Husson College sophomore Jason Harvey, who played basketball and baseball last year and was the Sunrise Conference’s Rookie of the Year in baseball, is looking to transfer as soon as next semester.

Harvey, a slick-fielding shortstop with a strong arm who hit .346 last spring, said he intends to stick to baseball at his next school “and I want to play at a higher level.”

“At some point, you have to take chances, and this is the best thing for me,” said Harvey, who averaged 10 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3 assists for Husson’s basketball team last winter.

“I think I can compete for some Division I schools. Defensively, I should be all right. Hitting-wise, it will take time to get used to the different level of pitching. But I think it will come after a while,” Harvey said.

Harvey also indicated that he will look at Division II and Division III schools in addition to Division I institutions.

He has stopped practicing with the Braves basketball team and admits that he misses the game.

“It’s hard not playing, but this is what I’ve got to do,” said Harvey, who feels he has a better future in baseball.

Harvey followed his impressive freshman season at Husson with a memorable summer for the Brewer American Legion team as he was named the Zone 1 Most Valuable Player thanks to his .475 average, five homers, 30 runs batted in, 29 runs, 12 doubles, and four triples.

Harvey, who is still taking classes at Husson, said he talked to several people before making his decision a couple of weeks ago.

Husson, as an NCAA Division III school, doesn’t give out athletic scholarships, but Division I and II schools can and he could play right away since baseball isn’t one of the sports that requires a transfer to sit out a year.

“A scholarship would definitely be nice,” said Harvey, who starred in basketball and baseball at Bucksport High School. He was a first team All-Maine selection in basketball.

He indicated that if he doesn’t find a good fit, he will stay at Husson and play for the Braves again this spring.

His older brother, Craig, is the Braves’ first baseman.

He said he would like to give professional baseball a try after college if the opportunity presents itself.

Husson hosts UMF women today

The Husson women’s soccer team will host the University of Maine-Farmington in a first-round game of the NCAA Division III tournament today as both schools received at-large bids to the tournament.

The teams will meet at 1 p.m. at Husson’s Boucher Soccer Field in Bangor.

The Braves and the Beavers, both members of the North Atlantic Conference, were picked to join the tournament’s 45-team field.

The winner of Wednesday’s contest moves on to compete at Wheaton College (Mass.) Saturday. Wheaton (21-1) received the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference automatic berth.

UMF has a 2-1 edge in three games against Husson this year. All three scores were 1-0 and two of the games went into overtime.

The Beavers, who are 16-3-1, topped the 12-5-3 Braves in the North Atlantic Conference title game Saturday.

“We’ve grown as a program to the point where we can consistently challenge the Farmington team,” Husson coach Keith Bosley said in a statement. “… It somehow seems appropriate that when we each make the NCAA tournament for the first time that we play each other to advance.”