It’s an honor a decade in the making.

That’s how long Tim Olore, Sandy Curran, Wayne Brown and a myriad of other players, coaches and friends of the Presque Isle High School baseball program have been working to make the James I. Dyer Memorial Field one of the best in the state.

That effort has been recognized by the National High School Baseball Coaches Association, which selected Olore, Curran, Brown and Dyer Memorial Field as the 2004 District 1 Groundskeepers/Field of the Year.

Eight district Groundskeeper/Field of the Year awards were presented nationwide, as well as eight district Coaches of the Year. Mike D’Andrea of Deering High in Portland was named the District 1 Coach of the Year after leading the Rams to the Class A state championship last June.

National Coaches of the Year and Groundskeeper/Field of the Year recipients will be announced at the BCA awards luncheon to be held Saturday, Dec. 4, in Grapevine, Texas.

Olore, the varsity baseball coach at Presque Isle, and Curran and Brown, groundskeepers for SAD 1 in Presque Isle, were honored for their efforts in renovating nearly every aspect of Dyer Memorial Field.

Those renovations have included rebuilding the infield using new sod, red clay and a material called Turface that is popular with professional groundskeepers at the major league level, reseeding the outfield, replacing the outfield fence, upgrading the parking area and constructing dugouts, a press box, a concession booth, storage area and bathrooms.

“Over the last few years, we’ve turned the field into a top-notch field,” said Olore, a 1979 graduate of Presque Isle High. “It’s a field everyone can be proud of.”

Lights also have been added at the field in recent years, with some of the needed equipment acquired from the former Loring Air Force Base in Limestone, thanks to the cooperation of the Loring Development Authority.

Current and recent Presque Isle players have played a key role in field maintenance, Olore said. For example, Olore said pitchers are responsible for the pitcher’s mound, third basemen are responsible for the area around third base, and catchers keep up the area around home plate.

Olore also credited the support of the local boosters’ club, the school board and school officials, including Superintendent of Schools Dr. Gehrig Johnson.

“We all want to provide the players with the best field we can,” said Olore.

Ponies poised for playoffs

They have compiled a 31-2 record since the start of the 2002 football season, but the Foxcroft Academy Ponies enter the LTC semifinals flying a bit under the radar.

Unbeaten Bucksport was the conference’s top team throughout the regular season, while resurgent Orono has earned considerable attention while compiling a 7-2 record to gain its first postseason berth since 1997.

Foxcroft, the defending Class C state champion and two-time reigning Eastern C titlist, is merely 8-1, a record marred only by a 34-21 loss at Bucksport in Week 3.

The Ponies also own a 33-6 Week 2 win against Orono, Foxcroft’s semifinal opponent Friday night at Oakes Field in Dover-Foxcroft.

Coach Paul Withee’s club will take a six-game winning streak into that contest after besting archrival Dexter 57-6 in its regular-season finale last Saturday.

“I was very pleased with the way we played against Dexter,” said Withee. “They came in with three wins and statistically had done well both offensively and defensively, but we were able to hold them down.”

The Ponies rushed for 558 yards against the Tigers, with tailback Bobby Gilbert leading the way with 300 yards and six touchdowns on 26 carries. Gilbert, a 5-foot-11, 205-pound senior who is drawing the interest of several Division I-AA programs, finished the regular season with 1,576 rushing yards and 31 touchdowns, eclipsing the school record for touchdowns in a season set by Brian Bellemare in 1999.

The Ponies’ attack has benefited in recent weeks from the shift of junior James McPhee from guard to fullback. McPhee has averaged about 100 yards per game since joining Gilbert and senior Andrew Pomeroy in the backfield behind junior quarterback Shayne Croan.

“When you have a kid who runs like Bobby, you want to put the ball in his hands as often as you can,” said Withee. “But we feel we’re more versatile, and McPhee has given us a new dimension.”

Junior Josh Pelletier, a state champion wrestler, has replaced McPhee in the line, and the Ponies’ offense has averaged 46.8 points in four victories since rallying past Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln 28-27 in Week 5.

“I think we’re playing our best ball,” Withee said.

Football around the state

Home-field advantage was a 50-50 proposition during the first round of the Class A football playoffs, with two road teams winning in both Eastern and Western Maine. Both No. 5 seeds, Bangor and Deering of Portland, defeated No. 4 seeds, with Bangor edging Brunswick 16-13 and Deering sending Biddeford to its third home loss of the season at historic Waterhouse Field. Other road warriors were Eastern No. 7 Skowhegan, which gained its first road victory of the season at No. 2 Windham, and Western No. 6 Portland, which hammered No. 3 Thornton Academy 48-6 at Hill Stadium in Saco.

Western B top seed Gorham was the highest-scoring team in the state during the regular season. The defending WM champs scored 461 points in nine games, an average of 51.2 points per game. The Rams scored at least 61 points five times, with a high of 72 in a 72-9 win against Greely of Cumberland to end the regular season. … The stingiest defense in the state regardless of class belongs to Western C top seed Jay, which allowed just 49 points in nine games, an average 5.4 points per contest. … Jay is one of just three remaining undefeated teams remaining in the high school football ranks, along with top-ranked Bonny Eagle of Buxton in Western A and Eastern C top seed Bucksport, which posted its first unbeaten regular season since 1983.