PEABODY — For the past few seasons, Bishop Fenwick catcher/infielder Ethan Belt has molded himself into one of the more consistent bats in the Catholic Central League. Crusaders coach Russ Steeves penciled Belt in the middle of Fenwick’s order last spring and he delivered with a solid junior season.
The Clark University baseball team quickly took notice of Belt’s talents, both behind and at the plate. Earlier this week, Belt decided Clark was the perfect fit for him to continue his baseball career at the Division III collegiate level. Belt made an announcement of his commitment to the Cougars via Twitter.
“I just thought all around it was a good fit,” Belt, a senior, said. “Academically it was in a good range and it had a variety of majors I could choose from, which is good for me because I’m a bit undecided right now. Baseball-wise it’s a great (NEWMAC) conference I feel I can compete in. I’m excited to go to a city campus. I’ve been living in a small town in Newbury my whole life so I’m excited to experience a different place.”
The Cougars went 26-13 during the 2018 spring season, 12-5 against NEWMAC opponents. Clark was bounced from the NEWMAC Tournament after a season-ending 5-4 loss to Wheaton College.
The Cougars hired a new head coach during the offseason in Billy Cather, who became the eighth head coach in program history. Cather was tabbed to replace former head coach J.P. Pyne, who stepped down shortly after the conclusion of the 2018 season.
“The last couple years they’ve been on the rise,” Belt said of the Cougars. “They’ve had a lot of success lately. They’re in the NEWMAC and play against teams like Wheaton, Babson and MIT. They just went through a coaching change so they’re putting in a new system with a new coach (Cather).”
A two-sport athlete who also plays right-wing for Fenwick’s boys hockey team, Belt said he felt relieved to make his commitment official.
“It feels really nice. I’m so relieved,” Belt said. “It was kind of an emotional roller coaster going through the whole process with showcases and camps. I was super happy to be able to commit to Clark.”
With his future plans no longer in question, Belt feels he can shift his gears toward enjoying the rest of his senior year at Fenwick. Belt said that includes making the most of his senior hockey and baseball seasons but it starts with getting the Fenwick icemen back to the state tournament. The Crusaders fell three points shy of the postseason in 2017 but they’ll return a core of experienced veterans to the ice this upcoming winter.
“I’ve been really excited to get back to playing hockey and baseball in the spring just to be competitive,” Belt said. “I’m really looking forward to the rest of senior year so I can kind of focus on that.
“I feel really good about the hockey team,” Belt said. “We have a strong group of upperclassmen. The freshmen and sophomore classes look really good. We’re returning a lot of players, including our starting goalie. We missed out by three points last season and we had a lot of games that we could’ve won or tied. We know we’re that close and we definitely have a team that can make the postseason this year.”
