The mark of a good team is success within a single season.

The mark of a good program is staying power.

The George Stevens Academy baseball team has both, as evidenced by the Eagles winning a second straight Class C state championship despite fielding a vastly different team from a year ago.

Eleven seniors graduated after GSA won its 2003 crown, leaving a few returning veterans to lead a large contingent of talented sophomores making their debut at the varsity level.

“We won the state game last year, all those seniors left, and these guys went to work,” said GSA coach Dan Kane, who has led his team to seven Eastern Maine titles and three state championships during his 16 years at the helm. “They played together in the summer. They played Senior League and went to the state tournament and represented themselves very well. Then in the fall they were driving Sundays to play in a league in Augusta.

“They put in their time. They wanted this. They enjoy the game. It’s not so much about winning championships, they just love playing the game.”

Of course, it helped that the Eagles had both talent and considerable leadership qualities among those who did return this spring, including the team’s three seniors – pitcher-second baseman Will Rosenthal, pitcher-third baseman Adam Cousins, and catcher Harrison Hines – who will represent GSA in Friday’s Maine High School Senior All-Star Baseball Game at Mahaney Diamond in Orono.

“My seniors this year, you can’t imagine how well they’ve done, not only with their play on the field, but they’re the first ones there at practice and the last ones to leave,” said Kane. “I don’t have to take care of much. My job is basically to go out there, work on the fundamental things, go to the third-base coach’s box, and go home at the end. They take care of everything else. They’re just wonderful leaders.”

That leadership was statistical in nature – Rosenthal, Cousins and Hines batted 1-2-4 in the GSA lineup – but also stemmed from their inner confidence, confidence based on the success of years past.

“We weren’t really worried about all the seniors who graduated,” said Rosenthal, who had three hits and three RBIs in GSA’s 12-2 win over St. Dominic of Auburn in Saturday’s state final at Gorham High School. “We had a good corps of guys who really love to play. We didn’t have any worries about it. We knew we’d come out and play our game and do well all season.”

GSA also had a rarity in high school baseball, a staff deep in lefthanded pitching, particularly junior Dan Hilts and sophomore Collin Henry. Hilts finished with a 6-0 record and earned the state final win for the second straight year. Henry struck out 17 in his first varsity start and went on to go 6-1 this spring.

“I thought that it was possible for us to come back here,” said Hilts. “I’ve played with all these players for the last three years and knew what they were capable of. Knowing our strengths and weaknesses, I figured we could go out and, if we played our best, no one could beat us.”

With just the three seniors graduating this year, George Stevens looms as the early favorite for regional and state honors in 2005. But the graduation of Rosenthal, Cousins, and Hines will leave a significant leadership void to be filled.

“I think it’s going to happen,” said Kane. “We’ve just got good people up and down the lineup who are ready to step up and do the job. But the pressure’s going to be on us. We’re two-time state champs now, and we’ve got a little bull’s-eye on us.”

Rogers tops Mr. Baseball finalists

What do Ryan Reid, Adam Vachon, and Ryan Copp have in common?

They are the other finalists for the Mr. Baseball Award that will be presented Friday night before the 2004 Maine High School Senior All-Star Baseball Game at Mahaney Diamond at the University of Maine at Orono.

The fourth finalist, and the overwhelming favorite to win this year’s Mr. Baseball Award, is Mount Ararat of Topsham pitcher Mark Rogers, the 2004 Gatorade National High School Baseball Player of the Year and No. 5 overall pick in the recent amateur draft by the Milwaukee Brewers.

In any other year, Reid would be a strong choice. The pitcher from Deering of Portland has accepted a full baseball scholarship from Division I James Madison University and capped off his senior year by pitching a five-hitter in the Class A state final to defeat Rogers and Mount Ararat 6-1.

Reid finished the season 8-0 with 85 strikeouts in 50 1/3innings while allowing 18 hits, 11 walks, and four earned runs.

Vachon, a shortstop bound for Dartmouth College, was this year’s senior class valedictorian at Cony of Augusta. He also led the Cony baseball team to the Eastern A semifinals, where the Rams lost an 8-7 eight-inning decision to Mount Ararat.

Copp helped Greely of Cumberland Center rise from the No. 8 seed in Western B to a berth in the regional championship game, where the Rangers dropped a 4-1 decision to eventual state champion Cape Elizabeth. He was one of the team’s top hitters, and compiled a 4-4 pitching record.

The senior all-star game is set to start at 7 p.m. Friday.