It is time for spring sports at Wiscasset High School, with baseball coach Todd Souza looking at a young team with a sizable upside, while softball coach Claire Daniels returns for her second season at the helm expecting her team to take another step forward after a 7-9 season in 2012 and a playoff win.
In tennis, Chris Hammond tackles the large responsibility of coaching both the boys and the girls, while track coach Warren Cossette has a young squad looking for individual improvement.
Baseball
Souza’s 2012 squad finished 9-7 and fell to Hall-Dale in the Western Maine Class C quarterfinals.
“We’re young, with only a couple kids having varsity innings, but this is a heady group who by the end of the year will be a team people will be looking at,” said Souza, whose Wolverines host Lisbon on April 19 in the Mountain Valley Conference opener.
Captain Zach Ellison (catcher/pitcher) is the only returning senior, with junior Chandler Longfellow (shortstop/ pitcher), and sophomores Dylan McMahon (P/first base) and Matt Craig (outfield) back.
“We will need the upperclassmen to lead us, and Zach has been doing a great job of that as the captain,” said Souza.
Senior newcomers are Cody Graves, who transferred in from Lincoln Academy and will catch and play second base, classmates Josh Reed (OF) and Cameron Musnie (OF), juniors Nate Howard (1B) and Cass Carr (1B), sophomores Ben Chadwick (OF) and Tyler Flavin (2B), and freshman Daren Wood (C/IF).
“For now, just getting the kids in the right spots is key for us early on, with four to five good arms leading us on the mound,” said Souza. “We’ll have our ups and downs, but I believe the MVC is wide open, which should help as we move along.
Softball
Daniels expects more in year number two after her team knocked off St. Dom’s in the Western C prelims last season before falling to Madison in the quarters.
“I want this team to play with more confidence, from base running to making plays in the field,” said Daniels, whose squad opens April 19 at home against rival Lisbon. “It feels like we never stopped playing, picking up right where we left off last season. The hitting is solid, with a meaty line-up. The veterans are doing a good job helping out the newcomers.”
Most of the team returns after the loss of just two (Carolyn Footer and Sydney Morin), with seniors Megan Corson (P/2B) and Heidi Pinkham (CF/SS), along with juniors Bri Goud (C), Hannah Campbell (3B) and Abby Dunn (P/LF) expected to lead. Sophomores Kayla Gordon (1B), Tylan Onorato (SS), Katie Lyn-Mills (RF) and Charlene Reed (LF/3B) also are back.
Sophomore Trinity Jacques (RF) and freshman Colleen Hendricks (1B) are the newcomers on the 11-member roster.
“I expect Madison will be the team to beat, even though they lost their top pitcher to graduation, but I believe the rest of the conference is pretty wide open,” said Daniels, whose squad visits Mountain Valley (April 24), hosts Dirigo (May 10) and visits Boothbay (May 15) before concluding the regular season at Winthrop (May 28).
Boys tennis
Hammond has taken on the tough task of coaching both the boys and girls tennis programs at Wiscasset, a difficult goal considering the teams play on the same day, one at home and one away.
But, Hammond is ready for the challenge, with his boys looking to improve on a 1-10-1 mark from last year, with no losses to graduation.
“All of our returning players had experiences at singles last year, and I expect the boys to be better than they were last season,” said Hammond, whose team opens April 22 at home against rival Boothbay.
Juniors Nate Panarese and Andrew Walton, along with sophomores Mason Whitaker and Camden Reiss are back, with sophomores Thomas Anderson and Ridge Barnes, and freshman JD Souza filling out the roster.
“We have a very quick and athletic team, and there is not a great difference between number one and number seven,” said Hammond, who expects Dirigo, Monmouth and Hall-Dale to be the top contenders in the MVC. “We are expecting to be in the playoffs this year, and we lose nobody to graduation, with a swell of players hopefully coming out next year.”
Girls tennis
Hammond admits that he knows little about the competition in the MVC with regards to girls tennis, but hopes to see his Wolverines improve on last year’s 5-7 finish in Sue Shorey’s final campaign.
Wiscasset defeated Monmouth in the Western C prelims last season, 3-2, before falling to top-seeded Hall-Dale (5-0) in the quarters.
“We lost all three singles players from last season, but the players returning are very athletic and are playing well,” said the coach, whose ladies visit Boothbay April 22.
Hammond again has no seniors in the program, with athletic junior Alexa Burns and sophomores Maeve Carlson, Miranda McIntire, Hannah Foye and Hannah Welborn returning. Freshman newcomers are Sam Arsenault, Kennedy Orr and Ali Richardson.
“The numbers are fine on the girls side, and they have shown athleticism, and the willingness and capability to play aggressive,” said Hammond.
Track
Cossette’s smallish Wolverines have increased to 16 athletes this season, giving the veteran coach hope for improvement come MVC Championship time.
“I think we could be a lot better in the middle distances this year if we can work hard to develop,” said Cossette, whose squad opened with a home meet on Thursday against Boothbay, Lisbon, Winthrop and St. Dom’s.
On the boys side, senior Joe Chapman returns after finishing second in the long jump at MVCs last season. Chapman is expected to concentrate on jumps again, including the triple jump, as well as relays.
Classmates Ryan Hanley (hurdles), Cormac Walsh (discus/ shot put) and Jon Rines (javelin/discus/shot put) also return, along with junior Dale Peaslee (long jump/triple jump/relays, finished fourth in the 400 at MVCs).
Newcomers among the boys are sophomore Josh DeLong (throws), and freshmen Chris Perkins (1600/3200) and Sam Storer (undecided).
Returning for the girls are seniors Michaela Trudeau (race/walk) and Alyssa Urquhart (1600/3200), along with junior Ali Lambert (800/1600/3200).
Sophomores Samantha Grenier (throws) and Sadie Carr (200/400/relays), and freshmen Sara Grenier (200/400/relays), Amanda Marcus (1600) and Amanda Johnson (undecided) are the newcomers.
“I expect our team to work to be the best at their events,” said Cossette, who expects Lisbon, Hall-Dale, Boothbay and Dirigo to contend for the MVC title.
“Inexperience and depth are our weaknesses, so we need to continue to improve our skills that we have been developing.”
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