Virginia's Cotier represents New Milford at College World Series

Virginia sophomore second baseman Max Cotier made a piece of New Milford history by stepping on the field Sunday afternoon in the opening round of the College World Series.

Before Virginia began their CWS campaign against Tennessee at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb., Canterbury School head baseball coach Todd Mathewson said his former star shortstop would naturally relish the intensity and fanfare of college baseball’s biggest stage.

“Max has always been a guy that performs well when the bright lights are on,” he said.

Cotier, the first New Milford resident to appear in the Division-I College World Series, according to data from TheBasebballCube.com, did not disappoint.

The Canterbury graduate went 2-5 at the plate, including one of four consecutive RBI singles for the ‘Hoos in the seventh, as Virginia (36-25, 18-18 ACC) shutout the nation’s winningest team this season, the Volunteers (50-17, 20-10 SEC), 6-0. He also impressed in the middle infield, snagging a sharp line drive off the bat of Tennessee’s Liam Spence in the bottom of the fifth before turning a highlight-reel 6-4-3 double play with ‘Hoos shortstop Nic Kent in the eighth.

Cotier drove Virginia’s sixth run across in the ninth but did not get credit for an RBI after grounding into a double play. He and teammate Jimmy Sullivan, a junior outfielder from Wethersfield who has played in 12 games for the ‘Hoos this year, are the only Connecticut residents on the eight rosters playing in Omaha.

The moment is not lost on Mathewson, who enthusiastically reflected on his relationship with Cotier, who he has known for over a decade. He said several faculty members have texted him about Cotier and Virginia’s progress throughout the postseason or are constantly poking their heads into his office for updates.

“Obviously for me it’s special [due to] knowing the Cotiers for so long and living on campus, but I think it’s [also] pretty special for the extended Canterbury family that are following,” he said.

A Local Talent

Mathewson, who is entering his ninth year at Canterbury, is predated at the school by his best-ever “recruit.”

Cotier has lived on campus since 2008, when his father and current associate head of school for operations, Pete, joined his high school alma mater as a faculty member.

Mathewson first interacted with Max when he was still coaching at Westport’s Green Farms Academy. Mathewson would work individually with children of Canterbury faculty as a favor while visiting his now-wife Keiko, who currently serves as the school’s language department chair and co-director of theater.

After throwing a bullpen, taking grounders, doing some tee work and hitting a few rounds of front toss, the ten-year-old Cotier left Mathewson impressed.

“‘I come back, and Keiko asks, ‘How did it go?’” Mathewson recounted. “And I’m like, ‘this kid is actually really good!’ So even when he was 10, just my first time working with him, you could see that he had a lot of talent there.”

Cotier was a key player on a dominant New Milford team that won four consecutive New England regional titles and reached both the 10U and 12U Cal Ripken World Series. When Cotier was 12, Mathewson watched him play a live game for the first time.

Cotier hit three home runs, with the longest shot going to the opposite field.

“And you could see he had a really good feel as a hitter even then as a 12-year-old, being able to stay back and go opposite field,” Mathewson said.

Cotier committed to Virginia before his sophomore season at Canterbury and came to Charlottesville as Connecticut’s top-ranked shortstop for his recruiting class, per Perfect Game. The Western New England Prep Baseball Player of the Year in both of his final two seasons for the Saints, Cotier hit .508 and .447 as a junior and senior, respectively.

An Instant Starter

Not all high school stars find success at the next level, much less earn a starting spot and bat near the top of the lineup right away.

Cotier, however, started all of the ‘Hoos 18 games in 2020 and quickly established himself as Virginia’s No. 2 hitter before the season was cut short due to COVID-19.

Cotier hit .338 for the abbreviated season and led the ACC with four triples, which was also tied for first in the country. He finished third and fifth in the conference with 21 runs scored and 25 total hits, respectively. He ended the 2020 season on a 10-game hitting streak and reached base in each of Virginia’s final 13 games.

Mathewson said Cotier’s exceptional feel at the plate sets him apart from other smooth defensive infielders he competes with for playing time.

“He just really does handle the bat well,” Mathewson said. “He is able to get a bunt down when they need him to, goes the other way pretty well and has a complete approach as a hitter.”

Fighting to Omaha

After going 14-4 in 2020, Virginia got off the blocks much slower this season. After a 10-13 start, the ‘Hoos were far from being considered championship contenders at the end of March.

Cotier struggled to replicate the numbers from his rampant freshman season and was briefly dropped from the lineup in mid-March. However, both Cotier and Virginia would turn things around in the second half of the season.

Virginia went a combined 19-10 to finish the regular season and reach the ACC Tournament semifinals, earning the No. 3 seed in the Columbia Regional.

Despite dropping the opening game of both their regional and super-regional, the ‘Hoos went 6-0 in elimination games to reach the CWS, the first team to do so since 2008.

Cotier, who has pulled his batting average back up to .260, which is good for fifth on the team, has started 58 of Virginia’s 61 games and came up with a vital hit in the decisive game three of the super regional vs. Dallas Baptist.

With Virginia down 2-1 with two outs in seventh, Cotier stepped up to the plate with men on first and second. He had previously gone 1-12 in the super regional, but Cotier beat the shift with a gritty single fielded just past the second base bag to load the bases.

Virginia’s next batter, freshman Kyle Teel, hit a grand slam to give the ‘Hoos a 5-2 lead they would not relinquish.

Now, Cotier and Virginia are looking to cap a memorable season by claiming the program’s second national championship.

“It’s something Max will have as a memory for his entire life — getting to Omaha and being one of those final eight teams,” Mathewson said.

After Sunday’s victory over Tennessee, the ‘Hoos will now face Mississippi State on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The game will air live on ESPN2.

Tuesday night’s victor will be just one win away from the best-of-three series that will crown the sport’s first national champion in two years.

Following the CWS, Mathewson is unsure whether Cotier will have enough time to visit home before playing in the esteemed Cape Cod League, which is already underway, but he is excited to hear about Omaha whenever Cotier is able to return to New Milford.

“[When] he comes back home, it’s nice to be able to really sit down, catch up and be able to talk a little bit of baseball again,” he said.