Zone 1 names Harvey its Player of the Year

BREWER – Just more than a month after accepting Maine’s Mr. Baseball Award as the top senior player in the state, Bucksport’s Craig Harvey added another honor to his burgeoning collection as American Legion Zone 1’s Player of the Year.

Harvey, who continued punishing pitched baseballs once the Legion season began, finished the regular season with a .571 batting average (32-for-56), six home runs, 28 RBIs, 26 runs, 10 doubles, and two triples.

On the mound, the recent Bucksport High graduate pitched 26 1/3 innings and went 3-3 to help lead his Brewer Falcons to a 12-6 record and the No. 2 seeding in the upcoming Zone 1 Tournament.

Harvey collected four of the six votes (Calais was unrepresented at the meeting) to edge fellow finalists Mike MacDonald from Waldo County, Toby Cole of Trenton, and Aaron Civiello of Orono.

Harvey was one of two Falcons to come away with major awards as head coach David Morris was named co-coach of the year along with fellow rookie Legion coach Bill Hodgdon, who coached the Trenton Acadians to an 11-6 record and the No. 3 spot in the four-team tourney field.

“I knew we had a solid team, but we didn’t have much experience among our coaches,” Hodgdon said. “I just hoped to break .500 in my first year out – although that’s not what I told the kids.”

Both Hodgdon and Morris said their awards were just a reflection of the work and talent exhibited by the players, assistant coaches, and others connected with their teams.

“The last thing I thought about was winning this,” said Morris. “It’s nice to be recognized, but as a coach, you don’t look for accolades.

Trenton was the big winner when it came to team representation on the Zone 1 All-Star first team, which was picked by a vote of the Zone 1 head coaches Tuesday night. The Acadians placed five players among the first-teamers with Jason Weed (first base), Cole (second), John Lewandowski (third), Tyler Balombini-Goddard (outfield) and Greg Ingalls (designated hitter).

The rest of the first team includes pitchers MacDonald, Ryan Hatch of Brewer, Jason Robbins of Orono and Bangor’s Barrett Dionne; catcher Ricky McHale of Brewer; shortstop Jason Sirois of Orono; outfielders Civiello, Ben Relyea (Waldo), and Brian Hawthorne (Hermon); and utility player Aaron Tripp (Waldo).

ZONE 1 ALL-STARS

Player of the year – Craig Harvey (Brewer)

Coaches of the year – Bill Hodgdon (Trenton) and David Morris (Brewer)

First team – Pitchers: Mike MacDonald (Waldo County), Ryan Hatch (Brewer), Jason Robbins (Orono), Barrett Dionne (Bangor); Catcher: Rick McHale (Brewer); First baseman: Jason Weed (Trenton); Second baseman: Toby Cole (Trenton); Third base: John Lewandowski (Trenton); Shortstop: Jason Sirois (Orono); Outfielders: Aaron Civiello (Orono), Ben Relyea (Waldo), Brian Hawthorne (Hermon), Tyler Balombini-Goddard (Trenton); Designated hitter: Greg Ingalls (Trenton); Utility: Aaron Tripp (Waldo)

Second team – P: Mike Cowperthwaite (Trenton), Travis Brooker (Bangor), Brad Wheaton (Orono), Justin Veazie (Hermon); C: Jason Folsom (Orono); 1B: Josh Johnson (Bangor); 2B: Josh Emerson (Orono); 3B: Joel Barrett (Brewer); SS: Shawn Henderson (Hermon); OF: Brad Boyles (Orono), Pete Collier and Derek Awalt (Trenton); DH: Rob Donato (Orono); Utility: Ryan Snell (Brewer) and Courtney Bunker (Trenton)

Honorable mentions – Bangor: Shawn Bouchard, Jim Shea, Andrew Sullivan, Ryan Worcester, Chris Bombardier; Brewer: Adam Freeman, Justin Spencer, Bill Bruschi, Abram Allard, Chris McHale, Kyle Dalton, Pat Lacey; Calais: Scott MacDonald, James MacDonald, Joe Footer, Doug Adams; Hermon: Bill Kane, Scott DeRaps, Buddy Leavitt, Joe Mendell, Jon Blair; Orono: Benn Clark, Ryan Brown; Trenton: Brandon Packwood, Justin Roberts, Joe Richards; Waldo County: Abe Dugal, Skip Smith, Pat Fitzpatrick