STACYVILLE, Maine — For many athletic programs, the loss of several key players would be enough to send a team into a full-blown rebuilding mode.
Fortunately, the Katahdin Cougar baseball team has enough firepower on its roster to withstand such a loss and come back for what is hoped will be another lengthy playoff push.
In his four years with the club, head coach Tim Thoreson has seen a number of talented players rise through the ranks from role players one year, to standouts the following.
Katahdin finished 12-5 during the regular season a year ago, which was good enough for the No. 5 seed in Class D North. The Cougars blasted past No. 12 Ashland 15-0 in a preliminary playoff and upset No. 4 Central Aroostook 14-8 in the quarterfinals before falling to No. 1 Fort Fairfield 6-5 in the semifinals in what coach Thoreson described as a “heart-breaking” loss for the team.
Fort Fairfield went on to win the regional title, but was shutout in the state championship.
Despite losing seven players to graduation, coach Thoreson said he expects the Cougars to be ready for the new season.
“We expect to be very competitive this season and go deep into the playoffs,” he said. “We lost several talented players to graduation last year, but we are fortunate to have a great middle school program that does a fantastic job of getting our young men ready for high school.”
Every year, the Cougar coach has high expectations for his young squad, but winning games is not the only goal.
“The main goal of this program is to always become better men over the course of the season,” Thoreson said. “We strive to make sure that every young man that is a part of this program becomes a better man for having played here.”
Members of the Cougar squad are seniors John McNally (pitcher/first base), Evan Tapley (outfield), and Anthony Chaloux (outfield); juniors Blake Howes (catcher/pitcher/infielder) and Caleb Giles (infielder/pitcher); sophomores Bradley Hotham (pitcher/infield), Wesley Richardson (utility), Ahmik Bechard (outfield) and Jacob Fitzpatrick (outfield); freshmen Justin Hurlbert (utility) and Erick Cummings (outfield); and eighth-grader AJ Lewis.
Giles is the top offensive returning player for the Cougars, according to the coach, as he batted .386 last season with 13 stolen bases. Hotham will likely be the team’s ace on the mound as he boasted a 1.657 ERA a season ago with 46 strikeouts.
The team’s strength is the same this year as it was a season ago — pitching and base running, according to the coach. The Cougars swiped 122 bases a year ago and are looking to increase that number this year.
“We spend a lot of time focusing on base running, pitching, and defense,” he said. “We hope to improve in those three facets of the game over the course of the season.”
Like most squads, the Cougars struggled to get onto their field this spring due to excessive snow cover. Instead, the team had to use the student parking lot as a “sandlot” style baseball field until they could get onto the grass.
“We go outside every chance we get, even when it is snowing,” Thoreson said.
