Ryan Twitchell

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Kathryn Paré

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RYAN TWITCHELL, Senior-Baseball

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  • WMC all-star, Class A/B first-team

  • Senior All-Star

  • USA Today Maine first-team

Twitchell once again was among the state’s best pitchers this spring and as he embarks for an even bigger stage, tales of his dominant right arm will long live on in Rangers lore.

Twitchell started pitching in the fourth grade. He joined the Greely varsity as a freshman and helped the Rangers win the state title. Greely won it again his sophomore season as Twitchell went 6-2 with a 1.27 earned run average and 53 strikeouts. In the state final, Twitchell threw a no-hitter to beat Camden Hills.

As a junior, Twitchell was even stronger, going 6-0 with an 0.62 ERA. He had 68 strikeouts.

Prior to his senior season, Twitchell committed to the University of Rhode Island. In early March, just weeks before baseball started, Twitchell and his basketball teammates won the school’s first state title in nearly two decades.

While Twitchell’s win/loss mark wasn’t as outstanding this season, he remained unhittable at times. Twitchell had a 3-3 record, but his ERA was 0.95 and he struck out 72 batters while walking only six.

Twitchell was nearly perfect in the opener, allowing just one hit and fanning seven in a shutout win over Gray-New Gloucester. Twitchell then beat eventual Class B champion Yarmouth on a five-hitter with 12 strikeouts. On May 8, he produced his piece de resistance, a perfect game against Poland. Twitchell struck out 18 batters and became the first Ranger to ever go 21-up, 21-down in a contest. It was his program-record second no-hitter and fifth shutout. 

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Twitchell got the job done offensively too, batting .321 with 17 hits, including six doubles. He scored 13 runs, drove in a dozen and stole five bases. He singled and doubled in a win over Lake Region, had a single, triple, RBI and run scored in a win over Fryeburg Academy, drove in four runs in a win over defending regional champion Freeport and had a pair of RBI in a season-ending victory at Falmouth.

Greely lost to Cape Elizabeth in the quarterfinals, but Twitchell pitched well, allowing just two earned runs in six innings in his swan song.

“I feel good about our season,” Twitchell said. “I  knew we’d struggle at times with younger kids stepping up, but they did and we won games. It’s been amazing to pitch for Greely. I learned how to be tough and do my job. Coach (Derek) Soule and (pitching coach) Miles (Hunt) always had a game plan. They told the pitchers what to do, which helped.”

Twitchell went 15-5 in his career and had an ERA of 0.94. He also had a pair of saves. Twitchell struck out 193 batters and only walked 41.

Ryan Twitchell, Greely’s Spring Male Athlete of the Year, might be the finest pitcher in the long and storied history of the Rangers program. He’ll be the kind of competitor and athlete that all future standouts will be measured against.

Coach Derek Soule’s comment: “Ryan has been a quiet, fierce competitor for us the past three years. He’s as good as any pitcher we’ve ever had at Greely and I think he will excel at Rhode Island. He’s going there to pitch, but I think one thing that people don’t realize is that he could have played shortstop at the collegiate level as well. He’s just a talented, gifted athlete.”

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Previous winners:

2016 Ryan Twitchell (baseball)

2015 Will Bryant (baseball)

2014 Connor Russell (baseball)

2013 Bailey Train (baseball)

2012 Jonah Normandeau (baseball)

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2011 Mike Leeman (baseball)

2010 Mark McCauley (track)

2009 Sam Stauber (baseball)

2008 Eric Thompson (lacrosse)

2007 Caleb Jordan (baseball)

2006 Sam Green (baseball)

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2005 Chris Martin (baseball)

2004 Ben True (track)

2003 Ryan Copp (baseball)

2002 Brent Lemieux (baseball)

Female:

KATHRYN PARÉ, Senior-Tennis

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  • WMC all-star, singles second-team

Paré won three state titles in her time as a Ranger, but more importantly, she left an indelible impact as a student of the sport and a sportswoman and as one of most important players in program history, she will be missed.

Paré grew up in Cumberland and after starting tennis at the age of seven, she became a lifetime aficionado. 

“It was always my favorite sport,” said Paré. “It’s very individual, but it’s fun working as part of a team. I’ve met so many great friends.”

While Paré believes that she’s good with her hands, but not her feet, her body was in tune when she was on the court and in her four years at Greely, she won 47 matches and helped the Rangers win the first three Class B championships in program history.

After playing second singles as a freshman and sophomore, she played first singles as a junior before moving back to the second spot as a senior. Paré was named to the All-Conference team in each of her four seasons.

Greely lost to Cape Elizabeth in last year’s playoffs, but this spring, Paré and her teammates were bound and determined to return to the pinnacle and other than a narrow loss to unbeatable Falmouth, won every other match and achieved their goal.

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“I’m really grateful for what this program has done for me,” said Paré. “Winning three state titles with such great teammates. Our coaches did so much. They were innovative and creative with drills and practices and were always there for us on and off the court. It’s due to them that we had so much success.”

Paré, who also was a part of Greely’s Civil Rights Team, is an avid snowboarder. She plans to attend Mt. Allison University in New Brunswick and study environmental science.

The Rangers will win more championships and field many more talented players in the years to come, but this golden era won’t be forgotten and one player who will always be synonymous with the triumph will be Kathryn Paré, Greely’s Spring Female Athlete of the Year, 

Coach Ben Caswell’s comment: “Kathryn cares so much for tennis and has put in so much work over the past four years. She was a favorite of her teammates, our coaching staff and to many of the other Western Maine Conference coaches. She has a very gentle, peaceful approach when taking the court and always seems to make friends with her opponents. She’s been the constant within our program since 2014 and her spot in the lineup will be hard to replace. Greely girls’ tennis wouldn’t be what it is today without Kathryn’s contributions.”

Previous winners:

2016 Kelsey Currier (softball)

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2015 Alyssa Coyne (track)

2014 Kirstin Sandreuter (track)

2013 Danielle Cimino (softball)

2012 Audrey Parolin (lacrosse)

2011 Katherine Harrington (track)

2010 Marika Stayte (softball)

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2009 Liza LePage (track)

2008 Kate Otley (lacrosse)

2007 Becky O’Brien (track)

2006 Lauren Kinney (tennis)

2005 Molly Hamel (lacrosse)

2004 Kate Mason (track)

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2003 Sara Dimick (lacrosse)

2002 Sarah Bennis (softball)

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached atmhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.

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Ryan Twitchell

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