‘Last Dance’ represents final ride for pair of longtime Nutley friends, teammates
Trevor Santos was in his living room when he received the ‘shocking’ call from his coach Bob Harbison.
Longtime friend and teammate Kevin Hogan was working out in his garage and saw the devastating news break on Twitter courtesy of Gov. Murphy before anyone else.
It wasn’t long before Santos texted him, too.
“I didn’t cry,” Hogan said Wednesday. “But I was close.”
The pair of Nutley baseball stars and starters since their freshman years were supposed to be two of the program’s biggest senior leaders on a team one year removed from a sectional final appearance.
It was a game in which they lost in heartbreaking fashion in nine innings to West Morris.
A game Hogan said was on his mind during every workout since.
A game Nutley would be out to avenge in the spring of 2020 with a team Harbison said was talented enough to get back and possibly win this time around, despite potentially being “underrated” in North Jersey baseball circles.
“I thought we could have snuck up on some people,” Harbison said. “And I think these kids would have enjoyed that.”
Coronavirus – and the ensuing cancellation of the entire spring slate – denied them that opportunity.
“At first, I was in shock,” Santos said. “Then later in the day, I’d just be scrolling Instagram and seeing all these posts from seniors who never got to play on a high school baseball field again. Just seeing those kids and realizing that’s how their careers ended, it was heartbreaking.”
Now, Santos and Hogan – and the rest of Nutley’s talented Class of 2020 – may not ever get the chance to play for a sanctioned NJSIAA sectional title again, but the emergence of the Last Dance World Series Tournament has given them one final ride together before heading off to Manhattan and Felician, respectively.
“When we heard this was happening, I was stoked,” Santos said. “I immediately thought of Kevin after playing with him since we were 8. We have so many memories together and just getting a few more games together, it meant a lot.”
They’ve been making the most of their ‘last dance’ thus far.
Through two games, in wins over Lodi and the East Paterson Crusaders (Elmwood Park), Nutley has outscored its competition, 37-7, with a chance to advance to the North Round of 16 on Thursday night with a victory over perennial power Rutherford.
Regardless of how things play out the rest of the way for Nutley – and for so many other teams around the state this week – the Last Dance has provided the opportunity for final lasting memories with their longtime friends and teammates.
For many, it simply has been good to get back to baseball.
“To me, that first game [on Tuesday] felt like a state game,” Hogan said. “I was so into it. We all were. I almost forgot how that feeling felt since it’s been so long. I was on first base telling the ump, ‘I forgot how meaningful just playing baseball feels.’ So, I’m taking this seriously. We’re here to win and tomorrow we’re going to mean business.”
JJ Conrad can be reached at jjconrad8@gmail.com