HARDWICK – Multiple first-inning miscues put the Hazen Union baseball team behind the eight-ball last week in a pair of losses to BFA-Fairfax and Williamstown, as the Wildcats fell to 1-3 on the season.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Defending Division III champion BFA-Fairfax took advantage of several first inning miscues by the Wildcats last Monday on their way to a 14-0 road win. Ryan Sheehan scattered three hits and struck out nine to earn the win after inheriting an eight-run first inning lead. The Bullets capitalized on multiple errors in the opening frame by the Wildcat defense to score their first runs of the season after back-to-back shutout losses to Montpelier and Blue Mountain to start the year. Reagan Baumeister led the way for BFA with a four-hit day that drove in four runs. Kris Mummert added a pair of hits that drove in another run in the win. Owen Skorstad paced the Wildcats with a pair of hits and Evan LaMare added a single. Grayson McNaughten took the loss on the mound, striking out four, while allowing just one free pass on the day. The Bullets, coached by Hazen alum Mike Brown, improved to 2-3 on the season.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
“It was a tough outing for us against BFA. Grayson did a good job pitching to contact, but unfortunately our defense wasn’t behind him to start the game, and we never were able to recover,” said head coach Shaun Allen.
Paine Mountain exacted some revenge from a loss two weeks ago against the Wildcats, evening the season series with an 11-6 home win last Thursday. First inning miscues plagued Hazen once again, putting them in a six-run hole early. Freshman Jon Sicard took the loss on the mound and Justin finished up in relief. McNaughten (double) and Skorstad powered the Wildcat offense, with three hits apiece and Chayse Newell added a single and a walk in the loss. Paine Mountain improved to 1-2 on the season.
“It was another hard start to the game for us. We gave Paine Mountain multiple outs in the first inning once again and they capitalized on it. I wish we could start our games in the second inning at this point, it’s just really hard to win ball games that way the last two games. Jon was a little shaky to start but settled down nicely with three shutout innings after the first,” said Allen.
Hazen looked to turn it around this week with road trips to Peoples Academy and Oxbow on Tuesday and Thursday. They will stay on the road next Tuesday with their second match-up of the season against Division II powerhouse Montpelier. All home games can be streamed on Hardwick Community Television (hctv.us).
