his program to a fifth state title last spring as a No. 6 seed. The Wildcats are scheduled to welcome Montpelier to town next Tuesday. If Hudson Fields isn’t ready for play early in the season, these match-ups could be switched to road games.
All Hazen home games can be streamed this season on Hardwick Community Television (hctv.us).
