Kaden Hoffman '22 Recruiting Profile

The Tim Ruane Memorial award…no one outside of our small town of Northumberland, PA would have any clue of what this award stands for. It is given to a 12 year old baseball player that has played his entire L.L. career in the Shikellamy Acorn L.L. organization. The award is one named after a 14 year old boy that was struck and killed by an automobile on his way home from baseball teener league practice. His life and passion was baseball. But more than that; was how he treated teammates, family members, and the character that he portrayed in his community. Memorial Day 2017 I was the recipient of this award. It was a lot to take in, that the Little League board and all the coaches picked me for such an honor and is one of my most proud moments of my athletic career. On the shelf are trophies, district and state pins, medals, home run balls, and game balls, which all show what I have done; but this Tim Ruane memorial plaque speaks to who I am and who I want to be in life.

2016 PA District 13 Intermediate Division Little League Title; onto the State Championship tournament. Losing the first game of the tournament, and coming back to beat the undefeated team in the first game of the “if” game is a highlight, but ended up losing to the same team for the State title is a defining staple in my career. This is the farthest any Shikellamy baseball team has gone in any state tournament. Looking back at this team achievement; two facets of the game stood out the most. It would have been easy for us to hang our heads after an opening game loss and throw in the towel, but COMMITMENT and ATTITUDETHROUGH ADVERSITY got the team back in the finals to give us a shot at our goal.

Summer 2017 this same team, young as it is, was able to win our Junior Legion District Title and take 3^rd at the PA Eastern Regional Tournament. At 13 I was double rostered on the Sr. Legion team, where I caught and played corner infield. Travel ball is a part of our playing regiment. The Keystone Baseball Club Cougars is where weekend tournament ball is played. We go to Perfect Game, Triple Crown, Atlantic Coast Baseball tournaments, along with some local ones. Football begins in August, but we still schedule 4 to 5 fall ball tournaments to keep our craft sharp. From football right into basketball, and then back in the cages early January; time management is a must. The focus on commitment imprints itself off the ball diamond, the gridiron, and the hardwood but even to the classroom. Balancing academics with playing year round athletics is not an easy situation, but the dedication and commitment to succeeding in the classroom and extra-curricular will pay dividends in my future. I am a 4.0 student and have just been nominated and inducted into the Shikellamy Middle School National Junior Honor Society.

A goal to be in the financial field is where I am focusing at this point; realizing that as I go through my high school career, objectives and goals may change. Change is one of the only things that is constant, but my commitment and dedication to hard work on and off the field will NOT.

I am starting this college process early, because of what my father always tells me ‘if you’re not early….you are late’. There is no ‘on time’.