Zack Langer, a four-year starter for the Fountain Hills High School baseball team, signed an athletic scholarship to continue his baseball career with Glendale Community College on Wednesday, May 11.

Langer compiled exceptional statistics, being in the top three on the team in every major statistic all four years he played for the Falcons. Langer was named All-Region first team as a freshman, Region Defensive Player of the Year and All-Conference honorable mention his junior season, and he was another All-Region first team selection this past year.

There were no superlatives Langer’s sophomore year because of COVID-19. Langer said around that time, he put his sights on a baseball scholarship.

“I really decided I wanted to do it probably my sophomore or junior year of high school and that’s when I really put my foot down and started getting dialed in,” Langer said. “If I really want to do this, I have to be focused on this. I kind of figured it out late, but it worked out well.”

Langer started to talk with Glendale and Paradise Valley Community Colleges earlier this year. Langer has played baseball for over 12 years, and even though he spoke with scouts at some tournaments, his decision came down to several non-baseball factors.

Langer went to tour Glendale Community College once and said he loved the weightlifting facilities there. He also loved the Gauchos’ head coach, Ed Trujillo, and said they had five phone calls after the tour.

“It was not a lot about baseball, to be honest with you,” Langer said about his conversations with Trujillo. “Going there, you have to prove your point, and show who you want to be and where you want to be and work hard and that’s how you get the respect from the coaches. I’m super excited that he’s giving me a chance and that he's excited for me to come there.”

Langer has always been a hard worker on the baseball diamond, and his high school coach is going to miss him next season. Falcon head coach Bob Langer did not speak to the crowd at Zack’s signing ceremony, but instead asked Athletic Director Evelyn Wynn to read a list of his accomplishments over the years.

Over four years, Langer scored 69 runs, knocked 87 hits, 53 RBIs and had a career .384 batting average. Each year, he led the team or was right behind the leader in these categories. If you remove the .292 average Langer had in 10 games as a sophomore, Langer’s career average was .415. Langer had a .397 batting average as a freshman, .417 as a junior and .431 as a senior.

Langer had his father as head coach for four years and has played with his younger brother the last two seasons. His family attended the Falcon Nest for Langer’s signing, including Langer’s older sister who signed a Division I scholarship earlier this spring after playing two seasons of beach volleyball at a community college.

“It’s awesome. It’s the reason why I’m here today,” Langer said. “I know that’s a cliché and everyone says it, but without them I couldn’t get to the games when I couldn’t drive. My Dad pushes me every day, and my mom and my grandparents being there every game, it’s a good feeling to have everyone behind your back and know you’re not doing it yourself.”

Langer signed a blank sheet of paper on signing night, symbolizing his commitment to the Gauchos. While at Glendale Community College, Langer plans to study architectural structure. He added that he’s always been fixated on small details, and he’s interested to see where architecture leads him.

Langer also played several years of basketball for Fountain Hills and has been active in the community for years. In reflection, he thought of all the bonds and friendships he's made over the years.

“I would say, honestly, the most fun I had in sports were all the bus rides,” Langer said. “That’s where you really get your bonds in there. You know the guys have your back, and it’s all the pregame talks, post-game talks, how far we want to go in the season, and it’s just a cool feeling to know everyone’s working hard and I just got that feeling from the bus rides. Everyone got so tight with each other.

“I’ve had such a fun time playing here and I’ve had an awesome opportunity. Thank you to all my coaches for believing in me, playing me here and I’m really grateful to have played in front of Fountain Hills High School.”