Rutland Herald Sports Guide Spring 2018 | Page 15

Rutland Herald Spring Sports Guide 2018 15
Baseball Preview Continued from Page 14
said . “ Because I know we ’ re going to put pressure on the other team and they ’ re going to make mistakes as well .”
MSJ has just two seniors and most of the team are freshmen and sophomores , giving Brewer time to develop his club .
Brewer ’ s pitching staff will be pretty green but it will have a seasoned leader behind the plate in catcher Sam Farrow . Farrow will handle a staff that includes vet Ethan Renfrew , and Ben Pencak , Jae Won Seo , Cole Blanchard , Joey Giancola and Keaton Wright-Chapman .
Wright-Chapman will be at first along with Ben Pencak and Thomas Harris . Giancola , a speedy leadoff hitter , is at second base and Cole Blanchard at shortstop . Renfrew will play third and Dustin Clark will play shortstop and third . Lucas Pencak , Won Seo , Chance Passmore and Ben Pencak are outfielders .
Whatever happens , Brewer will encourage the Mounties to keep swinging away and focus on the long-term goals .
“ I want them to stay confident ; that ’ s what I ’ ve instilled in them ,” he said .
OTTER VALLEY
How do the Otters follow up their second Division II state championship in five years ? By rolling out veterans . The Otters ( 14-6 in 2017 ) graduated far fewer players last year than they did after their 2013 championship and should be right in the mix once again .
Among the returnees are Payson Williams , the centerfielder and one of their top pitchers in 2017 , and outfielder Nate Hudson , who drove in the winning run in a 3-2
victory over U-32 in the title game at Centennial Field .
“ We always have three goals : to win more than you lose , win the MVL championship and have a shot to win another state championship ,” said coach Mike Howe . “ But we ’ re not going to sneak up on anybody .
“ The real benefit is that almost every one of our players can play multiple positions .”
The Otters have three seniors : Williams , third-year catcher Daniel Allen and super utility man Zach Bruce .
Allen , who has a strong arm , could find himself throwing some innings and in that case big freshman Alex Polli , who will catch all the JV games , could get time behind the plate .
“ From what I ’ ve seen we have depth ,” said Howe . “ I ’ m excited about our depth in pitching and we don ’ t have a clear-cut 1-2-3 ( rotation ).”
Among the juniors , veteran first baseman Josh Beayon and Pat McKeighan , who became the starting shortstop at the end of last year , will get some mound time , as will Kollin Bissette and possibly Hudson . Hudson , Reilly Shannon and Jack Adams are outfielders .
Howe is eager to see how Marcus McCullough fares in the competition as he returns following an injury-plagued 2017 .
Sophomore Logan Trombley gives OV another potential pitcher and classmate Nathaniel Blake will bring his speed to competition for an outfield role .
POULTNEY
Poultney begins its climb back up the hill after a riches-to-rags ( 0-16 ) 2017 . In the two previous
seasons the Blue Devils were contenders and that has not been lost on the student body .
“ How many teams go ( winless ) and have 23 kids out for baseball the next year ?” said coach Dan Williams . “ We ’ re not going to riches and we ’ re still going to be young but this year we ’ re going to be more competitive .
“ We ’ re hoping to play . 500 ball and if we meet that expectation that ought to be great .”
Division IV Poultney will try to do that playing a predominantly D-III schedule , which should toughen the Blue Devils ’ skin for the playoffs .
“ So far I have got nine or 10 players that I ’ m really excited about . I think in our league we ’ re going to be a far cry better than what our record was last year ,” Williams said .
Spencer Gibbs , a . 400 hitter last year , figures prominently at shortstop and as a pitcher . Jacob DeBonis is a pitcher who has developed his repertoire and can also play behind the plate .
Infielder / designated hitter Ryan Alt batted . 460 in his six varsity games as an eighth-grader and Justin Davenport is solid behind the plate and in the infield .
Cameron Wescott is looking good at first base and Heith Mason and Levi Haviland have come out this spring , bringing with them an injection of winning culture from a basketballseason that saw Poultney go to the D-IV semifinals .
Freshman Lane Gibbs will see some action at the corners .
Poultney ’ s seniors include outfielders James Mars and RJ Holcomb , and Leanna Mason , a 1,000-point scorer in girls basketball who will dress for the varsity and do some pitching for the JVs .
RUTLAND
The Raiders took it on the chin in graduation last spring but players who could well have started in 2017 are back and ready to step in .
“ I ’ m optimistic about this group ,” said third-year coach Matt Bloomer . “ I know I have some big shoes to fill but like we saw with the basketballteam I definitely think we have some players who could have started somewhere else last year .”
Rutland enjoyed a 12-6 season in 2017 but it was stopped short in the quarterfinals with a loss to eventual state champion Burr and Burton . Some Raiders saw action last year , like big pitcher Ben Simpson . Bloomer was sold on Simpson when he came in early against Essex and finished up , getting the win when the Raiders battled back . Zach Bates also had his share of innings and also pitched well in pressure situations . Reece de Castro , the returning star shortstop and the team ’ s best hitter , also pitched well last year .
They will be handled by Luc Vitagliano , who moves from first base to catcher .
Willie Goulette will join the varsity and play third base and outfield ; his usual spring sport was golf , which has been switched to a fall season . Bloomer says he likes Goulette ’ s potential .
Players stepping in from the bench include hard-hitting Brendan Crossman in the outfield , Alex Cornelius in the infield , and versatile Ryan Murphy at multiple positions . Murphy logged some mound time in American Legion ball last summer .
Up from the JV team are Cayden Marchinkowski , a very good infielder , outfielder / pitcher Justin Aker and Ethan Coarse , a sophomore utility man .