BURLINGTON, Vt. – Even with the sting of defeat lingering Friday night, University of Maine baseball coach Paul Kostacopoulos couldn’t help but talk excitedly about the Black Bears’ accomplishments and their prospects for 2004.

UMaine’s bid for a second straight conference title and NCAA Tournament berth ended with a 6-3 loss to Stony Brook at the America East Championship. Yet the 2003 season reinforced the notion UMaine has re-established itself as a perennial league and regional power.

The Bears finished 38-18, their third season in a row with at least 36 victories, behind a combination of talented veterans and promising young players. Kostacopoulos credited his seven seniors with setting the recent standard of success.

“When you can rack up 38 wins in an unfriendly weather climate and have three 35-plus-win seasons in a row, you can’t help but think you’ve done a lot of good things,” said Kostacopoulos, who this spring celebrated his 400th collegiate coaching victory and his 200th win at UMaine.

Seniors Brett Ouellette, Alain Picard, Joe Drapeau of Biddeford, Mike Livulpi, Jesse Carlton, Adam Labelle and Pat Tobin all made key contributions, both this season and in previous years.

UMaine built its 2003 success around consistent defense, outstanding pitching and a solid hitting attack.

The Bears led America East in fielding percentage at .973, challenging the school record of .978 set in 1973. Freshman shortstop Steve Gambale (.246, 14 RBI) committed only two errors in 168 chances to lead the squad, while the rest of the infield regulars combined to make only 26 miscues.

The efficient fielding was the perfect complement to a pitching staff that compiled a 3.74 earned run average, which ranked second in the league behind Vermont.

Junior righthanders Mike Collar of Scarborough (8-3, 3.25) and Mike MacDonald of Camden (7-5, 3.28) set the standard, combining to strike out 180 and walk only 27 in 165 1/3 innings. Freshman righty Greg Norton of South Portland, the AE Rookie of the Year, went 7-1 with a staff-low 2.97 ERA.

Junior Ryan Harris (4-3, 3.80) and sophomore Greg Creek of Chelsea (5-0, 4.14), along with senior reliever Adam Labelle (3-3, 4.33, 4 saves), also were outstanding.

“We knew we had Mike and Mike, but those two guys [Harris and Norton] did a great job,” Kostacopoulos said. “And I think Greg Creek’s a much better pitcher than he was last year. He’s really improved.”

Frosh Sam Warner of Eliot, Troy Martin and Brett Rogers of Orr’s Island also chipped in on a staff that had lost three of its top seven pitchers from 2002.

Collar and MacDonald both have attracted the attention of major league scouts, but Kostacopoulos expects to have a proven staff next spring.

“It’s hard to say you have a sense [about the draft] because the guys that see these guys play, they’re not sitting in the rooms making decisions,” said Kostacopoulos, conceding one or both could be drafted.

“Certainly I think Collar’s ready. I think he’s worthy of a potential opportunity,” he said.

UMaine’s offense (a league-best .298 batting average) was often good enough, but proved inconsistent throughout the season. Ouellette (.340, 10 HR, 45 RBI) had a career year, while part-time starters Ryan Quintal (.340, 5 HR, 25 RBI) and Creek (.322, 2 HR, 17 RBI) finished among the team leaders.

Picard (.321, 6 HR, 50 RBI, 9 stolen bases), soph catcher Aaron Izaryk (.310, 2 HR, 33 RBI), Drapeau (.303, 11 HR, 34 RBI), Carlton (.300, 3 HR, 21 RBI), Livulpi (.294, 5 HR, 19 RBI, 21 SB) and junior Simon Williams of Portland (.286, 3 HR, 17 RBI, 8 SB) were among the other top regulars.

The Bears averaged a healthy 6.6 runs, which was a drop of 1.3 per game from 2002, but didn’t hit in the clutch consistently.

“We had too many hot-and-cold guys,” Kostacopoulos conceded. “There was no continuity in the order as far as scoring runs goes.”

As for the future, the Bears must replace veterans at first, second and third, along with one starting outfield position and the designated hitter spot. There are some excellent candidates who saw action this season, including infielders Mike Ferriggi (.256), Mark Reichley (.242) and Creek.

There should be some depth in the outfield, where Williams and Quintal are joined by promising freshmen Joe Hough (.259) and Jason Houser (.267).

“There’s a couple of guys on the bench who are pretty good players and just didn’t get a lot of playing time,” Kostacopoulos said. “We’ll have those guys hopefully step up next year.”

Still, he and the staff will be busy this summer trying to complete their recruiting class, which already includes early signees Ross Cantara, a shortstop from Biddeford, and Matt McGraw, a catcher from Burlington, Ontario.

“We’ve got a lot to do as far as recruiting goes,” Kostacopoulos said.