The Heuvelton baseball team opened this season playing a nonleague game against Richfield Springs at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, the site where legend says the game of baseball was invented.

But senior Brookin Decker, although a big baseball fan, was not interested in sightseeing or in touring the Hall of Fame, which is a few blocks down the street.

"I was down there and had one thing on my mind," Decker said. "I didn't care about the Hall of Fame. I just wanted to win that game."

The Bulldogs did start their season with a win that day, beating Richfield Springs 4-3. Decker's approach to what some might have seen as a throwaway nonleague game also set the tone for what's been a memorable senior season.

Heuvelton is 10-0 overall and 9-0 in the West Division and already has a two-and-a-half game lead on second-place Lisbon, despite fielding a team with only three seniors.

"It seemed shaky coming into this year," Decker said. "I had no clue about any of the kids. We had just two returning starters. I'm really proud of how they've ended up."

Decker has been a big reason for Heuvelton's success, both with his approach to the game and his success on the field.

Despite being pitched around more than he's been in the past, he's hitting .370 with three home runs and 13 RBIs, and he's 6-0 as a pitcher with 44 strikeouts.

"He's level-headed and very likable," said coach Dave Steele. "He knows the game himself, he prepares himself, and he plays really hard."

Heuvelton has been the top Class D team in Section 10 over the past 15 years, playing in two state championship games, and the program has a rich tradition.

Decker's father, Brad, also played on winning Heuvelton teams in the late 1970s under former Bulldogs coach John Tehonica.

"He was an all-star in high school too," Decker said of his father. "My dad says he sees a lot of his team in ours. We all hit the ball well and we try to keep the errors to a minimum."

Decker played football for Canton High School in the fall and was on the Heuvelton boys basketball team in the winter. But he said baseball is his favorite sport and a game he estimates he's played 80 or 90 times each summer.

As a sophomore he pitched in the state Class D championship game, an experience he still draws from today.

"He's told me that once you pitch in a game like that you never seem to be really nervous," Steele said. "That experience he brings to the team really helps out the other players. He's not a stand-alone type player. He could be a kid with a big head, but that's not the case. He wants the team to do well."

Baseball will not end for Decker after this season. He's been accepted at Clarkson University and said he plans to try out for the Golden Knights baseball team next fall.

And even if he doesn't make that squad, he plans to stay active in his favorite sport long past the end of his high school career.

"I'd love to come back (to Heuvelton) and teach the kids what I've learned, and keep the Heuvelton program where it is right now, and keep the winning going on," Decker said.