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DAN FRENCH
Owner of The Strike Zone
BASEBALL
Pitching, Hitting, Fielding
Hometown: Richmond VT
High School: Mount Mansfield Union High School (2010)
College: Southern Maine Community College
Southern New Hampshire University
Dan is a Vermont native who grew up in Richmond. He played two years of varsity baseball at Mount Mansfield Union H.S. serving primarily as a pitcher/outfielder. After graduation, Dan attended Southern Maine Community College. He spent three years at SMCC playing varsity baseball and achieving his degree in Sport Management. Dan also took courses on the side to become a certified coach through the University of Maine.
PLAYER ACHIEVEMENTS
- Southern Maine Community College Varsity Captain ‘13
- Yankee Small College Conference Champion ‘13
- Yankee Small College Conference Most Valuable Player ‘13
- Yankee Small College Conference Player of the Week ‘13
- United States Collegiate Athletic Association National Player of the Week ‘11
- Second All-Time in Wins SMCC (12)
- Second All-Time in Strikeouts SMCC (156)
- First All-Time in Innings Pitched SMCC (157)
Lukas Olsson
BASEBALL
Hitting, Catching
Lukas is a NY native from Bayport, NY. He recently moved to VT after being with Hobart College in Geneva, NY for their first two seasons as a college program. As a catching and hitting coach, Lukas has also coached with the Bourne Braves, who won the Cape Cod Baseball League Championship in both the summers of 2022 and 2023. Lukas played for SUNY Oswego and was a two-time ABCA and two-time D3baseball.com All-Region selection as well as a two-time All-SUNYAC pick at catcher for Oswego.
He hit .328 for his career with 34 doubles, 20 home runs, 134 RBIs and 124 runs scored. During his five seasons with the Lakers, Lukas and his teammates compiled a 130-55 record, winning three consecutive SUNYAC Tournament Championships, earning four consecutive NCAA tournament berths and advancing to the Division III College World Series in 2017 and 2018.
Lukas, who earned Oswego's Outstanding Senior Athlete Award in 2020, earned a bachelor's degree in Wellness Management.
Colin Freeman
BASEBALL
Hitting, Fielding
Colin is a graduate of Oxnard College (JUCO in Cali) and Oklahoma City University. He was an All-Star in the Southern California Collegiate Baseball League in 2019 batting .354. He went on to hit .338 in the Great Lakes Collegiate League in 2021, the #6 ranked collegiate summer league that year, while finishing top 10 in the league in slugging % with .550.
He has studied under current Atlanta Braves hitting coordinator Chris Antariksa, as well as MLB hitting consultants Doug Latta and Lane Adams.
He is knowledgeable and passionate about all things hitting and player development.
Emily Harvey
SOFTBALL
Hitting, Fielding, Pitching
Emily grew up playing softball in Essex, VT, and has returned to give back to the community that sparked her love for the game. A proud alumna of EHS Hornet Softball, she clinched state championship titles as a shortstop in both 2016 and 2018, with a runner-up finish in 2017. Following high school, Emily thrived as a NCAA Division III student-athlete, starting her collegiate career as a relief pitcher for Castleton University before transferring to St. Lawrence University, where she primarily played third base.
With six years of coaching experience, Emily has honed a positive and constructive approach to coaching. Her background in performance psychology informs her dual focus on developing both mental and physical strength, helping players excel on the field on game day. Passionate about sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm for softball, Emily is dedicated to inspiring players, enhancing their skills, and fostering a lifelong love for the game.
Mike Wilhide
BASEBALL
Catching, Hitting, Fielding
Mike is a baseball guy. He loves the tradition and has been watching and playing for a long time. He started playing Sandlot ball in the late 60's and played whenever and wherever he could.
He played the outfield in the South Troy Little League and the same position and catching in American Legion ball in 1976, for a brief period of time, until his family moved. After finishing High School, Mike joined the USAF and served from 1981-1986 and was Honorably Discharged. After starting a career in radio in 1987, he moved to Vermont in 1989 and has lived and worked here ever since.
Most recently, he coached pitchers and catchers for Milton Highschool and found his calling, which has lead him to The Strike Zone Academy, where he hopes to remain until he retires and beyond!
Mike is always up for talking Baseball
Ryder Thornton
BASEBALL
Catching, Hitting, Fielding
Ryder is a graduate of Northern Vermont University, where he played catcher for the Lyndon Hornets. Ryder accrued a career .305 batting average at Lyndon, while also being selected to 2nd Team All-Conference in 2018. Graduating from Essex H.S. in 2017, Ryder lead his high school team to the Championship game, but ultimately came up just short. Last year he was an assistant coach for the 15U Vermont Striker Travel team, and previously was the head coach for Essex Prep Baseball during the summer of 2019. He is currently the Head Coach for Strikers 16U Travel team.
Cole Riskin
BASEBALL
Pitching, Hitting, Fielding
Cole is entering his senior year at Clarkson University in the NCAA Liberty League, where he is a frontline starting pitcher for the Golden Knights. With a religious commitment to strength training and proper arm care, Cole is focused on achieving a high-level of performance and builds on years of hard work, focus, and development towards reaching the pinnacle in his baseball career. In the summer of 2024, he joined the Vermont Lake Monsters for their 4th season in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League, in which Cole served as both a relief and starting pitcher.
Sam Steinman
BASEBALL
Hitting, Fielding
Sam grew up playing on competitive travel teams in Westchester NY. Sam played a year of varsity at Horace Greeley High School, but the season was unfortunately cancelled due to COVID-19. The following year he moved to Peru, Vermont and attended Burr and Burton Academy for his senior year. In high school, Sam was named all-Southern Vermont League (SVL) and was named as a starter for the Vermont North vs South all-star game. In two years of Vermont Legion, Sam was twice named all-state finishing his legion career with a .448 career batting average and .547 on base average and .638 slugging percentage. Sam currently plays at Castleton University and majors in Business Management and Marketing.
Logan Cooke
BASEBALL
Pitching, Hitting, Fielding
Logan was a player all through high school at Harwood High. He comes to The Strike Zone with over 12 years of team coaching experience from Little League to Legion. He has coached private lessons for a full range of students from ages 8-21. Logan has been the Head Coach for Montpelier Varsity since 2020 stepping up after five years as the Assistant Coach. Other coaching positions include Montpelier Post 3 Legion and as a high school basketball coach for Stowe. All of this experience gives him the ability to provide a high quality lesson for students of all ages. Logan was a part of the coaching staff for the Strikers 11U inaugural fall season of 2021.
Brian Miller
BASEBALL
Hitting
Brian played high school baseball at Lyndon Institute 88-91.He attended college at Lyndon State College and studied Sports Medicine. Brian was the Athletic trainer for the LSC baseball team for two years. Working now as an athletic trainer in the field of Orthotics and Prosthetics, at Bio-Medic Appliances, in Essex Brian has Coached Fairfax Fletcher Westford Little League for the past seven years. He Lives in Westford with his wife and two children, a softball player and a baseball player ironically. He is an immediate fit for our students!!
Cory Pike
BASEBALL
Pitching, Hitting, Fielding
Cory was born and raised in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. He grew up a three sport athlete in hockey, volleyball and baseball. By high school, Cory was fortunate enough to spend time playing baseball for Ontario and Canada and was proud to be part of the Canadian team that won the World Youth Legion Classic in Binghamton, NY and then went on to play at the World Youth Legion games at LSU. He spent time in high school playing for his home town, Oakville and for the Astro Falcons in Youngstown, OH. He was named athlete of the year in his senior year at Thomas A. Blakelock high school. Cory accepted a Division 1 scholarship to Niagara University as a right handed pitcher in 1995. After a very successful freshman year in the starting rotation for the Purple Eagles of Niagara, Cory suffered an untimely shoulder injury to start his sophomore year campaign. Cory worked his way back into the lineup as a designated hitter and earned the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference all conference designated hitter award in his sophomore year. He went on to play right field and designated hitter in his final two years with the Purple Eagles. He was team Captain in his final year at Niagara. In his senior year, Cory was named Niagara University's student athlete of the year. Cory also spent several years playing for the Hamilton Cardinals of the Canadian Intercounty Baseball League. Since moving to Vermont, Cory has spent time playing for the Burlington Brewers and the South Burlington Blacksox. He was an assistant coach at Winooski High School from 2003-2005 and was president of the Green Mountain Baseball League for three years. Cory turned his passion for playing into coaching over the past six years. In his time with Essex Town Little League, Cory has coached three teams to district titles, won two state championships and coached the 2021 All Stars into Regionals in Bristol, CT – the first time Essex Town had made an appearance at regionals in 23 years. He is a Chiropractor in Essex Junction and resides in Essex Town with his wife Keri, their three kids; Taylor, Grayson and Samantha and their Bernedoodle, Willow.
