UMaine baseball solid during trip Steady pitching among positives

ORONO – Coming off a strong 9-6 southern swing, the University of Maine baseball team is looking forward to the northern part of its schedule.

Then again, the chilling winds that swept across the Morse Field AstroTurf during the Black Bears’ Tuesday practice were a reminder UMaine has a long season ahead.

Coach Paul Kostacopoulos was pleased with his team’s performance on the trip, including its steady starting pitching, outstanding fielding, solid hitting, and contributions from some newcomers.

“There were positives all around,” Kostacopoulos said. “We played good defense and we played hard. We really competed.”

Senior captain Jesse Carlton, who is among the Bears’ hitting leaders (.342, 3 HR, 12 RBI), said UMaine developed some confidence on the trip.

“I think coming off last season we knew pretty much what we could do, but playing [No. 14] Clemson as tight as we did, I think there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that we can play with anyone in the country,” Carlton said.

Pitching and defense were the basics of the Bears’ success. Primary starters Greg Norton of South Portland (2-0, 3.18 ERA), Mike MacDonald (1-2, 4.05) of Camden, Ryan Harris (1-1, 4.50), and Mike Collar (1-2, 5.12) of Scarborough pitched well.

Greg Creek of Chelsea (2-0, 2.77) and Adam Labelle (1-1, 3.86) also were consistent.

Norton, a freshman righthander, established himself as a factor on the staff. He returned home having pitched 14 straight scoreless innings.

“It was a great experience, to say the least,” said Norton, who developed confidence facing his teammates during preseason. “I just go out and try to keep that same mindset, knowing that these guys are really good hitters and if I just do what I did inside, I’ll hopefully be successful outside.”

The staff combined to strike out 119 and walk only 50. Kostacopoulos said a key will be developing consistency among its second-line pitchers.

UMaine sparkled defensively, making only nine errors in 15 games. The emergence of freshman shortstop Steve Gambale (.294, 3 RBI), who is errorless in 50 chances, was a pleasant surprise. The Bears turned 18 double plays.

“He was outstanding defensively. He had no fumbles,” Kostacopoulos said. “This is really a big lift for us.”

Second baseman Brett Ouellette, 3B Joe Drapeau of Biddeford (.235, 1 HR, 5 RBI), and 1B Carlton were the infield mainstays, while Mark Reichley (.333, 3 RBI) and Mike Ferriggi (.250, 6 RBI) were steady.

Aaron Izaryk did the bulk of the catching and led UMaine with a .347 average. He knocked in 14 runs. Designated hitter Alain Picard (.345, 1 HR) has a team-high 19 RBIs.

“We really had trouble driving in runs, but I thought we did a good job setting ourselves up to score,” Kostacopoulos said.

In the outfield, Mike Livulpi (.313, 2 HR, 5 RBI) held down center field, while veterans Aaron Young of Augusta and Simon Williams of Portland (hamstring) struggled a bit. But freshmen filled in admirably as Ryan Quintal (.310, 1 HR, 5 RBI) and Joe Hough (.300, 8 RBI) proved they can play.

“It’s good to see the younger guys step in there and prove themselves at this level,” Carlton said.

Fletcher is NAIA All-America

Husson College men’s basketball power forward Randy Fletcher has been named to the NAIA All-America second team.

The 6-foot-5 senior from Temple Hills, Md., averaged 16.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game this season, helping coach Warren Caruso’s Braves capture the Sunrise Conference title and earn a trip to the national tournament.

Fletcher, the Sunrise Conference Player of the Year, finished his collegiate career with 1,480 points and 861 rebounds, making him Husson’s 11th all-time leading scorer and No. 6 rebounder.

Husson teammate Ryan Rivera of Bradford received NAIA All-America honorable mention. The senior averaged 13.2 points and 4.3 rebounds and was a Sunrise Conference first- team pick. He finished with 1,000 career points.