Greg Norton sat in the stands at Centennial Field in Burlington, Vt., last spring as the University of Maine claimed its second straight America East baseball championship.

The senior righthander from South Portland, having redshirted while recovering from shoulder surgery, watched as the youth-laden Black Bears earned another trip to the NCAA Tournament.

This fall, Norton returned to the mound at Mahaney Diamond during fall workouts. And he appears to be better than ever.

“Just adding Greg Norton to your team is a huge upgrade,” UMaine coach Steve Trimper said. “He’s a senior, he’s been in the fire. He’s a top guy in the Northeast.”

Norton was throwing 92-93 mph and appears to have made a full recovery. He will be a welcome addition along with junior lefthander Brad Hertzler, a transfer from Rhode Island Community College, to a pitching staff that relied heavily on freshmen Mike Powers of Portland, A.J. Balsinde, and Jose Mendoza in 2006.

Last spring, Trimper and his staff incorporated several newcomers into a veteran nucleus and produced a team that posted a 35-22-1 record.

“I think the big difference is with our returning guys, they’re just a year older, a year stronger, a year more experienced, which is tremendously huge,” Trimper said.

The Bears are building around a nucleus of returning positional starters that includes junior shortstop Curt Smith, the team’s top hitter at .390, and sophomore third baseman Kevin McAvoy of Brewer, the AE Rookie of the Year after leading UMaine with 10 home runs and 64 RBIs.

Senior first baseman Joel Barrett of Brewer, senior outfielder Matt McGraw, soph second baseman Danny Menendez, and classmate Sean Parker, a catcher, are other returning starters. Junior outfielders Mark Ostrander and Bobby Brown, sophomore OF Billy Cather, and soph utility infielder Brian Hackett of Bangor also contributed in 2006.

“The ’06 ballclub that had a lot of success, they were a very young group,” Trimper said. “At one point we were starting five freshmen.”

Trimper praised lefthanded-hitting freshman catcher Myckie Lugbauer, who will combine with Parker to give the Bears two solid backstops.

“You need two good catchers,” Trimper said. “Mickey’s got potential to be a big-time guy.”

Trimper also expects Brown, who hits from the left side, to become a key contributor and potential power hitter.

Among the newcomers who could work into the mix in part-time roles are outfielders Joey Martin of Portland and Tavis Hasenfus of Winthrop, along with outfielders Matt Howard and Kevin Jackson.

Pitchers Joel Thorney, who is working his way back from 2005 arm surgery, and ambidextrous North Carolinian David Ricker have shown promise.

As UMaine prepares for the 2007 season, Trimper wants the players to set their sights high.

“College baseball has parity and I think the biggest part of that is believing that you’re just as good as anybody else,” Trimper said.

“Their heads hit the pillow at night thinking we want to win a regional.”

Black Bears sign seven to NLIs

Old Town High School senior Jarrett Lucas was one of seven student-athletes Tuesday to sign National Letters of Intent to play baseball at UMaine.

Other signees include Josh Jillson, Carson Pillar, Jeremy Lopez, Kevin Mager, Kyle Slate and Kevin Scanlan.

Lucas, a 6-1, 185-pound utility player, was named to the All-State team last spring.

“He has good power, runs well, and [has] a strong arm,” Trimper said. “I think his versatility is a huge plus for next year’s roster.”

Jillson, a lefthanded pitcher from Wales, was also named to last spring’s All-State team while playing for Oak Hill High.

Pillar hails from Mississauga, Ontario, and is ranked ninth among pro prospects in Canada. The 6-foot-6 righthanded pitcher is also ranked among Baseball America’s top 300 players.

Lopez was named First-Team All-City last spring playing for the Beacon School in the Bronx, N.Y. The infielder is ranked as one of the top 10 shortstops on the East Coast and is one of the top 70 prospects in the Northeast.

Mager has led the Middletown High School (N.J.) team in hitting the past three seasons, and the shortstop was named a Puma Preseason All-American selection.

Slate, a 6-5 righthanded pitcher from Lincroft, N.Y., was named to the All-Shore Conference Second Team last spring at Christian Brothers Academy. He posted a 6-1 record with 61 strikeouts in 53 innings.

Scanlan, a lefthanded pitcher, recorded a 4-1 record and 0.88 earned run average for the Sudbury (Mass.) American Legion team last summer.