The USM baseball team embarked on their annual spring trip over break, this time to Florida instead of their usual Arizona location.
This trip wasn’t much of a break for the Huskies, as they were business as usual, winning five out of their nine games in the Sunshine State.
The Huskies beat some tough competition, much to do with the help of senior captains Mike Eaton (Sabattus) and Josh Mackey (Danvers, MA). Along with Mackey and Eaton, freshman Forrest Chadwick (Gardiner) has continued to stay hot, batting a tremendous .356 with two home runs and a team leading ten doubles.
Eaton has been on a tear this season, batting .441 with four home runs, two triples and 21 RBIs. He leads the team in both hits (30) average and RBIs. Eaton blasted two of his four home runs during their spring trip, and is showing no signs of slowing down. He doesn’t lead the team only with his numbers, but also benefits the team with his ability to lead by example. His competitive, all-out style of play is a great thing to have for a younger team.
Along with Eaton, Mackey has been productive from the plate, hitting a team-leading .467 to go along with 28 hits and 20 RBI. He hit a game-winning, two-out two-run single in the bottom of the seventh to give USM a 4-3, come-from-behind win in the nightcap of a doubleheader against Washington and Jefferson College on March 25.
Another key component to USM’s success has been the return of junior outfielder slugger David Ricker, who, after being suspended for ten games, provides a big bat in the Huskies’ lineup. In his seven games back, he is hitting .250 with two doubles and four RBI.
Other key contributions for the Huskies thus far have been sophomore UMaine transfer and pitcher/utility man Chris Bernard (Scarborough) who is hitting 370 and sophomore Tucker White (Deerfield, NH) who is hitting .340. Together, White and Bernard have a combined 38 hits and 21 RBI.
The Huskies lineup has seen few flaws so far, and although the pitching seemed to be a bit inconsistent at first, this year’s staff seems to be turning things around.
Junior veteran left-hander Greg Holmes (West Newbury, MA) is 2-1 on the season with a team-leading 1.00 ERA. Bernard (Scarborough) is 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA, and threw a two-hit, 1-0 shutout in the first game of the Huskies’ doubleheader sweep of Division III powerhouse Trinity College. Sophomore Nick Douglass (Poland) is 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA and freshman reliever Matt Powers (Portland) is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA. These kinds of numbers are what they’ll need on the mound to stay atop the always competitive Little East Conference in 2011.
After losing 10-9 to Bridgewater State on March 30, the Huskies opened LEC play on Saturday by sweeping Western Connecticut State 10-9 and 4-1 to improve their overall record to 11-6. USM will be back in action when they’ll host Endicott College in their 2011 home opener on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.