The Portland Press Herald / The Maine Sunday Telegram

Baseball: He's catching awards as well as all those baseballs

By Tom Chard tchard@mainetoday.com
Staff Writer

Matt Verrier of Oxford Hills plays baseball the right way, according to his coach, Shane Slicer.

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Matt Verrier of Oxford Hills was named Mr. Baseball and the Maine Gatorade player of the year, as well as the Telegram/Press Herald MVP. He led the Vikings to the Class A title with a 1-0 victory against Biddeford in the final.

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Telegram All-State Baseball

Matt Verrier, Oxford Hills, senior, catcher: Verrier won the John Winkin Award as the state's top senior player and also was Maine's Gatorade Player of the Year. He led the Vikings to the Class A state title, batting .487 with two home runs and 25 RBI. An outstanding defensive catcher, he will attend the University of Maine on a baseball scholarship. 

Ryan Lafleur, Dirigo, senior, pitcher: Lafleur, the Mountain Valley Conference player of the year, finished 9-0 in leading Dirigo to the Class C title. He struck out 63 batters in 51 innings. When he wasn't pitching, he was the Cougars' catcher. He will attend Central Maine Community College. 

Lincoln Sanborn, Bonny Eagle, senior, pitcher: Sanborn, the Hadlock Award winner as the Telegram League's top pitcher, was 6-0 with a 1.41 ERA. A finalist for Mr. Baseball, he struck out 49 in 442/3 innings. Sanborn will attend St. John's University. 

Jake Rutt, Scarborough, senior, first base: Rutt won the Telegram League batting title with a .510 average. He had a .714 slugging percentage and a .576 on-base percentage, with 25 hits, eight doubles, one triple and 14 RBI. He will play junior hockey this winter, then play hockey at the University of Maine. 

Jake Lachance, Cony, senior, second base: Lachance was a three-time first-team Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference selection. He batted .492 with two homers, 29 hits, 10 RBI and 19 runs as the Rams' leadoff batter, and had a .614 on-base percentage. Lachance will attend Holy Cross. 

Forrest Chadwick, Gardiner, senior, shortstop: Chadwick was chosen as Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference player of the year. He batted .446 with five doubles, two triples, 18 RBI and 23 runs scored. As a pitcher, he was 3-3 with a 2.74 ERA. Chadwick will play baseball at the University of Southern Maine. 

Eric White, Brewer, senior, third base: White was player of the year in the KVAC North and a finalist for Mr. Baseball. He finished with a .563 batting average and 1.000 slugging percentage. He will attend the University of Maine. 

Scott Heath, Westbrook, junior, outfield: Heath was voted the most valuable player in the Telegram League. He batted .421 with 20 RBI, six doubles and two homers. On the mound, he finished 7-2 with 85 strikeouts in 67 innings. 

Sam Balzano, Deering, junior, outfield: An outstanding defensive center fielder, Balzano also used his speed to make things happen on the bases. He was 16 of 17 in steal attempts, batted .396 and scored 23 runs. He was 3-1 as a pitcher. 

Charlie Partridge, Cony, senior, outfield: Partridge slugged seven homers, knocked in 19 runs, and finished with a .346 average and .591 on-base percentage. He will attend USM and play baseball. 

Ryan Leach, Hall-Dale, senior, utility: Leach, a finalist for Mr. Baseball, finished with a .639 average, six doubles, three triples, three homers, 16 runs and 14 RBI. He had a .776 on-base percentage and a 1.222 slugging percentage. He will attend Franklin Pierce on a baseball scholarship. 

Kyle Savage, Bangor, senior, utility: Savage batted .450 with four homers, and was 4-1 with a 2.00 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 35 innings. He will attend Husson. 

Coach of the Year, Casey Roy, Biddeford: Roy led the underdog Tigers to the Western Class A title, after they won their final regular-season game to make the playoffs. Biddeford has made the playoffs in each of Roy's three seasons as coach.

 

Verrier's love of the game is evident in everything he does. From his work as the team's catcher, to his offense, to the extra time he puts in, Verrier wants to take baseball as far as he can.

The next stop for the rugged senior will be the University of Maine, where he will play on scholarship.

Grateful for what was afforded him in baseball growing up, Verrier willingly gives back to the youth in the area.

"Matt is very well respected in Oxford Hills," said Slicer. "He's gotten a lot of accolades but handles it very well. He's one of the most influential baseball people in this area.

"He works with Little League players and helps with running clinics. He's awesome with the kids. He has a brother who plays Little League and Matt is the assistant coach."

Slicer also said that being the best catcher in the state, "Matt has made our pitching staff one of the best in the state."

Verrier's ability to block pitches in the dirt has been key.

"We obviously needed that in the state championship game with only one run," said Slicer.

Oxford Hills edged Biddeford 1-0 last month to win the Class A state title.

"It was a goal we all wanted," said Verrier. "Anything short of a state title would have been disappointing."

Verrier helped Oxford Hills become the best team in the state. Since then, Verrier has won his share of honors.

He was named the winner of the John Winkin Award as the state's Mr. Baseball. He's also the Maine Sunday Telegram/Portland Press Herald baseball MVP, and was honored last month at this newspaper's All-Sports Awards banquet.

Before the season ended, Verrier was named the Maine Gatorade player of the year, and was selected as KVAC South player of the year.

Verrier was active in numerous sports growing up.

"My parents let me play everything," he said.

As a seventh grader, Verrier watched the Vikings beat Westbrook with Andrew Keniston for the state title in Augusta.

"It made an impression on us," said Verrier. "We said that we wanted to do the same thing when we were seniors."

The Vikings built momentum as the season went along, got through a tough Eastern Class A tournament, then had just enough to end Biddeford's Cinderella postseason.

the time Verrier was watching Oxford Hills win its first baseball title five years ago, he had decided that baseball would be the sport he would concentrate on.

Slicer was well aware of Verrier's potential by then.

"Matt was a pitcher in Little League," said Slicer. "the time he was in junior high, he was a great catcher. As a ninth grader, I stuck him behind the plate. He was playing against 18- and 19-year-olds, but he was physically able to do it."

The intervening years have shown Verrier's dedication to improving his all-around game.

He has worked on his game during the offseason at indoor facilities, Frozen Ropes in Portland and Maine Hits in Scarborough.

During the past four summers, he has played for Bessey Motors in American Legion. Last summer he played in the Area Code Games, which brings some of the top high school talent in the country together.

The highlights were playing games at Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park.

That exposure attracted several schools to show interest in Verrier, but he decided to stay close to home.

"Maine put a good package together," said Verrier. "I loved it there when I visited."