All-Star Baseball Team
Player, School%Yr.%Pos.
John Hennessy, Andover%Soph.%SS
P.J. Farnham, Andover%Sr.%CF
Zach Burdeau, Andover%Sr.%3B
Andrew Guyer, Central%Jr.%C
Ryan Kemp, Central%Sr.%3B
Tim Holland, Georgetown%Sr.%SS/P
* Sean Hayden, Haverhill%Sr.%P/1B
Ronnie Rosario, Haverhill%Jr.%C
Ruben Sosa, Lawrence%Sr.%SS/2B
David Koerner, Methuen%Sr.%P
Taylor Livingston, North Andover%Sr.%C
Kevin O'Leary, North Reading%Sr.%OF/P
Justin Bolla, Pentucket%Sr.%1B
J.R. Santaniello, Phillips%Sr.%1B/P
Eric Perrault, Salem%Sr.%P
Hal Landers, Salem%Sr.%CF
*— Eagle-Tribune MVP
Honorable Mention
Andover — John Farrell, Jr., P; Sam Clark, Sr., 1B
Brooks — Michael Johnson, Jr., P; Brad Forgetta, Jr., P
Calvary Christian — Scott McCully, Sr., C
Central Catholic — Brendan Walsh, Jr., P; Robbie Taylor, Jr., SS; Chris Sartori, Sr., 1B
Georgetown — Andrew Barba, Sr., OF; Joe Esposito, Jr., CF
Greater Lawrence — Yerison Cruz, Sr., OF
Haverhill — Steve Lesiczka, Sr., 2B; Bobby Shirling, Sr., SS; Leif Sorenson, Sr., P
Lawrence — Ruddy Espinal, Sr., P; Mike Calzetta, Soph., P; Jose Sandoval, Soph., 3b
Londonderry — Kyle Neverman, Jr. SS; Sean Caron, Jr. OF; Jake Finnegan, Jr., P
Methuen — Jimmy Cote, Sr., 3B; Steve Saba, Sr., C
North Andover — Ryan Sifferlen, Jr., CF; Billy Della Rocca, Sr., DH; Brian Meikle, Sr., P
North Reading — Brian O'Neil, Sr., P; Zach Hastings, Sr., 1B; Darren Hartwell, Jr., CF
Pelham — Jimmy Mostone, Sr., P/INF; Jamie Vaiknoras, Sr., INF
Pentucket — Jordan Silva, Jr., SS; Peter Creamer, Sr., C
Phillips — Bobby Farnham, Sr., INF; Mike Palermo, Sr., INF
Pinkerton — Joe Guidi, Sr., 3B; Pat Curry, Sr., C; Doug Schultz, Sr., SS
Salem — Joe O'Dell, Sr., 1B; Larry Weymouth, Sr., OF/P; Peter Allain, Sr., 3B
Sanborn — John Lenane, Sr., P; Logan Moore, Sr., OF
Timberlane — Mike Donovan, Sr., OF; Pat Hamilton, Sr., INF
Whittier — Austin Brodie, Sr., P/SS; A.J. DeRoche, Sr., P/SS
JOHN HENNESSY, Andover Sophomore, Shortstop
All-leaguer. Batted .462, sixth highest in the region. Had 10 multi-hit games. Scored 29 runs. Drove in 27. Hit safely in 19 of 23 games. Had two hits, two RBIs in Lawrence tourney championship win. Roped four hits with six RBIs in two wins over MVC champ Central. Exceptional in field. "I thought he deserved the league MVP," said coach Ken Maglio. Will fight for starting quarterback spot this fall.
P.J. FARNHAM, Andover Senior, Center Field
Three-year starter. Two-time all-conference. Speedy leadoff hitter. Batted .421. Second in region with 34 runs this spring. Had a dozen multi-run games. Finished with 75 career runs. Three-year average was .369. Closed out career with 11-game hit streak, scoring 16 runs and going 17 for last 34 in that span. Tremendous range in center field. Latest star from Farnham athletic dynasty. Will play at Merrimack College.
ZACH BURDEAU, Andover Senior, Third Base
Probably the biggest surprise of the spring. MVC All-Star. Hit .400 even this spring after just two varsity at-bats as a junior. Hit safely in nine of first 10 games. Second on team with 21 RBIs. Drove in five in big win over Central. "We needed him, and he came through," said coach Ken Maglio. A vacuum at the hot corner. Extremely strong. Will do a post-grad year at Phillips. Two-year letterman in basketball.
ANDREW GUYER, Central Catholic Junior, Catcher
All-conference. Two-year starter. Opened season with three-hit, seven-RBI game and never stopped hitting. Led region with 33 RBIs. Had streak of 15 straight games with at least one RBI. Drove in pair in MVC-clinching win over Tewksbury. Had two hits in state tourney win over Arlington. Scored 22 runs. Batted .355. North Andover resident. MVC All-Star punter is also a promising tight end/linebacker.
RYAN KEMP, Central Catholic Senior, Third Base
All-conference. MVC All-Star as a sophomore but left team early last season. Second in the region with .545 average and member of elite 30-30-30 club (36 hits, 31 runs, 32 RBIs). Three four-RBI games, including tourney win over Arlington. Twelve hits, 12 RBIs over last seven games. Career .444 hitter. Will continue his career at Northeastern. Won the state free throw championship as a 10-year-old (21 of 25).
TIM HOLLAND, Georgetown Senior, Shortstop/Pitcher
One of the greatest ever in the Cape Ann League. CAL Small MVP. EMass Division 3 Player of the Year. Played in Mass.-Connecticut All-Star Game. Three-time Eagle-Tribune All-Star. Four-year starter. Hit .415 with 22 RBIs. Had 114 career hits, one of the highest totals in area history. Area strikeout king (93 in 762/3 innings). Finished with 10-2 mark. Will play at Polk County (Fla.) Community College.
RONNIE ROSARIO, Haverhill Junior, Catcher
A force behind the plate. Can receive and throw with the best. His release is a blur. Had a .965 fielding percentage with 24 assists. MVC All-Star. Led Hillies with 27 hits and .375 average. Drove in 13 runs. Scored 14. Went 9 for 16 in state tourney. "Still hasn't reached his potential," said coach Chip Dunn. Has attracted interest of Division 1 colleges and pro scouts. Is in his third year of Legion ball.
RUBEN SOSA, Lawrence Senior, Infielder
All-conference. Hit for average (.406) and power (17 RBIs) despite nagging hamstring injury. Scored 26 runs. Closed on a 10-for-20 tear. Can field, run and throw. "The best player we've had in the program," said sixth-year coach Brendan Neilon. Ran 55 meters in 6.52 seconds to place fourth at New Englands indoors. Started at safety in football. At Greater Lawrence Tech two years ago hit an area best .575.
DAVID KOERNER, Methuen Senior, Pitcher
Made impressive comeback from ugly leg injury in football. All-conference. Pitched in 12 of 22 games, logging 64 innings. Finished at 5-5 for a team that won eight games. Struck out 70 with 3.06 ERA. Held opponents to .237 average, .207 with runners in scoring position. Batted .309. "He gave us everything his body would allow and just a little more," said coach Dave Fabrizio. Will pitch at Rhode Island College.
TAYLOR LIVINGSTON, North Andover Senior, Catcher
Two-year starter. Co-captain. Won the position by default two years ago and the rest is history. Hit .409 as a junior and .423 this year. Drove in 19 runs. Scored 13 runs. Closed career with six straight two-hit games. Went 6 for 10 in three career state tourney games. "Took care of all our business behind the scenes," said coach Todd Dulin. Will play at either Husson, Point Park or Maine-Farmington.
KEVIN O'LEARY, North Reading Senior, Outfield/Pitcher
All-Scholastic. Played in EMass All-Star Game. Batted .464 with 25 runs and 23 RBIs. Finished regular season on 10-for-19 streak. Nifty southpaw. Went 9-1 on mound, 13-2 for career. Struck out 48 with 2.10 ERA in 60 innings. Dazzled Swampscott in tourney win. Will play at Assumption. CAL All-Star as a forward in basketball and goalie in soccer. Attended St. John's Prep for two years.
JUSTIN BOLLA, Pentucket Senior, First Base
All-league choice. Three years varsity. Two-year starter. Opened year with 14-game hit streak, driving in at least one run in each game. Led Sachems with .424 average and drove home team-best 29 runs. Eight multi-hit games. Eight multi-RBI games. "A monster year, just a monster year," said coach Tom L'Italien. Will play at Wentworth. Two-way starting end in football was honorable mention All-CAL.
J. R. SANTANIELLO, Phillips Senior, First Base/Pitcher
Three-year starter from Kingston, N.H. Two-time Central New England Prep champion. Drove in 11 runs and scored 20 runs. Hit .333 as a sophomore, .431 as a junior and .406 this spring. Totalled 68 hits and 50 runs for his career. Hit safely in 30 of 34 games over the last two seasons. Sports editor at the Phillipian. Scored 2,030 on SATs. Will study pre-med and play at Division 3 NCAA runner-up Johns Hopkins.
ERIC PERRAULT, Salem Senior, Pitcher
The dominant pitcher in the Granite State. First-team All Class L. Overpowering southpaw. Finished a perfect 7-0 with 84 strikeouts and only 14 walks. Area best 0.53 ERA in 522/3 innings. Had 17-, 15-, and 12-strikeout games. Dominant in two state tourney wins. Had a late-season 36-inning shutout streak. "A fantastic kid with a devastating change-up," said coach Dan Keleher. Will pitch at Keene State.
HAL LANDERS, Salem Senior, Center Field
Three-year varsity player. Two-year starter. Second-team All-Class L last year. First team this year. Hit .406 as a junior and .392 this time around. Scored 57 runs in two seasons. "He was a big pain for a lot of teams," said coach Dan Keleher. Will play at Wheaton. Second-team All-Division 1 defensive back last two years in football. Also a fine quarterback. His father, Hank, was a baseball/football great at Brown.
Hayden becomes first Hillie MVP
Coming into the season, some considered Sean Hayden Haverhill's No. 3 pitcher.
With the dust settled, The Eagle-Tribune is proud to call Hayden its Player of the Year of our entire region.
"I said it that night (at the coaches' meeting), and I'll say it now, he deserved the league MVP, too," said Haverhill coach Chip Dunn. "He deserves it. The kid had one heck of a year."
Hayden is the first Hillie to win it since The Eagle-Tribune began naming the MVP in 1990.
On the mound, Hayden dazzled from the start but left his best for the warm weather. The St. Anselm-bound right-hander finished a perfect 8-0, including a complete-game, nine-inning state tourney victory over Malden.
He logged 66 innings and allowed just eight earned runs for a 0.85 ERA.
Hayden was a pitcher, not a thrower, allowing 49 hits and 12 walks while striking out 39.
At the plate, Hayden manned a middle spot in the Hillie order all season, finishing with a .273 average after a dreadful 3-for-25 start to the year. Twelve of his 14 RBIs came when it mattered during the second half as Haverhill chased Tewksbury in the MVC small race en route to the Hillies' best season in over a half century.
The competition was fierce and the final vote a squeaker with Hayden edging out three other worthy candidates: Georgetown's Tim Holland, Salem's Eric Perrault and Central's Ryan Kemp.
Former Eagle-Tribune MVPs
2007 — Dan Godefroi, Andover; 2006 — Dan Godefroi, Andover; 2005 — Jeff Castillo, Salem; 2004 — Terry Doyle, Salem; 2003 — Terry Doyle, Salem; 2002 — Tim Bransfield, Masconomet; 2001 — Kevin Shepard, Andover; 2000 — Steve Palazzolo, North Reading; 1999 — Doug Johnson, Pelham; 1998 — Ben Crockett, Masconomet; 1997 — Brian Tisbert, Andover; 1996 — Bryan Welch, Central Catholic; 1995 — Jay Yennaco, Pinkerton; 1994 — Jay Yennaco, Pinkerton; 1993 — Justin Hesenius, Andover; 1992 — Jim Hanning, Andover; 1991 — David Blank, Andover; 1990 — Chris Eggert, Andover
