STACYVILLE, Maine — After a disappointing early exit from the playoffs a year ago, Katahdin third-year baseball coach Tim Thoreson is hoping his team can erase the sting of that loss by stringing together a successful campaign.
“We are excited about the upcoming season,” coach Thoreson said. “We return six of our nine everyday starters from last year as well as 88 of 98 innings pitched last year. Our main goal in this program is to challenge each other every day to become better men and to prepare our young men for the world once the last pitch is thrown.”
Last year, the Cougars finished 10-4 in the regular season, which earned Katahdin the No. 3 seed in Class D North and a first-round bye. But the Cougars fell to No. 6 Shead, 9-7, in the quarterfinals.
“We suffered a heartbreaking loss at home in the quarterfinals last year and our young men are using that loss as fuel to work this preseason,” the coach said.
In order to achieve success, the team will lean on its strong senior class this season. The Cougar roster features seniors Cooper Drew, Nate Shimkaitis, Andy Cummings, Chase Tapley, Nick Drew, Rig Otero and Brody Guiggey; juniors John McNally and Evan Tapley; sophomores Bryce Sinclair, Blake Howes, Caleb Giles and Dawson McKinney; and freshmen Ahmik Bechard, Wesley Richardson, Jacob Fitzpatrick and Bradley Hotham.
“Pitching and defense will anchor our team this year,” the coach said. “We return all of our starting pitchers from last year and have added a few to our rotation that we believe can make an impact.”
The Cougars will need to replace two key players — Devin McGraw and Dalton Hartt — who anchored the corner infield spots last season. “Devin had been an anchor at first base for the past three years, and Dalton was a vocal leader who played a great third base for us last year,” Thoreson said.
Thoreson added that the Cougars will focus a bit more on being aggressive running the bases this spring.
“Every year we strive to make an impact on the base paths,” he said. “We try to use our speed to put pressure on the defense. As the season progresses, our goal is to gain better instincts on the base paths.”
Finding time to practice outside has been difficult, the coach said.
“As always in northern Maine, it is a battle to get the snow to melt and get out on our baseball field,” Thoreson said. “We do our very best to get outside as soon as possible, wherever that may be. Right now, we spend a lot of time practicing outside in our school parking lot. It is not a perfect situation, but it allows us to get reps on a full size ‘infield.’ Once the snow melts, we start practicing on grass behind our field until the field is ready to go.”
Katahdin is tentatively scheduled to open its season by hosting Greater Houlton Christian Academy at 4 p.m. Monday, April 23.
