Second-year University of Maine at Presque Isle head coach Mike Pankow has worked hard to bring 12 newcomers into the fold on a 2015 Owl baseball team that only has 17 members on its roster.
The challenge of coaching that many inexperienced players, combined with the always daunting task of managing a collegiate pitching staff that may play as many as 10 or 12 games a week, only adds to the difficulties of the job.
The pitching staff is where most of the successes and failures come from a baseball squad and Pankow, a pitcher in his college playing days, has plenty of talent to work with.
Freshmen Matt Curry of Caribou and Saul Nunez of Mapleton anchor a staff that is averaging a strikeout an inning and has a 4-to-1 ratio of strikeout to walks. So despite the inexperience, the foundation is there for success.
“We have a great and talented class of incoming players that really complement our few returners well,” said Pankow. “We are a much improved team overall.”
Curry, a lefthander, recently named Association of Division 3 Independents Player of the Week, pitched a great game at Gallaudet University in which he held his opponents to three hits. He shut out a Bison squad that has won or shared their conference regular season championship the last two years. Nunez has also pitched exceptionally well, registering a 3.71 ERA and striking out 18 in his 17 innings of work.
Senior Ghazaleh Sailors of Santa Barbara, Calif., the only female pitcher in NCAA baseball, and junior Andrew Bartlett of Damariscotta will add their experience to the starting staff. Sailors led the staff in appearances and ERA last season and Bartlett is rebounding well from a tough 2014 campaign, as evidenced from his two-hit, nine-strikeout shutout win in his first start against Vaughn College in New York City.
Freshman Jesus Garcia of Jewett City, Conn. will also get starts as needed and classmates Aaron Kofstad of Presque Isle and Austin Bernier of Fort Fairfield will throw out of the bullpen. Junior rightfielder Tommy Collins of Eastport, last year’s Owl leader in stolen bases, will see an increased workload in the pen as well.
Versatility is the backbone of the positional players as most of the Owl players will see action at a multitude of positions depending upon who pitches. Returner Adam Begos of Portland has manned second and provided solid play both offensively and defensively for the Owls, hitting .292 and getting on base at a .393 clip. Garcia and Kofstad will see a majority of time at third base and Sailors will provide depth at the position as well. Nunez will play short, but when he pitches Matt Cauchon of Kingston, Mass., Garcia or Bernier will play the position.
“We are a very talented and versatile group that allows us to have much more depth than a normal roster of our size,” noted Pankow. “We are looking forward to contributions from everyone on our roster and that flexibility fits our overall philosophy.”
Pankow has been pleased with the work of another freshman, Soloman Fast of Phillips, behind the plate. Fast is a strong, athletic backstop with some pop at the plate. Freshmen Connor Thibeault of Caribou, utility man Nate Bowers of Winthrop and sophomore Mitch Thayer of Colchester, Vt. will also catch, with Thayer providing the Owls with a top pinch hitter to call upon off the bench in key situations.
Bartlett has worked hard to improve offensively and is the first basemen. Curry or Thayer will sub in at first when Bartlett takes the mound.
Junior centerfielder Brady Rowe of Halifax, Nova Scotia and leftfielder Cauchon have played above expectation, hitting .281 and .263, respectively. Both work counts and make pitchers throw strikes as evidenced by their high on-base averages. Cauchon has walked seven times in the early going to lead the regulars with a .462 on-base percentage and Rowe, a transfer from Crown College in Minnesota, is right behind him at .378. Collins, Curry and Thayer will split time in right. Also seeing action in the outfield will be Frank Nunez of Mapleton and Thibeault.
Chris Bernier of Limestone would have seen time on the mound and in the outfield, but is injured and out for the season.
Twelve talented freshmen may have been added to fortify the Owl program, but Pankow has been most pleased with the addition of assistant coach Ryan Dana to help recruit and instruct. Former Owl Justin Bergeron is also volunteering his time to help advance the program as well.
While Pankow is excited about the future of his program, it’s been exceptionally tough to fight through a spring season that has had such unpredictable weather, which has not been conducive to playing outdoor baseball. In all, the Owls have had 15 cancellations and more than 20 games rescheduled. Even with spring games scheduled in North Carolina, the team was unable to play a single game on their first road trip to the state.
Regardless of weather, the work of elevating the Owl baseball program continues every day in Wieden Gymnasium.
“We are seeing improvements by leaps and bounds every day and the future of UMPI baseball for this season and beyond is bright,” said Pankow.
