By Dave Krider
MaxPreps.com
Pat Maroon went from project to prospect when he lost 35 pounds the summer before his junior year at Oakville High School in St. Louis.
"As a freshman and sophomore, I never worked out," Maroon conceded. "I didn't have the commitment. Everyone said, `You'll go far if you lose weight.' I lost 35 pounds. I ate right and worked out five days a week."
Now a svelte 6-4 and 225 pounds, Maroon fulfilled predictions big-time recently when he was named MVP in the highly competitive North American Hockey League and led the St. Louis Bandits to their first Robertson Cup title - making them USA Hockey's Tier II Junior A national champions. He scored a hat trick in the first period as the Bandits romped to an 8-4 victory over the Youngstown, Ohio, Mahoning Valley Phantoms in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The standout senior forward also paced the NAHL in playoff scoring with 23 points on 10 goals and 13 assists in 12 games. During the regular season he had 95 points with 40 goals and 55 assists. He totaled 13 power-play goals for the entire season as the Bandits, who have nine Division I players, posted a sparkling 52-17-5 record.
The Bandits were based in Texarkana, Texas, when Maroon was a junior. He accounted for 60 points, 23 goals and 37 assists during the regular season. In the eight-game playoffs, he had four points, three goals and one assist.
Maroon said that being named league MVP was "really exciting. I was thrilled to get it. It's really a nice reward." Getting a hat trick in the national championship game "felt awesome," he added.
St. Louis coach Jon Cooper calls Maroon "a special player. He is blessed with size and strength, hands and vision. Throw in the fact that he's a rink rat and it adds up to a pretty darn good hockey player. He's the total package. It was great to watch him mature into the player he is today. I think you'll hear his name called out in the June NHL draft. He could go as high as the third round."
Ferris State University coach Bob Daniels calls Maroon "a big recruit for us. He would be a headliner in any recruiting class. He's got a great combination of size and real good puck-handling ability. He's very interested in his development - always seeking improvement. Jon Cooper has been very instrumental (in his development)."
Maroon began playing roller hockey at age five and he still plays in three leagues during the summer. "It helps my ice hockey," he says. "It makes your plays quicker and helps your hand-eye coordination. My mom (Patti) got me into it. She tried to get me into ice hockey, but I didn't like it. I was little and I always cried. They would pick me up at 5:30 in the morning for a 6 a.m. practice."
One year later, at age six, he tried ice hockey again and began to like it. However, it didn't `start to be natural" until he was about age 13. The first two years he played defense, then became a fixture at forward.
He also played soccer from age six to 10 and briefly tried baseball.
Maroon calls his 22-year-old brother, Phil, his idol. "He's always been there to support me and is one of my closest friends," he explained. "He taught me about things that I did wrong and is one of my biggest fans. I help my middle brother, Justin (age 20), coach his roller hockey team. I might be interested in coaching some day."
One of the rising superstar's greatest assets may be his ability to laugh at himself. Coach Cooper recalled a game this year against Wichita Falls in which Maroon hit the post on an empty-net breakaway. "Nobody was within 40 feet of him," Cooper noted. "He's laughing. Within 15 seconds he had the puck back on his stick and fired from center ice into a still-empty net. Afterwards he sat on the bench with a towel over his head."
Baseball Notes
* Chatsworth senior shortstop Mike Moustakas has extended his California state-record to 49 career home runs. He also has tied the one-season state record with 21. Sparked by his unexpected rampage, the Chancellors have established a school-record with 63 homers.
* Rick Porcello pitched a perfect game with 12 strikeouts as the nation's No. 1 team, Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, N.J.), blanked Newark Academy, 2-0. The 6-5, 205-pound senior right-hander used just 77 pitches - only 18 non strikes - and still was throwing 94 miles per hour in the last inning.
* Hammond Clark's Albert Carpen has tied the Indiana record for career RBIs with 165. Kory Benbow of Cowan set the record from 2002-06.
* Mountain Empire (Pine Valley, Calif.) junior Josh Barber has established a San Diego Section record with a 32-game hitting streak. The 6-2, 205-pound infielder hit safely in his last 11 games as a sophomore and has a live streak of 21 this spring. He is batting a lofty .625. The record of 29 was held by current San Diego Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.
* Calvert Hall (Towson, Md.) has a remarkable 66-0 baseball record this spring. The varsity is 30-0 entering playoffs, the JV is 23-0 and the freshman-sophomore team is 13-0. The varsity twice won five games in five days this spring.
* Jackson Academy overcame a seven-run deficit (11-4), seven errors and a one-hour lightning delay to beat Madison-Ridgeland, 25-17, and advance to the next round in Mississippi's Academy AAA Division I playoffs.
* Martinsville, Ind., coach Bill Tutterow posted his 600th victory as the Artesians defeated Northview, 10-5. The 60-year-old coach has a 600-293 record in 35 years.
Softball Notes
* East Hampton, N.Y., junior Jessie Stavola struck out a state-record 24 batters in 10 innings during a 1-0 victory over Miller Place. The 5-8 standout walked one and scattered three hits. Stavola is 15-0 with a 0.21 ERA, 215 strikeouts and only nine walks in 99 innings. She has fired two no-hitters and four one-hitters.
* Spanish Springs (Sparks, Nev.) junior Amanda Collier tied the national record with 16 RBIs during a 26-1 rout of Galena (Reno). She smashed two grand-slam homers, a three-run homer and two doubles. The bases were loaded on all but one of her trips to the plate.
* Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, Ala.) senior Amanda Allen belted 60 career home runs, just one short of the national record. The slugging outfielder hit four as a freshman, 19 as a sophomore, 17 as a junior and 20 this year.
* Carlmont (Belmont, Calif.) softball coach Jim Liggett posted his 800th career victory during a 4-0 triumph over San Mateo Aragon. His 32-year record is 800-160-2 and no other California softball coach has even won 700 games.
* One of the nation's premier pitchers, Kelsi Dunne of Port Orange Spruce Creek, fired a no-hitter but lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to Everglades in Florida's Class 6A state semifinals. A combination of walks and errors led to the game's only run as the nation's No. 3-ranked team finished with a 28-2 record. The Alabama signee completed her brilliant four-year career with a 71-11 record, 57 shutouts, 22 no-hitters and a 0.23 ERA. In 590 innings, she allowed just 155 hits and struck out 1,248. As a junior she struck out 38 in a 1-0, 17-inning victory and hurled 24 shutouts.
Track Notes
* Last weekend's Texas state track meet produced 11 No. 1 national performances for the 2007 outdoor season. Among the noteworthy efforts were a 25-0 long-jump effort - without wind - by Rowlett sophomore Marquise Goodwin to win the Class 5A title; a national sophomore girls pole vault record of 13-7 for Mansfield's Shade Weygandt; and a National Federation record of 1:23.92 by the Hightower (Sugar Land) 800-meter relay team. The second- and third-place teams also broke the previous standard of 1:24.10. The Lancaster girls won a record seventh consecutive Class 4A title before a crowd of 16,357.
* St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.) senior pole vaulter Casey Roche failed to clear 14-2 during the West Catholic Athletic League finals. He twice ran through the pit, then hit the bar on his final attempt. Roche had cleared 17-0 earlier this spring and had been favored to win the state title. Last summer he vaulted 17-5 at the USATF Junior Olympics in Baltimore. He will advance in state eliminations in the long jump - where he finished second at 22-5 - and with the Lancers' 1600-meter relay.
Basketball Notes
* Pete Trgovich went out on top when he resigned as head basketball coach at East Chicago Central, having guided the Cardinals to the 2007 Class 4A state championship. Trgovich has the rare distinction of having played for a high school state champion (East Chicago Washington), an NCAA champion (UCLA) and coached a high school state champion. Jay McCreary is the only other Hoosier to share that honor.
* Kentucky's No. 1-ranked junior, Monique Reid of Louisville Fern Creek, has announced she will attend the University of Louisville. The 6-1 standout led the state in scoring this year with a 28.9 average and rebounding at an impressive 16.2 per game. She also averaged 5.7 assists, 3.3 steals and 3.0 blocks while shooting 54 percent from the field.
* UCLA has received a commitment from one of the nation's premier post players, Drew Gordon of Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.). The 6-9, 235-pounder averaged 13.6 points, 9.1 rebounds and 3.6 blocks as a junior. Gordon also is one of California's leading discus throwers with a best this year of 175-8.
Football Notes
* They sure love their football in Texas! Southlake Carroll, which should contend for No. 1 national honors in the fall, drew an all-night crowd in a storm recently as fans stood in line to purchase the remaining 92 season tickets. They had to pay $90 just for a permit to gain the rights to buy tickets for the next three years. Many were simply standing in for the future - the years when their pre-school children will reach high school-age. This year's four-game package cost $600 and you better believe it was a bargain!
* Jim Hartigan gave up a great job at Fresno, Calif., powerhouse Clovis West to build a program at Serra (San Juan Capistrano). The 47-year-old Hartigan compiled a 41-10-1 record the past four years and has a career record of 163-54-4.
