Mariners hope to capture first state title since 1969
Jul. 24—PLATTSBURGH — The Clinton County Mariners have high expectations.
Their goal is something the Mariners program has not accomplished since 1969.
Clinton County (21-8-1) begins its run at the New York State American Legion Baseball Senior Division Championship Tournament, Saturday, at Cantine Memorial Field in Saugerties.
The Mariners have not taken home a state championship in more than 40 years, and they want to end the drought.
"Our expectations are really high," Clinton County coach Gary Duquette said. "We are not just happy to be going to states. The kids talk about winning a state championship. There is something going on here that's special with this team."
The Mariners represent District IV for the eighth consecutive time in this year's tournament.
Clinton County went undefeated in District play and topped Washington County, 10-4, to punch their ticket to Saugerties.
The Mariners' first opponent will be Oneonta Post 259 of District VI. The two clash at 1 p.m., Friday.
Jared Duquette will get the ball for Clinton County in the important first game of the tournament.
"He plays Division II baseball, and he really has good composure on the mound," Gary Duquette said. "We trust him and believe he can get us going in the right direction for this tournament."
If the Mariners win, they will face the winner of District V's Smith Post 24 against District VII's Rayson Miller Post 899, Sunday, but if they lose, Clinton County will fall into the dreaded losers' bracket, which is not the worst thing in the world but certainly makes the path to a state championship much more difficult.
"The first game is the second-most important game of the tournament with the most important being the championship game," Gary Duquette said. "The key to winning the tournament is you have to win the first two games. If you go right into the losers' bracket, it's nearly impossible to get yourself to the championship."
The tournament runs through Wednesday when the championship is played at 1 p.m..
If the Mariners are lucky enough to clinch a spot in the title game, their skipper likes their chances.
"This is a weirdly good team," Gary Duquette said. "I have had teams in the past where some aspects of those teams might be a bit better than this team, but this team has great skillsets as a whole.
"We have older kids pitching who are great. Our defense is great. This is probably the best defense I have ever coached. Our hitting has the potential to be excellent. The potential to score runs is definitely there."
That offense is led by the 3-4-5 trio of Ian McCasland, Ethan Garrand and Jared Duquette.
With the combination of those three as well as Brady Doorey and Zach O'Connell at the top of the order, Gary Duquette hopes there will be plenty of offensive production.
"Without a doubt, our pitchers have to hold up their ends of the bargain," Gary Duquette said. "Our defense has been awesome. We just need our offense to come up in the clutch. Our pitchers and defense comes up in the clutch, and we just need our offense to follow."
Other tournament participants include Kingston/Saugerties Post 150/72 (host), Schenectady County (District III), defending champion Hamburg Post 527 (District VIII) and Rockland Post 130 (District IX).
"In our baseball community of Plattsburgh, the 1969 championship team is talked about all the time," Gary Duquette said. "To win a state championship, there is no higher pinnacle for these kids at this level, and they will go down in the history books."
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Twitter: @JoeyLaFranca
