Last spring, the Grafton baseball team finished the year with a 14-6 record and found their way into the Division 2 state Tournament, where they defeated Middleboro and then lost to Walpole, the eventual State Champion. This year the Gators were looking for more.

“This year was the first year that we had set some real high expectations,” Grafton Coach Brian Andersen said. “The goals were set out to protect home field and get back to at least the Round of 16 again in the tournament.”

During his nine years coaching the Gators, Grafton had never been able to secure a home playoff game, and this year they wanted to accomplish that feat. According to Andersen, it was a rather lofty goal, but the players had high expectations.

This year Grafton, which moved from the SWCL to the tougher CMAC, was still able to finish with a respectable 12-8 record and earned a 13 seed in the State Tournament. The13 seed was good enough to get the Gators the elusive home game in the post-season. Grafton put home-field advantage to use as they edged out Somerset Berkley 3-2 in the first round before having to travel to #4 Milton 7-4 in the Round of 16.

“The guys went out and proved themselves getting that home game and then traveled to Milton where they lost,” the Coach said. “They competed hard and with a bounce here and there,  we could have come out with a win.”

One of the bigger reasons Grafton had such a successful season was its one-two punch on the mound with senior captains CJ Chagnon and Haylan Oberg. Chagnon was the backbone of the pitching staff, and although he was realistically a much better outfielder, he was bounced to the infield for the good of the team. Being one that wanted to succeed, Chagnon made the sacrifice for the team. Olberg gave the Gators the ability to compete in back -to-back games, although he hadn’t pitched all that much before this season. 

On the mound, Chagnon went 5-1, pitching 50 1/3 innings with a 2.33 ERA, while his counterpart pitched 47 2/3 innings, posting a 3-5 record and a 3.08 ERA. At the plate, Olberg, the team’s first baseman, was the team’s leading hitter with a .352 batting average. He had 25 hits, including 5 doubles, two triples and 15 RBI, in addition to scoring 14 runs.

“Transitioning from the SWCL to the tougher CMAC, he had to face a lot of better arms,” Andersen said. “To see him hitting .352 was a true average at the plate.”

Both Chagnon and Olberg were named to the CMAC All-Star team. Another All-Star for Grafton was senior Charlie Law, the team’s leadoff hitter. Law contributed 23 hits and 15 RBI, encompassing a .315 average in addition to stealing 24 bases for the Gators. 

Kyle Brown, the team’s senior catcher, was not only the support system of the defense, but he also was the team’s fifth hitter in the lineup. 

“He was the Heart and Soul of this team,” the Gators Coach said. “It doesn’t show up in the stats, but he motivates this team and in doing so was named the Coaches Award winner this season.”

In order to make their goals become a reality, Grafton had to jump through a lot of hoops this season. Earlier in the year, they lost an athlete to a torn ACL; they endured a 2–3-week period where Mono was going through the clubhouse and also had a concussion sideline another athlete for a few games.

“With the ACL injury I had to shuffle the lineups around, but with mono there is nothing that a coach can really do,” Andersen said. “There were numerous times that I set the lineup then drove to the field and by the time that I got there I had to adjust it.”

 However, with all the turbulence swirling around the team, Grafton was still able to put together a 9-3 record during that time of distraction. It showed that although Andersen’s rally didn’t want to go into the reserves, the team had enough depth to get them through it. 

As this year comes to a close, the Coach knows that he is losing 11 seniors from this year’s roster, and although everyone is looking at the team as having some big voids, the coach isn’t all that worried about it.

“Everyone is saying that we’re going to have a down year next season,” said the coach. “Our cupboards are not bare, and although the guys are going to have to step up in places to replace what we lost, we do have talent.”

From a coach’s perspective, Grafton’s defense, which was stellar this season, will be back, as will 4 or 5 arms to throw the ball, and the batting should be ok. Those who have not played on the varsity team prior will have to get used to the types of pitchers they will face next spring and will need to take their game to the next level.

“We are not going to be down and out – it will be the complete opposite of this year,” Andersen said. “There will be no real expectations; the kids will be able to go out and play loose and free; everything else will be gravy. How many coaches can see they already can pencil in five solid hitters into their lineup already.”