By Ruthie Laroche
Gavin Nichols spent four years behind the plate at Missisquoi Valley Union High School in Swanton, Vt. That all changed during his freshman baseball season at St. Michael's College, where he swapped his catcher's mitt for an infielder's glove and made the transition to pitching with the Purple Knights.
Q&A with Gavin Nichols
Why did you choose St. Mike's? George Goldworthy, one of the St. Mike's coaches, was a coach I'd trained with growing up. I've always liked him as a person, and I liked being close to home. My parents come to games, and so could my high school teammates.
What did you most enjoy about your first year of college baseball?  Transitioning from catching to pitching took a lot of time and work. It was nice to pitch competitively again, and I enjoyed training for it. I loved connecting with the team. A lot of the guys were older—22 or 23—and it was cool to hang out with them. We all had the same dream. Everyone was ready to put in the work, go to the gym, and get better. It was a great first year, and I couldn't have asked for a better team to be part of. I had a lot of fun, and I learned a lot.
What was your most memorable moment from the 2026 season? My favorite time on the mound came when we played American International College. I got the start and threw six shutout innings. We won 1-0, and it was a pretty stressful game. It was the first shutout for the program in roughly 30 years. Everyone on the bench was telling me I was three outs from a shutout. It was a big thing for the school. It was also our first sweep of AIC.
What did you enjoy about spring training? We went to Pennsylvania to play D2 Shippensburg University, then went to Florida to play some really good D2 teams. It was a good experience, and there was a lot to get used to. We were in Florida for a week, and having that non-stop baseball in the warm weather was great.
What did you enjoy about working with your college coaches? I turned into a pitcher, and while I've had good coaches in the past, I've never had a pitching coach for a full season. I learned more about the pitching part of baseball in the first couple of days than I did in the rest of my life. Everything was different, from workouts to drills. I was constantly sore and had to take really good care of my body—rehab and seeing the trainer to make sure I'd be strong enough to throw without getting hurt.
What did you enjoy most about pitching at the college level? I had an idea I might pitch a little bit, but I wasn't expecting to be told I'd be starting on the first weekend. It was a lot harder to get used to pitching, especially in close games. Catching: I'm focused on receiving the ball and calling pitches. As a pitcher, I had a lot more to do, and I knew I had to execute.
How did you work with the mental side of the game? I'd never do any of my warm-up alone; I'd have an upperclassman with me. We'd talk about execution. I'd also talk with our head coach, Jim Neidlinger, about how, if you lose control of yourself, you lose control of the game. Whatever happens, happens, and you do the best you can do.
What are your goals for your sophomore year? My biggest goal for next year is to get stronger and into pitching shape—so I can throw longer in games. I want to be able to throw 100 pitches and go to the eighth inning, rather than throwing 85 and being tired after seven.
Another goal—we reached the playoffs this year for the first time, and I want to do anything I can to help the team win games and get back to playoffs.
How do you intend to reach these goals? I'm doing lessons with my coach, and he's helping me with a summer routine. He's been doing this for so long; I believe what he tells me to do is going to make me better as a player.
How did playing with the same teammates from Little League through to winning a high school state championship help you retain a love for baseball? Having that brotherhood was super enjoyable. When I got to college, it was the same thing. It's about being together, doing things we love, and having fun while we're doing it.
Do you have any wise words for young athletes? Chase those dreams, train hard, play hard, and have fun.
Do you have a few thank-yous? I want to thank my mom and dad, Kevin and Marybeth; they've pushed me and wanted me to be the best I can be and to play at the highest level I could. I also thank my coaches for taking the time to help me get better. I want to thank my high school and college teammates and my girlfriend Cayley Renaudette, who's helped me a lot in college.
St. Michael's head baseball coach Jim Neidlinger: Gavin flew under the radar, and Coach George Goldworthy brought him to my attention. When we saw him throw, I felt that was where he could be most successful. We told him what he had to do to be a college pitcher. He's a caring kid, but he's also confident and has that comedy side. He's a young man who loves the outdoors, and so do I, so we've really connected. He's a big sponge and wants to be in the big moments.
He beat a team this spring that hadn't lost in 41 games. As a freshman, he had his moments, but he's going to be a really, really solid college pitcher. He's that athlete who—nothing really fazes him. He decompartmentalizes and moves on. He was part of a staff that won the most games in school history and reached the playoffs for the first time.
He was a big piece of clay for me. He's a raw talent on the mound; he competes, and he's just going to get better. He hasn't pitched because he was a really good catcher, so he doesn't have a lot of innings on his arm.
He's a fun kid to work with. He doesn't get hurt feelings; he wants to be told honestly—he wants to be coached hard, and I appreciate that. He knows it's better, but he knows he's not where he needs to be. He's very accountable for what he does, and that's what's going to make him successful.
Gavin pitched in high-leverage games, and he was part of a staff that had a lot of monumental moments in St. Michael's history. He was part of helping us be successful, and it's my job to grind on him to be better so we, as a team, can be better. As teams get better, better players play better, and the standard continues to rise.
