Owls set to fly to Spring Week destinations

KEENE, N.H., 3/10/10 – Unlike normal Owls, who are generally resident birds, Keene State Owls, especially the baseball, softball, and lacrosse species, migrate this time of year to warmer climates for their annual spring week trips.

The Keene State baseball team will once again head west to Phoenix, Ariz., while softball and lacrosse squads will set up shop in the Sunshine State.

“We’ve been lucky the last week to get outside on the turf and breathe some fresh air, but it’s a lot different than getting on a field,” said KSC baseball coach Ken Howe, who enters the season two wins shy of his 400th career victory.

Picked second in the Little East preseason poll, the Owls return to the diamond after posting a 25-16 (8-6 LEC) record last season. Keene State will play a tough 12-game schedule that includes Western New England College and Johns Hopkins, two teams that received votes in the D3 Baseball.com preseason poll.

“That’s why we went out to Phoenix,” said Howe. “The best Division III teams in the country are heading out there, and if we want to compete with high-caliber programs like that, we have to do the same thing.”

The desire to play stronger competition also resulted in the Keene State softball team moving from Fort Myers to Clermont, Fla. (just outside of Orlando), last year. “If I was just interested in winning games, I’d go back to Fort Myers,” said KSC softball coach Charlie Beach. “But that doesn’t get us ready for the spring semester up here.”

Set to start his 25th season in the Owls’ dugout, Beach has several line-up questions to answer during his teams’ 12-game trip. “I lost my entire outfield from last year and also have to find a replacement at third and a back-up catcher,” he said.

Keene State, third in the LEC preseason poll, went 30-14 (10-4 LEC) last season and captured the ECAC New England Championship.

The large 40-member Keene State men’s lacrosse team will be right around the corner at the National Training Center in Clermont. The Owls will face one of their biggest tests of the season when they play 10th-ranked Geneseo (N.Y.) State at the Center. Later in the week, KSC takes on Birmingham-Southern, a relatively new Division III program from Alabama, at Disney’s Wild World of Sports in Orlando.

Keene State will head to Florida having already played three games. “That’s a big help,” said KSC Coach Mark Theriault. “It’s important to see who can produce under pressure and helps determine lines for the rest of the season.”

Theriault also feels it’s important for his team to enjoy the spring week trip experience. “During my first trip to Florida, former Williams coach Renzi Lamb pulled me aside and told me that spring break was 20% lacrosse and 80% team bonding. And he’s right,” said Theriault.

Looking to mix business with pleasure, Theriault rents seven homes that include jacuzzis and pool tables for his players.

The Keene State women’s lacrosse team will once again play a couple of games at the Spring Fling in West Palm Beach. Katie Arsenault, who led the Owls to their first LEC tournament title and NCAA berth during her inaugural season on the sidelines last spring, hopes to go back to basics. “We want to come back with a couple of wins, but we also need to get everyone on the same page,” she said.

Keene State will play Clarkson and Mount Holyoke College at Lake Lytal Park in West Palm Beach. The Owls have dropped their last two games to MHC by the identical score of 13-12.