GORHAM — Coach Ed Flaherty has doubts about how far his University of Southern Maine baseball team can advance this spring. His team sees it differently.
“It’s probably the youngest team I’ve ever had,” said Flaherty, who entered his 32nd year as USM’s head coach with a 940-422-4 record. “There’s talent there. Now the question is, can it hold up for 40 games because of the youthfulness.”
The players, however, are confident they can get to the NCAA Division III tournament for the 22nd time under Flaherty. They missed out on the NCAAs last year, after going to the D-III World Series in 2013 and 2014 and falling just short in 2015.
“There’s so many more weapons and tools to beat other teams that we didn’t have last year,” said Sam Stauble, the team’s No. 3 hitter, who played at Westbrook High and spent two seasons at UMaine. “We have more pitching, more offensive depth.”
This spring, results have been mixed for the Huskies (7-7).
In their 11-game Florida trip, they went 7-4, with two close losses to nationally ranked Wisconsin-Lacrosse and Wisconsin-Whitewater and a loss to Division I Dartmouth. USM averaged 7.7 runs per game with a .334 batting average.
“I think we proved we can play with any team in the country,” said third baseman Matt Bender, one of six seniors on a 37-man roster. “We outhit every team we played except Dartmouth. I think we showed a lot down there, especially as a young group.”
The Huskies have lost three straight back in New England. At Endicott in the New England opener, starter Henry Curran (South Portland) was coming off a bout with the flu and couldn’t get out of the first inning. On Sunday, USM was swept in a doubleheader at Wheaton College, including blowing a 6-0, six-inning lead in the opener.
“There’s the Florida trip and then there’s April and surviving April,” Flaherty said.
USM was scheduled to play its home opener Wednesday against Bowdoin, but the game was moved to a turf field at Colby College in Waterville at 7 p.m. The rest of the schedule includes Little East Conference foes and an April 13 game at St. Joseph’s in Standish.
“I would venture to guess that when you add our nonconference schedule in, it’s probably the toughest schedule in the country,” Flaherty said.
USM bolstered its lineup with the addition of outfielders Dylan Hapworth of Winslow and 2015 Maine Gatorade Player of the Year Zach Quintal (Eliot), and freshman shortstop Andrew Olszak (Danvers, Massachusetts). They help offset the loss of shortstop Sam Dexter, selected by the White Sox in the 23rd round of the 2016 draft.
Hapworth had to redshirt last season after elbow surgery. He leads the regulars in hitting (.417) with 11 RBI.
Quintal, the team’s leadoff hitter (.355 BA/.375 OBP), spent a season with UMaine before transferring.
Stauble, Bender and McDonough bring veteran bats to the lineup and Kennebunk’s Kip Richard and Kyle Heath provide a solid catching tandem.
The pitching staff is led by Dalton Rice, a sophomore right-handed pitcher from Waterford. He went 3-1 in his first collegiate season with 52 strikeouts (and 25 walks) in 41 innings.
In his first two starts this season, Rice held batters to a .119 average with a 0.73 ERA in 121/3 innings.
“He’s a high-end kid. He’s a pro prospect,” Flaherty said.
Rice pitched six scoreless innings at Wheaton on Sunday before being touched for four runs in the seventh in a game where USM’s top relievers Matt Correale combined with Jake Dexter of Oakland to give up another four runs.
Fellow starters Jack Donnelly and Gage Feeney were strong in two starts each in Florida. Falmouth’s Tom Fortier is expected to be the No. 2 starter. Curran has struggled with his control in two starts, lasting a total of 32/3 innings.
“I feel good about the future,” Flaherty said. “When that future is I’m not sure about. Whether it’s this year or next year or even the year after.”
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