Fresh Faces Helping FSU Find Success

FITCHBURG -- With only six returning players and a boatload of freshman, the Fitchburg State baseball roster doesn't pulse with intimidation.

Yet somehow, despite their inexperience, the Falcons have put together their best start to any season on record. Headed into the heart of the regular season, Fitchburg State is 11-3, the best 14-game showing to open a season since at least 1978, which is how far back the school's record-keeping stretches. In 1980, Fitchburg State started the year 10-4 in what was its previous best start.

"We've got a lot of new guys, returning only about six and adding 26 new ones," Fitchburg State University head coach Keith Brouillard said. "We have good chemistry, solid makeup and good pitching. We're very young but we're winning games now that we should be winning.

"It easily could've been a challenge with so many new guys, but with the leadership we have, they kind of came together. One of the things we focused on was chemistry, because chemistry can go a long way with a program."

Pitching has been inconsistent in recent years, but Brouillard, a second-year head coach, made it a priority to strengthen the arms in his arsenal. A newfound spark at the plate hasn't hurt, either.

"We're balanced, and I think we improved in both hitting and pitching," Brouillard said. "One of our main focuses in the offseason was adding depth to our pitching staff. I think the hitters took that as a bit of a challenge also and upped their game big time. We're outscoring our opponents by almost double right now. It's been a total team effort."

Captains Brendan Cutler and Patrick McMahon helped set the tone in the offseason, leading a training regimen that they say is similar to that of a Division 1 or elite Division 2 school.

Having so many newcomers made for a difficult challenge, but it also gave the Falcons a fresh start.

"The guys don't really know about the past couple of teams," McMahon said. "A lot of these new guys are really mature and are ready work. (Cutler) and I did a good job of letting them know what our thought processes are and getting them onboard with everything."

The biggest boost is coming from the pitching ranks, where freshmen Joe St. Hilaire (4-0, 2.30 ERA) and Lancaster native Kyle Cutler (2-2, 3.55) have been hot.

Transfer Ryan Magni (2-0) leads the team with a sparkling 1.12 ERA, while Javier Lozada (1-1, 2.13) and freshman Tyler Smith (2 saves, 1.42 ERA) have made major contributions.

"The pitching has been unbelievable," catcher Brendan Cutler, of Lancaster, said. "Coach Juan Rivera has worked so well with them, and they've done everything possible to get better, coming to practice early and working hard each day."

Offensively, Steven Drury, a former Leominster Legion standout from Ashburnham, is leading FSU in batting average at .523 while adding 12 RBIs.

"I haven't been hitting like this historically, but I put a lot of time in the offseason with my Leominster Legion coaches," Drury said. "Being here working in the cage all winter has got me off to a good start."

Leominster High grad Dave Mason is looking forward to the rest of his senior year after transferring from Southern New Hampshire University as a freshman. Mason, who is playing in the outfield and hitting .347, saw his team rise over the past three years, and is looking to achieve some team success to add to his individual accolades.

"Hitting is contagious and it definitely helps when you have pitchers throwing strikes," Mason said. "We've had some young guys who were able to do that for us, and it translates to a quite a few wins. Hopefully we can roll into the conference games, because that's the true test."

Mike St. John is a promising starting freshman outfielder, while Joe Lyons is a freshman starting in the infield.

Clayton Beaulieu, a transfer from Holyoke Community College, has been one of the most impactful non-freshman additions, since he is posting a blistering .425 batting average in 40 at-bats while manning second base.