By: Patrick McMahon

The Fitchburg State Falcons started their preparations for this baseball season in the fall with a short practice season and a few intrasquad games.  By the looks of it, this freshman class is coming in ready to work hard and get this program back on the winning track.

They have been continuing their training during this brutal winter in the Rec Center, fine tuning their skills for the fast approaching season.  “I want to have a winning record this season, and I will do anything I can to help this program achieve that,”  said Joey St. Hilaire, starting pitcher and one of the many new freshman faces of the program.

It has been a rough couple of seasons for the baseball program over the last generations, but with a strong recruiting class that came in this season thanks to head coach Keith Brouillard, this year’s team looks more ready than ever.  It is almost a brand new team, with only nine players returning this year. “I want to see this program progress each year, and win a MASCAC championship by my senior year,” St. Hilaire said.

The Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference listed Fitchburg State as the seventh school out of eight in their pre-season poll, picked by coaches in the league.

Coach Brouillard posted that same poll on the board at practice earlier this week to light a little fire in his ballclub.  “We can’t let pre-season polls bother us, they mean nothing.  We have to want it bad, and I think we have plenty of motivation going into this season,” said Kyle Cutler, who is another starting pitcher and freshman on the team. MASCAC is the country’s oldest Division III players’ conference.

No matter what the rankings, players say this baseball team is on the rise. Coach Brouillard is creating a solid foundation for years to come. “The talent is there, the work ethic is through of the roof, and the boys are more than ready,” according to Brouillard.

The Fitchburg State baseball team schedule is on the athletics page.