Skowhegan baseball players toss the ball around at the start of practice April 1 at Skowhegan Area High School. Mike Mandell/Morning Sentinel

SKOWHEGAN — A season away from home in 2024 was already a big change for the Skowhegan baseball team.

Fast-forward one year, and things have changed even more.

Skowhegan will once again play games at Madison Area Memorial High School because the River Hawks’ new field has yet to be completed. The coaching staff has also seen a shakeup, with two well-known faces, Mike LeBlanc and Al Wilson, no longer in the dugout.

“It’s definitely different, but we’ve just had to stay positive with all the things that have been going on,” said Skowhegan senior Silas Tibbetts. “I’m still very excited for this year; I think we all are.”

That’s a mentality Skowhegan must have as the first week of practices unfolds. The team has put together some solid seasons in recent years, and believes it can do so again in 2025.

After serving as Skowhegan’s head coach since 2016, LeBlanc stepped away from the position in the offseason. Into the role stepped Peter Kirby, a 2001 Skowhegan graduate who coached the program’s junior varsity team during LeBlanc’s first few seasons.

Kirby inherits a squad that has gone 22-14 over the past two years and returns five starters. That includes shortstop and pitcher Tibbetts (3-2, 2.98 ERA, .304 batting average, 17 hits), outfielder Trevor Austin (16 hits, 11 RBI) and infielder Jack Fitzpatrick (.306).

“Skowhegan baseball has been pretty good for a long time, and I think it’s going to be just like it has been,” Kirby said. “Mike Le-Blanc did a good job with this program. We’ve got a lot of seniors and juniors this year, and we’re counting on those kids to step up and do some good things.”

Kirby knows many of the River Hawks players already after serving as an assistant coach for the Hight Skowhegan American Legion team last summer. Also on that coaching staff was Wilson, who, whether it was Legion or varsity ball, was a staple in the Skowhegan dugout and an iconic community figure.

New Skowhegan baseball coach Peter Kirby speaks to players at the beginning of practice Tuesday at Skowhegan Area High School. Mike Mandell/Morning Sentinel

Wilson died suddenly July 27, the day Hight Skowhegan was set to open the American Legion state tournament. After electing not to play that day, the team dedicated the rest of the tournament to Wilson, winning two of its four games to place fourth with an 11-8 overall record.

Now, the varsity team is dedicating its 2025 season to “Coach Willy.” The team’s new caps have the name “AL” embroidered on the right side, and Steve Mayo, who coached Kirby when he was in high school, joined his former player’s staff in honor of Wilson.

“It’s going to be hard without Coach Wilson, but we’re playing with him in our heart,” said Jackson Hight, Skowhegan’s starter at first base. “We’re all going to be thinking about him every time we touch the field.”

When they do, it won’t be in their hometown because Skowhegan’s new field is still under construction. The town is building a new field for the team after the River Hawks’ previous home, Memorial Field, was bulldozed in the summer of 2023 to make way for the recently built Margaret Chase Smith Community School.

Last spring, Skowhegan split its home games between Madison and Colby College. This year, the River Hawks are set to play all eight home games and any potential regional quarterfinal or semifinal playoff games at Madison, also the temporary home of the American Legion team.

“It’s kind of disappointing that we still don’t have a home field and have to travel over to Madison, but (Madison) also feels like a home field now,” Tibbetts said. “I played there last year for varsity, and I played (Legion) ball there, so I’m used to it. I don’t think it will bother me at all.”

Construction at Skowhegan’s new field, located behind the Skowhegan Community Center at 39 Poulin Drive next to the high school, began Oct. 1. Skowhegan athletic director Brian Jones hopes the team’s new field will be ready in time for the 2026 season.

Skowhegan’s focus now, though, is on the 2025 season. The River Hawks believe they can be a threat in Class A North. Pointing to the lone Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference baseball title banner in the school’s gymnasium from his senior year in 2001, Kirby hopes room can be made for more.

“I keep saying that I want to get a few more of those,” Kirby said. “We’ve got some pitching, we’ve got some depth, and we’ve got some leaders on the field, and I think that’s going to help a lot.”