Natalie Gilmore
For The Signal
On July 13th, Saugus Baseball’s Nolan Kutcher took a large step in the direction of his dreams with a commitment to play NCAA Division 1 baseball at Long Beach State. Nolan committed the summer before his senior year at Saugus and final season with Centurion baseball.
With a number of options, Nolan had to make a big decision.
“When I first walked on the campus and saw how beautiful it was, I knew I wanted to spend four years there,” Nolan said. “The coaching staff was also amazing. They were a big reason why I chose Long Beach State.”
Long Beach State baseball competes in the Big West conference with other powerhouse programs such as Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, and Cal State Northridge. After the 2018 season, Long Beach took fifth place with a 12-12 record in conference.
“I played with and against some Division 1 guys, like Will Chambers who’s going to UCSB, and they told me to just play my game and have fun. That’s how I would get recruited,” Nolan said.
With his future attendance at Long Beach, Nolan will be the first Kutcher to attend college. The center fielder’s father, Randy Kutcher, was drafted to a Rookie League right out of high school and continued on to play in the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox ball clubs.
“My dad has really played a huge role in my baseball career and helping me to reach this level,” Nolan said. “I would love to follow in his footsteps and continue to play baseball at an even higher level.”
At Long Beach, Nolan will be pursuing a degree in Business.
“I am extremely excited and looking forward to going to Long Beach State, but for now I’m going to have fun in my senior year and try to make it the best year yet,” Nolan said. “When the time comes, I’m gonna ball out at Long Beach and try to earn a spot.”
