04/11/2008
Staff Writer
Once again, Winthrop has the players to compete for a Class C state championship. The past two seasons, the Ramblers have been stopped in regional play by eventual state champ St. Dominic of Auburn, but that hasn't diminished their enthusiasm.
"These athletes are as optimistic as I've ever seen them," Winthrop coach Marc Fortin said. "The expectations are very high."
There's plenty of pitching depth led by senior left-hander Forest Dwyer, who went 4-1 last season with a 2.24 earned run average. Junior Jake Steele saw some spot starts last season while Dave Ricker, Tyler Cobb and Easton Morang will also pitch. The hitting, led by Ricker, who batted .500 last season, is even better.
Cobb, catcher Jordan Conant, Steele and Dwyer are all good sticks and there's plenty of competition beyond them.
"We lost two starters from last year," Fortin said. "There are five really good athletes vying for positions."
There will be plenty of strong competition in the Mountain Valley Conference including Class B entries Lisbon and Mountain Valley, Livermore Falls, Dirigo and Hall-Dale.
"Mountain Valley and Winthrop seem to be a click better than everybody else," Hall-Dale coach Tim Johnson said. "Then Lisbon, Livermore and Dirigo. That's the top five in my book."
Hall-Dale should be a darkhorse. They have three good pitchers in junior Dylan Dupont, sophomore Ryan Leach and senior Josh Acedo. The infield, anchored by junior shortstop Tyler Cummings, is also strong, although an injury to catcher Dan Alexander could have an impact on the early part of the schedule.
"I feel real good about our pitching," Johnson said. "The whole key to our season is whether or not we start to hit."
Monmouth, like Hall-Dale, was in the middle of the MVC pack last season. The Mustangs return a solid lineup, but as coach Eric Palleschi points out, "in my four years, this will be the toughest the league has been."
Josh Boisvert and Eric Murphy are battling for the top spot in the pitching rotation while Parker Ferland also figures into the mix.
"We should have a decent 1-2," Palleschi said.
Overall, the Mustangs return eight players from a team that went 8-8 last season. The defense is fairly solid and there are some good bats in the lineup, led by Murphy, Ronnie Hobson and Mackenzie Tozier.
Last year, Mt. Abram spent half the season playing its home games at Hippach Field in Farmington. The Roadrunners new field at the high school is ready to go for the start of this season. Scoring runs wasn't a problem last season, and coach Ryan Palmer hopes to get the pitching to contend for a playoff spot.
"Last year, pitching killed us," Palmer said. "We averaged six runs per game. In the MVC, that should get you more than three wins."
Charlie Dexter is the top returning pitcher. Catcher Dylan Tisor and first baseman Hank Poulin were the team's top hitters as freshmen last season.
Madison is young. Exchange student Juan Pablo Morales is the only senior on the roster. The Bulldogs were 1-15 last season, and coach Shawn Bean said the team wants to make improvement this season with an eye on 2009.
"If we can win four, five or six games this year, we want to build this season for the season after," Bean said.
Junior Ezra Gourley hit .412 last season and is expected to be Madison's top pitcher. Sophomores Kyle Costigan, Ben Freeman and Lucas Libby will also pitch.
The coaching carousel at Carrabec appears to be over, with Troy Dunphy back for a second season in the Cobras' dugout and committed to rebuilding the program. Dunphy is looking for arms, and had eight pitchers throwing in the first week of practice.
"Nobody's throwing 100 miles per hour, but they're getting it over," Dunphy said.
Senior Alex Myers will be the team's No. 1 pitcher and also will catch, while sophomore first baseman Aaron Lane, senior second baseman Justin Cummins, and junior third baseman Nick Manzer will be counted on to lead the offense.
Staff writer Travis Lazarczyk contributed to this report
Gary Hawkins -- 621-5638
ghawkins@centralmaine.com
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