The University of Maine at Presque Isle baseball team only graduated one player last year, but lost several other players for a variety of reasons.
In all the Owls lost eight players from last year. Eight new players were added to the roster along with the eight returnees from 2009. Of the eight newcomers, seven are freshmen.
Members of the UMPI baseball are, in front from left, Chris Cosenze, Stephen Thorne, Brian Saucier, Brian Andrews, Corey Fournier and Seth Dorr. Back row, student-assistant coach AJ Pennartz, Clint Carter, Ian Towle, Tyler Delaney, Corey Harding, DJ Charette, Jacob Fillebrown, Cody Humphrey, Ryan Hill, James Cirell, Josh Conroy and head coach Leo Saucier.
According to coach Leo Saucier, his team faces a shortage of pitching. Only six true pitchers are on the roster, along with three others who Saucier hopes will contribute.
Senior Corey Harding of Plymouth, an all-conference selection from last year, does return to lead the pitching staff. Harding is expected to start between eight and 10 games on the mound and will also play on the field when not pitching. Last year, he was also selected as the NCAA Division III All-Independent Conference utility player of the year.
Senior captain Tyler Delaney of Truro, Nova Scotia, an All-Canada selection for 2010, returns to play shortstop after having being named an all-conference selection at second base in 2009. He led the Owls in most of the offensive categories.
Another all-conference selection returns in senior captain D.J. Charette of Millinocket. A solid defensive first baseman, Charette serves as co-captain of the team along with Delaney.
The pitching staff welcomes three freshmen – Jake Fillebrown of Stoneham, Stephen Thorne of Dalhousie, New Brunswick and Ian Towle of Fort Fairfield. Along with Harding, these pitchers will see the majority of the starts on the mound. Junior Clint Carter of Washburn and sophomore Ryan Hill of Houlton will also contribute on the mound for the Owls.
Junior Seth Dorr of Houlton and junior Brian Andrews of Fort Fairfield will be splitting time at second base.
Freshman Cody Humphrey of New Gloucester and freshman Brian Saucier of Hermon will compete for the third base job.
Freshman Chris Cosenze of Old Town and freshman Josh Conroy of Dover will split time at catcher.
Corey Fournier of Bradley will play left field, Thorne will play center field when not pitching and Fillebrown and James Cirell of Bingham will vie for the right field job.
The UMPI baseball team finished second overall in Sunrise Conference play last season, and lost in the conference championship series against Fisher College of Boston.
The Owls are now 2-15 overall after being swept in a three-game series against Colby College in Waterville over the weekend. UMPI is also coming off two long road trips to begin the season – one to Virginia and North Carolina in February, and the most recent to Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey two weeks ago.
In addition to pitching problems, evidenced by the Owls allowing at least eight runs in 15 of their 17 contests, UMPI has also had a difficult time scoring runs, as the offense has been held to two runs or less in 13 of its games.
The highlight of the Owls’ recent trip was a doubleheader sweep of Philadelphia Biblical University March 24 by scores of 12-4 and 9-8 for the team’s only victories of the season.
