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If the MIAA eventually decides to make the Division 1A tournament a permanent thing of the past, North Andovers Todd Dulin will be the answer to a trivia question: the last coach to win a Div. 1A baseball title.

The sad part of the decision to put the Div. 1A tourney on ice for the time being is that North Andover has the type of team with the potential to do some serious damage in that type of format.

Its disappointing that they arent going to have one, Dulin said. When we had Sebastian Keane (a Red Sox draft pick who is pitching at Northeastern) two years ago, a lot of the younger pitchers on that team looked up to him and now they are the leaders.

The talented pitching staff will be led by Brett Dunham, Brendan Holland and Ryan Griffin. Also returning for the Scarlet Knights are 1B Andrew Perry, 2B Paul Fernandez, C C.J. Carpentier, SS Derek Fin and 3B Trevor Crosby.

While North Andover raced through the Div. 1A tournament in 2019, St. Marys was doing the same in Div. 2. The Spartans defeated Hopkinton to capture the Div. 2 state title and one of the key pitchers, Aivan Cabral, returns to anchor the rotation. Catcher Colby Magliozzi, P/LF Terence Moynihan and OF Andrew Luciano are back.

Beverly will lean on pitchers Eric DiPiero, Brennan Flint and Cooper Gavin as well as OF Austin Bernard. Masconomet joins Beverly in the Northeastern Conference and coach T.J. Baril is looking for big things from P Erik Sibbach, OF Ethan Cote, SS Aaron Zenus and 1B Sean Moynihan. https://embed.sendtonews.com/oembed/?fk=YKI2p6nA&cid=4407&sound=off&format=json&offsetx=0&offsety=0&floatwidth=400&floatposition=bottom-right&float=on

The Middlesex League always seems to have a say in the Div. 2 North proceedings and this year should be no different. Woburn will be led by a trio of seniors in P Aidan Vining, SS Damon Monks and OF Jon Surrette.

Wakefield will look to SS Zack Kent, P Chris Alden and 1B Dan Hurley. Dan Hirschs Burlington team will be young, but expected to be solid with C Nick Pellegrino as well as pitches Shawn Pinkham and Nick Pye.

Concord-Carlisle could be a factor in the Dual County League. The Patriots return 1B Ryan Grace, OF Nick Coletti and P Roman Ercoli.

In Div. 2 South, defending sectional champion Hopkinton will look to P Josh Fischer, 2B Cam Jerrett, 3B Ron Shamus and OF Conor Kelly to compete in a solid Tri-Valley League. Dighton-Rehoboth returns SS Mason Kulpa. OF Cam Carro and 3B Xavier Botelho, while Bishop Feehan will lean on OF Zach Stephenson, SS Justin Neidel and pitchers Mike Hutchins and Ryan Seaver.

Milton will have two of the better players in the Bay State Conference in P/3B Charles Walker and OF Colin Hoey. Duxbury will rely on P Matt Festa, C Billy Mrowka and SS Ryan Flaherty, while Whitman-Hanson has P/3B Thomas Marshall and SS Danny Kent back.

North Attleboro has ace pitcher Dennis Colleran back as well as outfielder Jared Penta. Canton pitcher Andrew Middleton fired a perfect game in the season-opener and he is joined by SS Steven Burbank and C Sawyer Julier-Albert. Stoughton has pitchers Brady Conlin and Kyle Doolin back along with OF Jake Queeney and C Brandon Mantilla.

With the Div. 1A tournament a memory for now, look for the Catholic Conference to make its presence felt in the Div. 1 South tournament.

BC High possesses high-powered pitching in Shea Sprague and Phil DiBlasi as well as OF Dan Scolaro and C Harry Peters. Catholic Memorial has two pitchers back in Drew DeLucia and Nick DiRito along with SS Chris Bear.

Xaverian is going to be a force in the Catholic Conference race as Gerry Lambert has a lot of talented players back. Ryan Douglas and John Connolly anchor the pitching staff along with 3B Dylan Reilly, C Matt Brinker, SS Liam Foley and 2B Henry Fleckner.

The present and future look very bright in Walpole. The Rebels will look to pitchers Cole Donato, Sam Donovan, Blake Conroy, Matt Bianculli and Alex Hee as well as SS Max Martin, 2B Jake Preto, C Corey Kilroy and OF Jason Finkelstein. Braintree will be very young, but SS Jordan Gorham is one of the tops at his position in the state. Wellesley wont be an easy out as pitchers Matt Lussier and Kyle MacCausland are back with IF Will Glowacky and OF Jackson McChesney.

Franklin will start seven underclassmen and will lean on star catcher/pitcher Jake Fitzgibbbons along with pitchers Jacob Jette and Alfred Mucciarone, 1B Nate Cooke and OF C.J. Jette. Defending Div. 1 state champion Taunton has SS Dan MacDougall back.

Plymouth North has outfielder Nick Durocher and Nate Viscariello, 3B Josh Gomes, 2B Dylan Demotel, SS Joe Morris and P Matt Murphy. Silver Lake will be young, but P/3B Chris Quigley will be one of the top players in the Patriot League.

Norwood should be in the hunt for the Tri-Valley League title as 2B Jason Denehy, SS Rob Wladkowski and P/2B Jake Cropper back.

St. Johns Prep is the favorite in Div. 1 North as pitcher Sam Belliveau, SS D.J. Pacheco and 3B Patrick DAmico are all headed to Div. 1 colleges. Lincoln-Sudbury will rely on 2B Jesse McCullough, SS Connor Peck, P Robbie OConnor and 1B Thomas Rogers return.

Lowell should be one of the top teams in the Merrimack Valley Conference thanks to a deep pitching staff led by Adam Betty, Colin Laliberty, Luke Descheneaux, ONeil Jiminez and Brendan Curran. Andover will be led by C Nolan Schirmer, 1B Anthony Tiberio and 3B Adam Ritter, while Central Catholic will be led by C Matt Maloney and pitchers Kyle Espinola and Ryan Cloutier.

TOP DIVISION 1 NORTH TEAMS TO WATCH

St. Johns Prep

Lowell

Andover

Central Catholic

Lincoln-Sudbury

Lexington

DIVISION 1 NORTH PLAYERS TO WATCH

P: Sam Belliveau, Sr. (St. Johns Prep); Adam Betty, Sr. (Lowell); Hayden Bond, Sr. (Malden Catholic); Ryan Cloutier, Sr., (Central Catholic); Tim Conner, Sr. (Chelmsford); Ross Dyer, Jr. (Malden Catholic); Kyle Elaisen, Sr. (Westford); Kyle Espinola, Sr. (Central Catholic); Zander Gilmartin, Sr. (Newton North); Peyton Heisner, Sr. (Lexington); Aaron Kreithen, Sr. (Westford); Colin Laliberty, Sr. (Lowell); Cole Velis, Sr. (Lexington)

C: Mark Casto, Sr. (Haverhill); Nico Galeazzi, Sr. (Lynn Classical); Matt Maloney, Sr (Central Catholic); John Nickerson, Sr. (Chelmsford); Matt OToole, Sr. (Waltham); Nolan Schirmer, Sr. (Andover)

1B: Elijah Moses, Sr. (Haverhill); John Norman, Sr. (Lexington); Thomas Rogers, Jr. (Lincoln-Sudbury); Anthony Tiberio, Sr. (Andover)

2B: Jesse McCullough, Sr. (Lincoln-Sudbury)

SS: Mariano Jiminez, Sr., (Waltham); Liam Jordan, Sr. (Malden); Shawn Nestor, Sr. (Medford); D.J. Pacheco, Sr. (St. Johns Prep); Connor Peck, Sr. (Lincoln-Sudbury); Jackson Petisce, SS (Methuen)

3B: Shawn Barthomolew, Jr. (Malden); Patrick DAmico, Sr. (St. Johns Prep); Luis Mejia, Sr. (Methuen); Sam Petitpas, Sr. (Boston Latin); Adam Ritter, Sr. (Andover)

OF: Nicholas Favazzo, Sr. (Lexington); Shane Grant, Sr. (Medford); Ryan Knight, Sr. (Peabody); Jackson Linn, Sr. (Cambridge); Colin Ryan, Jr. (Chelmsford)

TOP DIVISION 1 SOUTH TEAMS TO WATCH

BC High

Xaverian

Walpole

Braintree

Franklin

Catholic Memorial

DIVISION 1 SOUTH PLAYERS TO WATCH

P: Chris Carbonara, Jr. (Brockton); Greg Coyle, Sr. (Mansfield); Phil DiBlasi Sr. (BC High); Cole Donato, Jr. (Walpole); Sam Donovan, Sr. (Walpole); Drew DeLucia, Jr. (Catholic Memorial); Nick DiRito, Jr. (Catholic Memorial); Ryan Douglas, Sr. (Xaverian); Austin Hartsell, Jr. (Bridgewater-Raynham); Kyle MacCausland, Sr. (Wellesley); Dillon Murphy, Sr. (Marshfield); Casey Proto, Sr. (Barnstable); Chris Quigley, Jr. (Silver Lake); Shea Sprague, Sr. (BC High); Will Tarpey, Sr. (New Bedford)

C: Matt Brinker, Sr. (Xaverian); Conor Cooke, Sr. (King Philip); Jake Fitzgibbons, Sr. (Franklin); Harry Peters, Sr. (BC High); Collin Reilly, Jr. (Marshfield); Eric Sullivan, Sr. (Mansfield)

1B: Jack Colby, Sr. (Mansfield)

2B: Dylan Demotel, Sr. (Plymouth North); Jason Denehy, Sr. (Norwood); Luke Urban, Sr. (Mansfield)

SS: Chris Bear, Sr. (Catholic Memorial); Jack Doyle, Sr. (Weymouth); Liam Foley, Sr. (Xaverian); Jordan Gorham, Jr. (Braintree); Matt Lussier, Jr. (Wellesley); Dan MacDougall, Sr. (Taunton); Max Martin, Sr. (Walpole); Thomas OKeefe, Sr. (Natick); Patrick Sheehan, Sr. (Marshfield); Rob Wladkowski, Sr. (Norwood)

3B: Josh Gomes, Sr. (Plymouth North)

OF: Carter Doran, Sr. (Natick); Jackson McChesney, Sr. (Wellesley); Dan Scolaro, Sr. (BC High)

TOP DIVISION 2 NORTH TEAMS TO WATCH

North Andover

St. Marys

Beverly

Masconomet

Woburn

Concord-Carlisle

DIVISION 2 NORTH PLAYERS TO WATCH

P: Chris Alden, Sr. (Wakefield); Aivan Cabral, Jr. (St. Marys); Eric DiPiero, Sr. (Beverly); Brett Dunham, Sr. (North Andover); Roman Ercoli, Sr. (Concord-Carlisle); John Festa, Sr. (East Boston); Nick Festa, Sr. (East Boston); Brennan Frost, Sr. (Beverly); Josh Garner, Jr. P (Arlington); Cooper Gavin, Jr., (Woburn); Ryan Griffin, Jr. (North Andover); Brendan Holland, Sr. (North Andover); Bobby Jellison, Sr. (Salem); Chris Kelly, Jr. (Arlington); Vinny LoGuideice, Sr. (Billerica): Jake McDonald, Sr. (Somerville); Kyler McDonald, Jr. (Billerica); Aidan OSullivan, Jr., (Somerville); Michael Overlan, Sr. (Melrose); Nick Pye, Sr. (Burlington); Ryne Rametta, Sr., (Tewksbury); Erik Sibbach, Jr. (Masconomet); Aidan Vining, Sr. (Woburn); Ben Weed, Jr. (Marblehead)

C: Mateus Anell, Jr. (Somerville); Christian Carrieri, Sr. (Melrose); Max Garner, Jr. (Arlington); Colby Magliozzi, Sr. (St. Marys); Nick Marshall, Sr. (Reading); Nick Pellegrino, Sr. (Burlington)

1B: Ryan Grace, Sr. (Concord-Carlisle); Dan Hurley, Sr. (Wakefield); Sean Moynihan, Sr. (Masconomet); Andrew Perry, Jr. (North Andover)

SS: Zack Kent, Jr., (Wakefield); Damon Monks, Sr. (Woburn); Shawn Pinkham, Sr. (Burlington); Aaron Zenus, Sr. (Masconomet)

3B: Trevor Crosby, Jr. (North Andover); Brendan Ryan, Jr. (Arlington); Steven Webb (Reading)

OF: Austin Bernard, Jr., (Woburn); Nick Coletti, Sr., (Concord-Carlisle); Andrew Luciano, Sr. (St. Marys); Terence Moynihan, Sr. (St. Marys); Jon Surrette, Sr, (Woburn)

TOP DIVISION 2 SOUTH TEAMS TO WATCH

Milton

Bishop Feehan

Duxbury

North Attleboro

Dighton-Rehoboth

Whitman-Hanson

DIVISION 2 SOUTH PLAYERS TO WATCH

P: Dennis Colleran, Sr. (North Attleboro); Brady Conlin, Sr. P (Stoughton); Kyle Doolin, Sr. (Stoughton); Matt Festa, So. (Duxbury); Josh Fischer, Sr. (Hopkinton); Nate Fulford, Sr. (Oliver Ames); Mike Hutchins, Sr. (Bishop Feehan); Thomas Jasmin, Sr. (Southeastern); Andrew Middleton, Jr. (Canton); Ryan Seaver, Sr. (Bishop Feehan); Sean Shea, Sr. (Westwood); Kurtis Thomas, Sr. (Nauset); Charles Walker, Jr. (Milton)

C: John Lynch, Jr. (North Quincy); Brandon Mantilla, Sr. (Stoughton); Billy Mrowka, Sr. (Duxbury); Sawyer Julier-Albert, Sr. (Canton)

1B/2B/SS: Steven Burbank, Sr. (Canton); Ryan Flaherty, Jr. (Duxbury); Cam Jerrett, Sr. (Hopkinton); Danny Kent, Sr. (Whitman-Hanson); Mason Kulpa, Jr. (Dighton-Rehoboth); Justin Neidel. Sr. (Bishop Feehan)

3B: Xavier Botelho, Sr. (Dighton-Rehoboth); Mike Giovino, Sr. (Westwood); Thomas Marshall, Sr. (Whitman-Hanson); Ron Shamus, Sr. (Hopkinton)

OF: Cam Carro, Sr. (Dighton-Rehoboth); Liam Hines, Sr. (North Quincy); Chris Hoey, Sr. (Milton); Conor Kelly, Sr. (Hopkinton); Jared Penta, Sr. OF (North Attleboro); Jake Queeney, Sr. (Stoughton); Zach Stephenson, Sr. (Bishop Feehan)

More here:
Division 1-2 baseball preview: North Andover ready for another run - Boston Herald