Community Impact

April 21, 2015 | Athletic Communications

The Newest, Youngest Member of UConn Baseball

Through a program that partners children facing life-threatening illnesses with college athletic teams, five-year-old Grayson Hand officially joined the Huskies this week.

Baseball Head Coach Jim Penders shows five-year-old Grayson Hand where to sign his National Letter of Intent. (Stephen Slade '89 (SFA) for UConn)

Baseball Head Coach Jim Penders shows five-year-old Grayson Hand where to sign his National Letter of Intent. (Stephen Slade '89 (SFA) for UConn)

Grayson1Baseball Head Coach Jim Penders shows Grayson Hand where to sign his letter of intent. (Stephen Slade for UConn)
Baseball Head Coach Jim Penders shows five-year-old Grayson Hand where to sign his National Letter of Intent. (Stephen Slade ’89 (SFA) for UConn)

The UConn baseball team got a boost to their roster on Monday, when five-year-old Grayson Hand of Sturbridge, Mass. officially joined the program with the signing of his National Letter of Intent.

Partnering with Team IMPACT, the baseball team formally introduced its newest member at a press conference at the Mark R. Shenkman Training Center. Grayson’s sister Sophie (age seven) was also introduced as an honorary UConn cheerleader during the event. Following the press conference, Grayson participated in his first team workout and will soon be assigned his locker inside the UConn Batting and Pitching Facility at J.O. Christian Field.

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Team IMPACT partners children facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses with local college athletic teams to improve their quality of life. Grayson, currently in his second year of treatment for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, is the second Team IMPACT member to join up with a UConn team. The men’s hockey program adopted five-year old Camden Soucy prior to the 2014-15 season.

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