DUXBURY – After going ice cold the last couple of weeks, the Hazen Union baseball team’s bats came to life in the final week of the regular season, showing a ton of fight in out of division match-ups, including a win against Lamoille to put an end to a nine-game losing streak.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Nick Casey fired five innings of one hit baseball to help Harwood hold off Hazen at home last Tuesday 8-5. Casey struck out eight and walked three to lead the Highlanders to their fourth straight win heading into the Division II tournament. Junior Justin Montgomery took the loss for the Wildcats, striking out four and walking a pair in what was a complete game effort.
“Justin did a fantastic job; we just didn’t get him the run support. He pitched to contact which is key, Harwood just managed to find some gaps early on. Our defensive errors have been decreasing throughout the season, which is a huge plus,” said head coach Shaun Allen.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
The Wildcats sent Craftsbury Academy (CA) senior Evan LaMare out in style on Wednesday, hanging on to down Lamoille at home 13-10. Hazen took advantage of six free passes by the Lancers in the first inning giving winning pitcher Grayson McNaughten a double-digit cushion early. The junior right-hander struck out eight and walked four to earn the win. Jon Sicard and Will Halperin combined to earn the save.
“It was Senior Day for our lone senior Evan. Lamoille was a must-win for us heading into the playoffs, and the team wanted to get this one bad for him. Our bats were hot in the early innings but went cold and we did a good job adding a couple insurance runs late,” said Allen.
photo by Vanessa Fournier
Lake Region snapped a long losing streak of their own on Thursday, outlasting the Wildcats 9-5 on the road to earn their first win of the season. Sicard took the loss on the mound for Hazen, walking seven in the first two innings, before Owen Skorstad finished up strong. The Rangers snapped a 14-game losing streak.
“Jon’s just a freshman and it’s hard to watch a young pitcher struggle early on, I probably should have pulled him earlier and that’s on me, but you want to give them time and experience to work through it to make them a better pitcher down the road. Owen came in and did a great job, we came back to make it a game but left too many men on base. As a team, we have had to make some adjustments midseason that we weren’t planning on, but it seems to be working out. Attitudes overall have improved drastically this week with a newfound desire to dig deep and show everyone what this team is made of. This team gets stronger every day, and we are very much looking forward to the playoffs,” said Allen.
The Wildcats will hit the road on Wednesday for a match-up with sixth seeded Green Mountain in Chester.
