The start of the 2002 baseball season hasn’t been kind to rookie head coach and Jonesport-Beals alumnus Tony Beal.

After replacing former head coach Blaine Steeves on the fly after Steeves took over for Tony Maker to become the new physical education teacher and varsity baseball coach at Washington Academy shortly before the preseason began, Beal had his hands full.

Two players and one manager were suspended from the team for violating Jonesport-Beals’ athletic code during the preseason and starting center fielder and leadoff hitter Abraham Beal was lost a week later after fracturing his right index finger while sliding into first base in the team’s first preseason game.

As if taking over your first varsity baseball job without much lead time wasn’t daunting enough, Beal had to figure out how to replace three starters who play key positions right up the middle of the field.

“Actually, it affects our lineup more than it does our defense because our defense is stronger and we have more depth there, but we really miss Abraham,” said Beal, a member of the Class of 1994 who now teaches history at his alma mater. “We’re averaging 10 strikeouts a game [offensively] the first couple games.

“We’re down to 15 players, but we’ve maintained our pitching level pretty well.”

Things are looking up for the Royals. Beal is due back this week or next and veteran pitchers like four-year starters Daren Kelley and Billy Merchant are providing solid leadership along with first baseman Alvin Beal – the only seniors on the young team.

“It’s pretty amazing how resilient the kids have been. They just keep going out and playing ball,” said Beal of his 1-1 Royals. “We’ve been optimistic, and the team will be stronger in the long run because of the younger guys getting to play.”

End of an era for Panthers

Twenty-one years after taking over the head coaching position for Waterville’s varsity basketball team, Ken Lindloff has decided to walk away from the job.

The dean of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference coaches said the timing was right.

“The last couple years, the grind was getting to be a factor – doing two back-to-back sports – and I felt it was getting to be too much with the time commitment, and the joy of winning not making up for the pain of losing,” Lindloff said. “The losses were getting tougher to take.”

The 49-year-old Lindloff told the members of his basketball team last week.

“They were stunned. They were the first people, besides my wife, who I told,” he said. “That was probably the hardest thing for me.”

Lindloff, who teaches United States history and humanities at Waterville High School, will continue to serve as the offensive coordinator for Frank Knight’s varsity football program.

“No, I’m not giving that up. I think I decided to get done with basketball because it’s a big time commitment between the long winter season and then the summer program whereas the football season isn’t as long and there’s more of a rhythm to it,” Lindloff explained.

Lindloff won’t be completely severing his basketball ties as he plans to continue broadcasting games as an analyst for Bangor television station WABI as long as station officials want him, and he plans to attend several games next season.

“I’m not ruling out coaching again, I just need some time away from it,” he said. “Maybe I’ll resurrect my career another time, but for now, it just seemed like the time to get done.”

Two-year assistant coach Jason Briggs, who played at Oxford Hills High in South Paris and the University of Maine-Farmington, would be a candidate for the job, although he hasn’t applied yet.

Lindloff and his wife Kimberly, the president of the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce, have one son: Jared Poulin is a sophomore at Waterville.

Andrew Neff can be reached at 990-8205, 1-800-310-8600 or aneff@bangordailynews.net.