Thomaston’s Baseball team kicked off their season on the right foot, winning eight of their first eleven games. However, these wins did not come easily and were attained through their hard work and dedication.
After graduating a large class, the Bears had to start anew. “We’ve got first-year guys at catcher, first base, second base, third base, and two new outfielders,” comments Coach Bob McMahon after losing the game Monday afternoon against Northwestern, 4-1.
Although it seems like the odds would be favoring their opponents, the team has upheld its strong core. Gabe Russo, Nic Johnston, and Eric April have all been hitting well, while Kyle Capaldo has been a monster on the mound, with a record of 5-0 this season. While Nic Johnston being the only other returning pitcher, the team has introduced Kyle Oldham, Ryan Hurlbert, and Nick Russo as rookies to the pitching staff.
Nevertheless, this team has proven it’s ready for the challenge. There are players who work hard everyday to improve and who fight everyday to achieve. “You can’t fake it on the diamond.” Coach McMahon says. “It’s not little league anymore.”
With that, the Bears continually prove to their coaches and fans that they are still the team that won the State Championship last year and that they will not take that lightly. They’ve just put the first half of the season in the bag, so the fireworks have yet to come.
While the baseball team has been celebrating their victories, the Thomaston Bears Softball team started the season slowly, winning only four of their first ten games. This team also remains young having no seniors.
“We only have three juniors. The rest are freshman and sophomores,” Coach Brooke Holway said. “Everybody’s learning something every game and every play.”
With a young, inexperienced team comes the opportunity for growth. Everyone can depend and trust one another because they are all going through the same process. Each player is growing from her mistakes and helping their teammates to understand how to better approach the game.
But they are not just a young developing team. Coach Holway acknowledges Jamie Quirke and Morgan Doyle for hitting very well and consistently getting on base. She also stated that, “Morgan is important to us on the mound, and let’s the people behind her field the ball.”
This team also stresses their goal is to make the tournament, but they eight wins to get there. While the season may still be young, they need to become more aggressive at the plate in order to continue to pursue that goal.