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‘I’m going to miss the heck out of them’: W-H baseball senior captains leave legacy

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The W-H baseball senior captains. / Photo by: Sue Moss

W-H’s baseball senior captains helped lead the program to two Patriot League Keenan Division crowns, a pair of playoff wins and a 61-25 record.

When Pat Cronin returned to his alma matter, Whitman-Hanson Regional High, four years ago to coach the baseball team after spending the previous 35 springs as East Bridgewater’s skipper, he had a lot of work to do.

That included several decisions, such as: finding out what had and hadn’t worked, deciding who could and should play where and assessing who could be a contributor.

Three then-freshmen —Mike Cook, Ethan Phelps and Rian Schwede — made his life a little easier. They only required a few minutes of observation before making a decision.

“I saw their love for the game — they love baseball — and I saw they were natural athletes,” Cronin said. “They could play at the varsity level.”

So Cronin, who made a four-year commitment to W-H when he was hired in 2016, decided he wanted to take them on the ride with him.

Four years later, the program appeared in the tournament each season — which ended an eight-year playoff drought — captured two Patriot League Keenan Division crowns, won a pair of playoff games and racked up a 61-25 record.

“They’re my three,” Cronin said. “They’re my guys that have been with me since Day 1. They’re legacy is very much tied to those championships.”

A three-time all-star, Cook, who is headed to play college baseball at Babson, was a constant at second base and in the middle of the order for the past three years. He never hit below .300.

“He can run, he can make things happen, so he’s solid,” Cronin said of Cook. “Mike is even going to be better in the next four years when he gets to Babson and starts to really compete against some really good players. You’re going to see him get much better.

Mike Cook never batted below .300. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Cook said the groundwork for the Panthers’ success during his tenure was laid by the seniors when he was just a freshman.

“They set the tone,” Cook said. “Nick Haley, Nate Perkins, Jared Pendrak, the three captains, they were unbelievable for us. They we had year after year guys that came through and did what they needed to do.”

Schwede agreed.

“We really turned it around my first year with Nick Haley, Brenndan Rogers and Nate Perkins and it was cool to play with them the first year and understand what it’s like to be a part of a really winning program,” Schwede said.

But without Schwede’s arm, that success may not have continued. W-H’s ace for the past two seasons and a league all-star since he was a sophomore, the Endicott College baseball-bound righty pitched to the tune of a 1.47 ERA over 146 2/3 innings. Cronin didn’t mince words when talking about Schwede’s impact.

Rian Schwede was W-H’s ace for the past two seasons. / Photo by: Sue Moss

“He was the guy,” Cronin said. “He was as good as there is in this league. He learned what pitching is all about. He has the big pitchers’ body. He has the big right arm and he understands exactly how I want it done.”

Phelps — Schwede’s partner in the outfield when he wasn’t on the mound — turned in a solid career bouncing between the mound and centerfield.

Ethan Phelps was a league all-star as a junior. / Photo by: Sue Moss

“He grew a lot,” Cronin said of Phelps. “Our seniors are the guys who hit above .300 and he was one of them.”

Phelps said he felt the culture shift when Cronin took the helm.

“It’s a great program, a lot of history in the past few years,” Phelps said. “When Cronin started, he pretty much changed around the whole program.”

Cronin said his senior captains helped establish the baseball program as a team that’s serious about winning.

“They’re the leaders who talk the game and walk the game in school too, and now the kids in school look at the game differently,” Cronin said of his captains. “It’s manifested in who they are as people. So when they see Schwede or they see Cook or they see Phelps and they know they’re baseball players and they respect them, then they respect the game. I think we’re in a good place.”

Each captain said the biggest thing Cronin taught them was how to stay level headed.

“I think just being a leader,” Cook said. “I’ve always been a hot head growing up. I used to always be the kid crying on the field and throwing a tantrum, but coach and everyone else has always stayed on me and helped me be more composed and that’s definitely helped me a lot.”

Said Phelps: “He taught me to keep my temper at ease because a lot of the times it gets out of hands.”

Said Schwede: “Freshman year I was a little bit antsy, I didn’t really know how to control a lot of things, but I think over the last four years, he’s kind of really kept it pretty strong on me.”

Cronin said there’s really only one way to term these past four seasons. That’s exciting.

“They knew what I thought and knew what they thought and it made it a nice smooth ride,” said the skipper. “We had a lot of great wins here. They’ve helped a lot. I will miss them. It’s been great having them, and I’m going to miss the heck out of them.”

Panthers stem the Green Wave: W-H football finally hits 8-win mark, gobbles up Abington 16-0

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Entire team with Dennis. M. O’Brien Trophy. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Panthers received big-time production from their seniors en route to a Turkey Day win over Abington.

When the Whitman-Hanson Regional High football team bowed out of the playoffs, the heartbreak didn’t last for long.

“After one or two days, we said, ‘We need to step it up and let last week go. The past is in the past. We’re now in the present and we need to move on,’” W-H senior captain Quinn Sweeney said of the team’s emotions after a 21-13 loss to North Attleboro in the first round of the playoffs.

Yes, the disappointment still lingered, but the Panthers still had something to play for, and that’s where they shifted their attention. With three games remaining in the regular season, the Panthers – 5-3 at the time – were aiming to win eight games, a feat the program hadn’t accomplished since 2011. Reaching the eight-win mark was personal, especially for most of the 21 seniors who watched this team go 7-4 for the past three seasons, and played major roles in the past two.

“The next week comes,” Sweeney said, “and we’re like, ‘Bishop Feehan. We have three more games together as a team. We need to finish strong.’”

The Panthers knocked off Feehan, 21-20, and fended off Bridgewater-Raynham, 15-14, the following week to put them one win away from No. 8 with a Thanksgiving tilt with rival Abington standing in their way. After three-plus hours of football in the subfreezing temperatures, they can finally call themselves an 8-3 football team.

Backed by a dominating defensive effort and a second-quarter scoring spurt, W-H shut out Abington (8-3), 16-0, in the 108th Thanksgiving Day meeting between the two.

Senior captain Ethan Phelps starred out of the backfield for W-H, carrying the ball 16 times for 148 yards.

Leading 6-0 after a Nate Beath (seven carries for 69 yards, TD) 6-yard TD run, Phelps took a handoff and darted 65 yards inside the 25-yard line. A few plays thereafter, senior Jake O’Brien drilled home a 23-yard field goal.

On the ensuing kickoff, a Green Wave fumble landed in the hands of Panthers senior Ryan Downing. On the next play, Phelps connected with senior captain Rian Schwede on a 25-yard TD to put the Panthers up 16-0 with less than a minute remaining in the first half.

“It feels so good,” said an emotional Phelps after the game. “I’m just really happy we could pull it together and go 8-3.”

W-H’s defense, keyed by three fumble recoveries by Beath, took care of business the rest of the way.

Driscoll stressed the importance of his strong senior class playing in their last ever high school football games.

“It’s all about the seniors,” Driscoll said. “The seniors carried this game today.”

Defense dominant, offense outstanding in Whitman-Hanson football’s 41-13 victory over Marshfield

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Panthers football dominates Marshfield for season-opening victory.

Coming into Friday evening’s season opener, head coach Mike Driscoll was wary of his Panthers’ opponent — Marshfield. 

The Rams have been a perennial high school football powerhouse, boasting a pair of Super Bowls (‘09 and ‘14) since Whitman-Hanson’s last (‘01). Also, a change at the helm over the offseason led to former Hingham head coach Chris Arouca, who’s had his success against Driscoll (2-1, including a two-game winning streak dating back to ’16), taking over the Rams. 

However, it only took 11 minutes for that wariness to wear off as W-H jumped out to a two-touchdown lead after the first quarter and cruised to a 41-13 home triumph over Marshfield in a non-league tilt. 

“It feels pretty good now that it’s over,” Driscoll said. “I knew that they were going to be ready to play and they really came to play tonight.”

Senior Panthers dual-threat quarterback Ethan Phelps led the offense, garnering 187 total yards and four touchdowns. 

“It’s great to get a win under our belt,” Phelps said. “Everyone contributed.”

Phelps found pay dirt twice in a 5:34 span in the opening frame to put the hosts up 14-0 after one. 

The grounding and pounding carried over into the second quarter when rushing scores from seniors Billy Martell and Nate Beath, of 10 yards and one yard, respectively, gave the Panthers a 27-0 cushion. 

Phelps finished the quarter by flashing his arm, connecting with classmate Brandon Frawley for a 10-yard TD, to make it 34-0 at the half.

A 21-yard TD catch by CJ Guiliani from Phelps with 2:09 left in the third, coupled with a Jake O’Brien extra point, capped the Panthers’ offensive onslaught at 41.

“We try to spread it around,” Driscoll said. “We have so many weapons that we wanted to use them.”

Marshfield struck for two scores in the final frame. 

Senior captain Quinn Sweeney sparked the Panthers on defense with 10 tackles, while classmate and fellow captain Rian Schwede recorded an interception and had three catches for 48 yards. 

W-H will host New Bedford next Friday at 7 p.m. in another non-league contest. 

“We’ll enjoy this tonight and come tomorrow, we’ll be on to New Bedford so it’s gonna be a challenge there itself — a big, strong team coming into town.”

Life’s ‘a little crazy,’ but Ethan Phelps thrives on it

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Ethan Phelps delivers to the plate in a May 4 3-2 win over Hanover. / Photo by: Sue Moss

It’s been a hectic few months for Ethan Phelps, a junior two-sport athlete at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

It was directly after the conclusion of the Whitman-Hanson Regional High baseball team’s 7-5 victory over North Quincy on Monday, Ethan Phelps — still in uniform after knocking in the game-winning run — hurried up to the high school to write teacher appreciation notes as part of his National Honor Society duties. That is just a glimpse into what has been a jam-packed few months for the junior.

On Saturday, it was much of the same for Phelps, who roams center field for the Panthers. After taking the SATs in the morning, it was straight to the baseball field for an afternoon tilt against Duxbury.

“It’s been hectic,” Phelps said. “I mean, I’m absorbing all of it and taking all of it in, I’m really enjoying it, but yeah it’s been a little crazy.”

For Phelps, it’s a good busy that stems from his dedication on and off the field as a multi-sport athlete.

It was at the outset of his sophomore year when Phelps was in a quarterback battle to assume the reins under center for the W-H football team. Since then, he has accounted for 56 touchdowns and helped guide the Panthers to back-to-back playoff berths.

“Ethan is an incredible dedicated student-athlete,” W-H football head coach Mike Driscoll said. “What everyone sees on the field is also what you get in the classroom, a student who gives it his all and is not satisfied with anything but the best possible result.”

His talent on the gridiron — which has been assisted by hours of work in the weight room — along with his 4.2 GPA, are two traits that landed Phelps the MIAA Student-Athlete of the Month Award in November. They’ve also earned him some high-level college football visits.

All within a two-month span, Phelps toured Williams College and Bryant University, along with Ivy League schools Dartmouth and Harvard.

“I’m leaning towards academics,” Phelps said of what he’s looking for in a school. “I’d rather use football to get into an even better academic school.”

On the diamond, Phelps and the Panthers are in the midst of the heart of their season, fresh off a five-game week that began April 30.

Phelps took the ball last Friday for his first career start and hurled eight innings of two-run ball as W-H knocked off Hanover, 3-2. Phelps tossed 83 pitches — 67 for strikes — in the extra-innings win.

“He throws gas,” W-H baseball head coach Pat Cronin said. “He’s got untapped speed and easy power. He’s such a gamer, he wants it badly. I’m glad he’s on our side.”

The next week doesn’t get any less chaotic for Phelps, with three advanced placement exams, a college visit to Middlebury and four baseball game on his docket.

“In the classroom, I obviously want to maintain my grades,” Phelps said. “Then, on the baseball field I think all of us will come together and maybe make a state championship run.”