By Thomas Valentine
Wachusett Bravehearts
While many of their opponents may have considered the Wachusett Bravehearts underdogs this summer, the Bravehearts players and coaches quickly shook that label, thanks to consistency and hard work.
The Bravehearts, a club baseball team that competed in several tournaments and events throughout the late spring and summer, had a memorable and winning season.
Having success in the highly competitive world of club baseball is never easy, especially for a team composed of kids within a small geographic radius.
“Our program is just the local kids in the Wachusett district. We don’t recruit outside of our district,” Bravehearts head coach and Holden resident Tom Valentine said. “We face teams that get the best players from all over. We’re just a small-town team. That’s why it makes it so special for us. These boys work so hard in the offseason.”
The hard work paid off in the form of a cumulative record of 26-5, including an 11-1 mark in their division, which was good enough to be crowned division champions.
The Bravehearts 13u team then qualified for postseason and earned the No. 3 seed in the New England AAU tournament and hosted the first round of the tournament at Bubar.
The team members include Alex Silver, Brayden Valentine, Cam Valentine, Evan LaBrack, Evan Roberts, Evan Tremblay, Jacoby Palmer, Owen Mitchell, Taylor Hughes, Tyler Beverage and Vaughn Lane. Valentine’s assistant coaches are Jay LaBrack and Ryan Palmer.
In pool play, the Bravehearts beat the Connecticut Warriors and the Ocean State Outlaws. LaBrack’s pitching and a 6-run seventh inning were the key against the Warriors, while Cam Valentine went the distance in the extra-inning win versus the Outlaws. LaBrack tied the game with a homer in the fifth inning.
The team then advanced to “bracket play” and received a 3-hit masterpiece from Cam Valentine, who also struck out 10. Palmer had three hits, and Cam Valentine, Hughes, Beverage and Roberts each had two to propel Wachusett to a win.
Wachusett advanced to the championship game and brought home the title when they rallied for a dramatic walk-off win in the ninth inning to dethrone defending champion Granite State Thunder.
Mitchell had three hits, including the biggest hit of the season: a game-winning single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.
Cam Valentine, LaBrack, Palmer and Mitchell earned All-Tournament honors for their efforts. Cam Valentine was named tournament MVP.
In addition to playing on school and town teams, the Bravehearts baseball regimen includes extensive training at multiple locations across Central Mass., so the commitment isn’t just from the players; their families must sacrifice time.
The Bravehearts spend hours training at Holden’s GH2 facility, head over to Hudson to take hitting lessons from Rey Garcia at Garcia Hitting Academy, and make use of the field house at Bancroft School to hone their skills when outdoor fields aren’t available.
“This team has been together for four years now, and they have had so much success,” Tom Valentine said. “We have one more season together, and then they will all be heading to Wachusett High School together. I can’t wait to see what they do in high school.”
