HARDWICK – There are very few weeks that go by I don’t fondly think of the memory of Dave Morse as I write, but as this past high school basketball season unfolded in spectacular fashion, I thought of him more than usual.
The late great Dave Morse and his famous “Morse Code” passed away at the age of 77 on March 28, eleven years ago. He won numerous awards as a writer, columnist and photographer for the Times-Argus, Rutland Herald and Hardwick Gazette. He was inducted into the inaugural Vermont Principals’ Association (VPA) Hall of Fame class in 2003 and became a Vermont Sports Hall of Famer in 2018.
This past winter, the Dave Morse Classic (DMC) was held at the Hazen Union Cat Den for the tenth consecutive year. The state-renowned holiday tournament was created by Hazen boys head coach (current Hazen A.D.) Aaron Hill and former Hazen A.D. John Sperry as a vehicle for future Hazen Union and area high school basketball players to remember Dave Morse and what he meant to his community, with something he loved so much: basketball.
The DMC has always brought some of the best crowds and basketball to the town of Hardwick throughout its existence, but it topped itself this past season.
Lamoille hoisted its first-ever DMC championship trophy, ending Hazen’s six-year dominance of the tournament with a 61-54 victory in the title game.
Williamstown defeated Peoples Academy (PA) 67-58 in the consolation game. Lamoille (Division II), Hazen (Division III) and Williamstown (Division IV) all went on to claim state championships in March. Williamstown’s Nick Mascitti and PA’s Jack Lafayette went on to become prolific 1,000-point scorers throughout the season, and Hazen’s Jameson Lamarre and Lincoln Hill, Williamstown’s Alex Clark and Keeton Hull, along with Lamoille’s James Wallace, were all selected as Outstanding Underclassmen by the VPA.
I’m asked sometimes why I continue to cover sports for the Hardwick Gazette when I reside in San Antonio, Texas. The short answer is, people like Dave Morse. Now, almost 15 years ago, Dave Morse and Ross Connelly (former owner of the Gazette) cornered me in my late mother’s bakery (Connie’s Kitchen) and asked me if I would be interested in finally putting my journalism degree from Lyndon State College (LSC) to work for the newspaper. I was then living in Naples, Fla., at the time, and told them I was only visiting family in Hardwick and would eventually return to Naples.
That didn’t seem to be an obstacle to either one of them, and I began learning the ropes of covering Craftsbury Academy, Twinfield and Cabot sports for the Gazette. As Dave’s health deteriorated, I began covering Hazen sports for him the best I could.
There are books written about the droves of people Dave Morse positively impacted throughout his storied life, and I’m merely one of them. Morse and Connelly steered me down this path, and as a Hazen graduate, it has allowed me to reconnect with a sports community that I grew up in.
There are local high school athletes who have done extraordinary things over the last decade-plus that I would have never known. I’ve gotten to watch them online, I’ve gotten to chat with some of them, and I’ve forged relationships with incredibly selfless coaches and parents, who give hours of their time to kids every single season.
Morse used to follow my sports career in high school and college, once randomly showing up to a game I was pitching for my LSC baseball team in Clearwater, Fla. If I ever wondered why Morse used to do it, I don’t anymore; I get it.
This past basketball season was one of my favorites to cover since I started doing this. Not only did I get to watch history in both Hazen’s girls and boys programs cutting down the nets at Barre in the same season for the first time ever, I also got to watch Kris Bador’s Twinfield-Cabot boys team’s magical 22-win state runner-up season, while minting 1,000-point scorers (Tej Stewart and Eli Russell) in the same game along the way.
Morse also would’ve enjoyed the “something’s gotta give” Division II boys championship game between Lamoille and Hartford. The Lancers handed Hartford their first loss of the season to win their first state championship since 1963. The Hurricanes were looking for their first state title in 97 years.
Morse would’ve liked that one, and I liked that it made me think of him.
