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04/01/2018 12:00 AMThe Valley Regional baseball team is gearing up for a solid year in its first full season with Head Coach Brian Drinkard this spring. Last year, Drinkard took over for Gary Marineau during the middle of the season, and the Warriors wound up finishing with a record of 10-11 to go with a berth in the Class M State Tournament.
Valley is returning several veteran players this year, and Coach Drinkard hopes that will lead to fielding a competitive team every game. Drinkard knows that the Shoreline Conference is a strong league, but he believes the Warriors will be successful as long as his athletes let the game come to them.
“It’s a little early, so we really don’t know where we stand yet. The Shoreline is a tough conference. We’re hoping we can be competitive and do the best we can out there,” Drinkard said. “I think there’s a lot of talent. I think we need the guys to relax and let things happen. Then we can do great things.”
One of Valley’s returning veterans is senior pitcher Colin Sparaco, who Coach Drinkard will once again rely on to be the ace of the Warriors’ pitching staff. Sparaco pitched big game after big game last year, including a three-hitter with 13 strikeouts against an undefeated Morgan squad. Drinkard thinks that having Sparaco may prove Valley’s biggest advantage, and he’s excited to see what the right-hander can achieve in his final high-school season.
“Colin’s great. I expect him to be one of the top pitchers in the Shoreline. If we get him run support and play some defense, we put ourselves in a position to win every game he pitches,” said Drinkard. “As far as a strength goes, if you look at our team, Colin is a strength. He has potential to be a Division I pitcher. If I had to say our team had a strength, it obviously starts with Colin.”
Senior Sam Swap will follow Sparaco in the starting rotation. Drinkard said that Swap is another quality arm on a staff that should keep the Warriors in a lot of ballgames.
“Sam Swap is going to be our No. 2 pitcher,” said Drinkard. “Everybody knows about Colin, but Sam was our No. 2 as a junior. We’re hoping to ride those two a little bit.”
Valley also expects to have a little more thump in its lineup with the return of senior shortstop Chase Morris following a year away from the game. Coach Drinkard is looking forward to plugging his formidable bat in the middle of the lineup.
“He’s our shortstop, and he’s fired up. He stands out at the plate as much a Colin stands out on the mound,” said Drinkard. “Chase will be huge at shortstop and at the plate. He’s going to have a big season.”
Drinkard will also have strong offensive weapons patrolling the outfield in seniors Zach Stevens and Blair Allen. The skipper said they are both steady players who should make a big difference for the Warriors.
“Zach will be playing corner outfielder. He’s a solid hitter. We’d like him to have an impact offensively on our team,” Drinkard said. “Blair can play all three outfield positions. He’s a great athlete. We’re expecting good things from him.”
Another player who’s back on the diamond after some time away is Jae’len Arnum, a senior. Arnum will likely see some time at the corner positions in the infield with junior Garrhett Watrous, who is slated to get the bulk of the pplaying time at first base.
“[Jae’len has been] working hard, getting ready and back into it. He’s a big strong kid that loves baseball,” Drinkard said. “He plays a little first a little third for us. Between him and Garrhett, we should be set at the corner infield positions.”
An encouraging aspect for the Warriors this year is that they have some quality depth on their roster. Baseball is booming at Valley, and there has been a huge influx of kids signing up. Coach Drinkard said there are plenty of underclassmen waiting in the wings to lend a hand to the Warriors if need be.
“We have a really talented sophomore class who are going to push these juniors and seniors to work hard to keep their jobs. We’re excited to have that much interest in baseball at Valley,” said Drinkard. “We have a big freshman class with 15 kids signing up. It’s tough to say if any of them will make an impact this season, but just being indoors in the gym where we can throw, it looks like we have some talented kids in there. You never can tell.”
Coach Drinkard feels confident that Valley is primed to be a competitive club for years to come. He feels having assistant coaches Charles Wolfe and Lou Rolon on board can only help the Warriors in their quest for success.
“I think with getting Charlie and Lou together—both those guy’s philosophies are focused on developing talent,” said Drinkard. “They want to get a program established so year after year, we can continue to be competitive. It’s in good hands, because I have Lou and Charlie.”
As he dives into his first year at the helm of the program, Coach Drinkard is most excited about seeing a group of athletes mesh together to play for one other. Drinkard said the Warriors are jelling, because they are genuinely getting along well, and he feels that should go a long way toward helping them field a competitive team.
“They are a great bunch of kids buying in and working hard at both the varsity and JV levels. They want to play, and they like each other. That’s a great thing for us. It’s really a team atmosphere down there,” Drinkard said. “We’re just working on every aspect. Our goal is to work hard and be competitive. If you work hard in practice and stay competitive, you should win your fair share of games.”
Valley Regional will play two games against fellow Shoreline Conference opponents Coginchaug, Cromwell, Haddam-Killingworth, North Branford, and Morgan in the regular season. The Warriors will face conference foes Creed-Hillhouse, East Hampton, Hale-Ray, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, Portland, and Westbrook once during the regular season. Valley also has two non-conference contests against New London and one versus Ledyard.