It has been a noteworthy spring in the storied career of University of Southern Maine baseball coach Ed Flaherty.
He’s watched from afar as his son Ryan got off to a hot-hitting start in his first season with the Atlanta Braves, helping that team make a surprising dash to the top of the National League East Division standings.
And barely a year after the field he’s called home for the last 33 seasons was named his honor, he became the 11th head coach in NCAA Division III baseball history to reach 1,000 career victories last week when the Huskies defeated Bates 10-3 at Ed Flaherty Field.
Flaherty, whose team defeated Norfolk State 14-7 on March 30, 1986, for his first coaching victory at USM, takes a career record of 1,001-446-4 into the six-team Little East Conference tournament that begins Wednesday at top-seeded UMass Boston.
“One, it says you’re getting older,” the 64-year-old Flaherty said of his most recent milestone. “Two, I’ve stayed in the same place where I’ve enjoyed it for 33 years with the same athletic director for most of it. I’ve been able to raise my family here and be with my kids and see them play for the most part, and I’ve had some success doing it. I certainly feel fortunate.”
One hallmark of Flaherty’s coaching success — USM won NCAA national championships in 1991 and 1997 and has made eight trips to the College World Series, most recently in 2014 — is his reliance on homegrown players.
This year is no exception with a healthy nucleus of key contributors from eastern and central Maine.
That contingent features All-American junior second baseman-closer Jake Dexter of Oakland, who is batting .394 with three home runs and 27 RBIs and owns a 4-3 record with 11 saves with a 1.88 earned run average and 38 strikeouts in 28 2/3 innings.
“For me Jake Dexter’s the player of the year in the conference between his pitching and his hitting and his defense,” said Flaherty.
While Dexter, a former Messalonskee High School standout, anchors the bullpen, sophomore Gage Feeney of Cutler and Washington Academy of East Machias has emerged among the Huskies’ top starting pitchers.
The right-hander, who transferred after three semesters at the University of Maine, is 6-1 in nine starts with a 3.18 ERA in a team-leading 56 2/3 innings. During that span he’s yielded 48 hits and 13 walks while striking out 44.
“He’s very, very dependable,” Flaherty said. “He’s a big kid, a smart, smart kid, and he’s got a good arm. He throws it upper-80s and pounds the strike zone. He’s just had a great year.”
USM, which will take a .319 team batting average into postseason play, also has received significant offensive contributions from junior outfielder Devin Warren of Smithfield (.412 BA, two home runs, 31 RBIs), All-American sophomore outfielder Dylan Hapworth of Winslow (.347, eight home runs and 25 RBIs) and junior first baseman Andrew Hillier of Bangor (.345, two home runs, 21 RBIs).
“Hillier is a fantastic baseball player,” said Flaherty, also citing the former Bangor High School standout’s defensive versatility. “From watching him for a whole year at first base, you don’t realize as a coach how many runs a good first baseman saves you.”
USM, 27-11 overall and 9-5 in the conference, is seeded third for the LEC tourney and plays No. 4 Rhode Island College (19-13, 8-6 LEC) at 6 p.m. in the final game of Wednesday’s tripleheader.
The day begins with UMass Boston (30-8, 11-3) against No. 6 UMass Dartmouth (23-13, 5-9) at 11 a.m., followed by No. 2 Eastern Connecticut State (22-14, 10-4) against No. 5 Plymouth State (14-17, 5-9) at 2:30 p.m.
The double-elimination tournament continues through Saturday, with the champion earning an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III tournament.
“If you had a favorite I’d call it (UMass Boston) because they’ve been No. 1 and they’re at their home place and their kids can stay in their own beds while the other five teams have to navigate Boston all three days,” said Flaherty. “They’ve got a good club but they’re beatable like we all are. I think the field’s as strong as it’s ever been.”
USM, ranked 22nd in this week’s d3baseball.com national poll, has lost three of its last four games, including a doubleheader loss at home to Eastern Connecticut on Senior Day that dropped the Huskies from second to third in the LEC standings.
“The league’s very difficult, probably one of the toughest in the country,” Flaherty said. “We slipped up a little Saturday but every time we’ve slipped up a little bit we’ve come back strong so I’m not so worried about that.
“Our pitching’s all lined up and rested and we’re ready to go.”
USM to add lights to fields
USM announced Monday plans to add lights to each of its outdoor athletic facilities: Ed Flaherty Field, Hannaford Field and the USM Softball Stadium.
Construction is set to start in late May and the first official contest under the lights is scheduled for Aug. 31 when the men’s soccer team hosts Westfield State at Hannaford Field.
“Moving forward, we will have the ability to expand our practice and competition days, provide additional opportunities for all of our students and the community, and be able to host high school, Little East Conference and other major tournaments, as well as NCAA Championships,” USM athletic director Al Bean said in a news release.
The project, made possible by a combination of fundraising efforts and university funds, includes four poles on Hannaford Field, six poles at the USM Softball Stadium and eight poles at Ed Flaherty Field.
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