Hazen Excited To Find College Home At Xavier

Langdon Hazen RHP / SS / Mount Mansfield Union, VT / 2025

UNDERHILL, Vt. - Langdon Hazen understands how living in Vermont can make for a more difficult path to the next level.

“I can only name two kids from Vermont that are committed,” Hazen said. “Getting my name out there was hard. I sent out emails and some people spread my name around.”

There were visits to schools in surrounding states like UConn, URI, Northeastern and Boston College.

“But I wanted to play somewhere out of Vermont, somewhere it was a little warmer,” Hazen explained.

Enter Xavier, a Division I university in Cincinnati.

“I emailed them in December,” the Mt. Mansfield High School sophomore reflected. “I love their basketball program, I love their academics and that they’re a bigger school. They got back and invited me to a prospect camp in January and I went to that.”

It proved to be just what the top-rated 2025 in Vermont was hoping to find.

“I got outside on their turf field when it was below zero here,” Hazen said. “Before the camp there was a presentation. It was the most detailed presentation I saw. They had goals, and one was to get to the next level. It was a very professional staff. They knew what they were doing.

“My goal is to get to MLB and I look at their school and they have kids that might get drafted this year. The school just fit me.”

The 15th-ranked sophomore in New England was right for Xavier as well.

“They liked how I was as a person,” explained Hazen, who had been to Ohio but never Cincinnati before his visit to Xavier. “I’m the type of guy they want in their program. They like that I have a good mindset as a pitcher and good goals for myself.”

Less than two months after the camp, there was a reconnection.

“I was emailing and updating them, sending more videos,” Hazen related. “I set up a call with the head coach and he offered me. I gave it two weeks. I’m thinking, should I wait? This place wanted me.”

After weighing it all out, a commitment was made to the Big East Conference university.

“It was always in my head that I wanted to play college baseball,” Hazen said. “I got my mind on it at the end of my freshman year going into summer. I’d started growing mechanically and physically.”

Improvement followed for the sixth-rated 2025 RHP in New England.

“Over the winter I did a velo program,” Hazen pointed out. “That really pushed my velocity. I went from 83-84 to maxing out at 89 over the winter, averaging 85-87.”

The right mentality was important in the eyes of Hazen.

“I always told myself there was no one better,” Hazen explained. “I always had a high mindset. Everyday I had to do something to make myself better. To be the best, I had to work at it.”

There was help along the way according to the 16-year-old, who pointed to Jim Neidlinger (head of Bases Loaded organization), Billy Whaley (offseason pitching/velocity program), Keith Carter (high school varsity coach and summer Bulldogs coach) and Jamie Merchant (summer Bulldogs coach) along with Seth Douglas and Zac Morain (owners of 802 Baseball Lab) with playing vital roles in his development.

“I also went to one PBR and liked the Trackman part of it,” Hazen said. “There was no downside to it.”

The end result is that Hazen has found a college home, playing in a program that has been to the NCAA Tournament three times in the past decade.

“Obviously, it’s what I’ve wanted for a long time,” Hazen noted. “I’m proud of myself and what I’ve been able to do. The biggest part of my life has been transitioning into being the best I can be. It feels so good to accomplish this. The next step now is to get drafted. All I have to do is get better from here.” 

Hazen, who carries a 3.5 GPA and plans to major in business at the university located 14 hours from home, looks forward to his days ahead in southwest Ohio.

“Meeting new people, living away from Vermont and playing baseball, showing my skills,” Hazen said of what he’s excited about when it comes to college life. “I’m ready to start my new life and find myself as a person.”