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04/29/2016 12:00 AMWhether as a player or a coach, Nick Hahn will always be a member of the Guilford baseball family. Nick is a proud alum of the Indians’ baseball program who’s been teaching its athletes lessons both on and beyond the diamond as a varsity assistant coach through the past several seasons.
Nick, who’s lived in Madison for three years, grew up in Guilford and competed for the high school’s state champion baseball squad in his senior season of 2007. After shoulder surgery cut short his playing career as a senior at the University of Southern Maine, Nick was brought aboard the Indians’ coaching staff five years ago by Brian Hayden, who says that it’s virtually impossible to quantify what Nick brings to Guilford’s dugout and the town as a whole.
“He is a staple in the Guilford Baseball community. He also works with kids at the Little League and Babe Ruth levels. He has a great understanding of the game and is a great communicator and teacher of the game of baseball,” says Hayden. “Nick is an asset to not only Guilford baseball, but the community, as well. He gives countless hours of his time to our program and the kids who play for him.”
Nick has been in the shoes of the players he works with and so he empathizes with them during trying times. When the kids do pull through, though, that’s a true treat for Nick.
“I’ve always had a passion for coaching, but being back in Guilford as a coach has been a rewarding experience. You spend so much time as a player trying to bring a championship home and it’s a great community experience,” Nick says. “The chance to pass on knowledge is also rewarding. Seeing the guys go through ups and downs can be tough, but to see them succeed makes it all worth it.”
Nick experienced success from the outset of his coaching career as he helped guide Guilford to a Hammonasset Division pennant in his first season in 2012. Still, Nick feels the biggest victories as a coach come when he sees his students develop into stellar gentleman in all walks of life.
“Teenage years can be some of the toughest years for a kid, so I try to help guide the players toward succeeding. You always want to see them go on to do great things and become great young men,” Nick says. “Hanging that division banner the first year was a big accomplishment, but to see so many players come back and be around the program, that says a lot about the style of coaching here.”
Even though Nick has different responsibilities when it comes coaching kids at various levels, he says that one common thread is fostering the confidence that can help them deal with those 0-for-4 afternoons.
“The youngest team I coach is 10-U. We do camps and clinics to try and get them excited about the game. Hall of Fame players in baseball fail two out of three times, so we just try to instill confidence,” says Nick. “When it comes to the 13- and 14-year-old kids, we try to gear them up for the next level in high school baseball. I see these kids from Little League all the way up to high school, so I also try to develop good relationships with them.”
Guilford recently picked up its first victory of the season by defeating West Haven on April 16. Nick says that while the Indians may have a young roster this spring, they also feature an invaluable core of seniors who will help the club grow in many ways.
“The base of the team is young, so this senior class has worked very hard to keep this team jelled,” says Nick. “We saw everything come together in that first win, so, hopefully, it will point us in the right direction the rest of the way.”