Pitching, defense and a rabbit inspire Conval's first state championship

A few years ago, a pharmaceutical company adapted “the song” with its catchy chorus to sell its product. But for members of the 1975 Conval High state championship baseball team, that song, “Magic’ by Pilot, will forever be their song. It mysteriously showed up on the bus after every win. It was also on the radio after graduation…

“Ho, ho, ho, it’s magic, you know

Never believe it’s not so.”

Magic is the perfect word to describe the Cougars unexpected ride to “best in New Hampshire” in Class I (Division 2) 50 years ago, in the spring of 1975. Starting the year 0-2, and finishing 10-5 and barely qualifying for the state tournament (a forfeit and a rain-out helped), Conval rode some surprising statistics, a relentless drive to win, and great pitching and defense to stun third-rated Lebanon, top-ranked Exeter, and then Berlin for the crown.

Also, there was this rabbit named “Al.”

It was April 30, and Conval had dropped its second consecutive 9-8 contest. “We’re too tight,” said pitcher Keith Lapointe. And so after the second loss, Keith went rummaging through stuff around the house. He came across a stuffed rabbit named Al that used to belong to brother Craig.

“You aren’t bringing that to school, are you?” asked Keith’s dad. But into the backpack Al went, off to school and ready to make its first appearance at baseball practice. Keith, who would later star at Franklin Pierce and caught the interest of the Cincinnati Reds, promptly put Al on the bench. Despite jokes by the team, the stuffed rabbit began to work its charm. Conval won its next two games, and eight in a row. Suddenly, everyone on the team, and even the fans, loved Al.

He sat on the bench during the tournament, was waved out the window of the bus after the triumphant championship game, was placed in the middle of the team picture, and was even carried down the aisle by Keith at graduation.

An unlikely mascot for an unlikely champion.

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In the days of fewer sport options, a whopping total of 45 boys tried out for varisity and JV baseball in 1975. Coach Dick Hebert and assistant Paul Fecteau selected 12—nine of whom were seniors —to the varsity team. Returnees included Matt Clark, Rick Cuddihy, John Kaufhold, Keith LaPointe, Doug Smith, Marshall White and Steve Crowe. Newcomers were Dick Ellingwood, Peter Lamb, Bill Nesbit, Chris Joseph and Craig Whitney.

The veterans were determined to erase the pain of a jolting first-round loss in 1974, when Bishop Brady—the only team to defeat Conval during the regular season—did it again in the state tournament. The 13-1 ’74 team had lots going for it, but the ’75 team would quietly top them in several categories: more runs scored, better team batting average and team fielding, and 50 stolen bases without being caught once.

A couple of Antrim boys were among those who led the way. Pitcher Peter Lamb, with a nasty and accurate curve ball, was 3-2 with a 2.54 ERA, while diminutive shortstop Doug Smith finished the season with an astounding .500 batting average, leading the team in hits, run batted in, singles, and triples. In addition, Smith was a co-leader in home runs with Steve Crowe and Craig Whitney, and co-leader with John Kaufhold and Dick Ellingwood with doubles.

Six Cougars on the ’75 team all boasted a batting average over .300.

Even so, the late season featured a split doubleheader with top-ranked Exeter (13-3), including the first time a Conval team had been shut out in two years. “They are as good as their record shows, but I know we can beat them should we meet again,” said Coach Hebert. The Cougars didn’t gain any momentum heading into the tournament, losing their last game of the regular season in a controversial 5-4 game at Milford.

But once the pairings were announced, Al and the Cougars responded in dramatic fashion.

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In the quarter-finals at Lebanon, Conval scored early and Lamb’s curve ball kept the fastball-hitting Raiders off-balance. The Cougars scored three runs in the first, and led 4-1 until Lebanon narrowed the gap with a homer in the last of the seventh, but Conval’s stifling defense kept the Raiders from rallying. As the Peterborough Transcript reported, Craig Whitney at third, Doug Smith at short and John Kaufhold at second “have been professional in handling the chances hit their way.”

It was on to the semi-finals in Concord on a rainy afternoon against top-ranked Exeter. And Coach Hebert’s earlier declaration about his team’s chances versus the Blue Hawks would prove prophetic in dramatic fashion.

Once again, the Cougars scored first in a tense pitcher’s duel. Exeter played up to its potential, but Lamb was immense, limiting the hard-hitting Exeter team to three hits. Meanwhile, Conval’s outstanding team defense shone brightly, even as Exeter placed the tying run at second base in the bottom of the seventh.

“When centerfielder Steve Crowe had the final out in his glove, pandemonium resulted in the dugout and in the stands as Lamb’s teammates and fans swarmed the field to congratulate him,” wrote the Transcript of Conval’s stunning 2-1 win.

In wins over Lebanon and Exeter, Lamb gave up three runs over 14 innings, just five hits, and struck out 13.

No team in any sport in Conval’s young history had ever advanced to the finals. In baseball, the 1971 team advanced to the semifinals before being beaten by top-ranked Timberlane. Even before Conval was formed in 1970, Peterborough High made it to the semis in 1967 but was eliminated by Pittsfield. Antrim High, too, was competitive but never advanced far in the tournament.

But Al had better ideas.

In a June 7 state championship played under a light rain at Keene’s Alumni Field, Lamb was again nearly unhittable, firing a one-hitter in a 2-0 victory over Berlin before nearly 600 fans. Lamb’s potpourri of pitches worked wonders against the hard-hitting Berlin nine. His first four innings were a perfect no-hitter.

“The only run that was needed to win the game came in the bottom of the third when catcher Marshall White sent Conval fans into pandemonium with a 400-foot home run over the center field fence,” wrote the Transcript.

Though the steady rain made conditions hardly ideal, Lamb forced Berlin into hitting numerous infield grounders that were handled deftly by the Cougar defense. Things got tense in the seventh when the Mountaineers had a runner on and the tying run at the plate, but for the third game in a row, Steve Crowe made the final catch for the win.—the first state championship in Conval history.

A caravan of cars honked their horns through Keene and back to Conval, escorting Al and the team bus home. White was ceremoniously thrown into the pond near the athletic fields to celebrate his homer, but Coach Hebert was thinking something else:

“I don’t think it’s hit them yet, Maybe they’ll believe about 10 tonight.”

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Days following Conval’s first-ever state championship, Peterborough Recreation Director Beaver Jutras—the father of three girls who would bring Conval its first and only girls’ basketball championship in 1994—wrote the following tribute in the Transcript:

“Championships don’t come easy, since there are a lot of ingredients behind the factors allowing a person or a team to be at the top of their class. In this case. head coach Dick Hebert and his assistant Paul Fecteau are devoted to the game and know how to teach, which usually is first in importance. Then there’s team loyalty, coupled with that inner quality of self-sacrifice on the part of the players. Of course, it doesn’t stop there. You don’t have to be an athlete to know that there are many other high character values that surface when you become the very best. And isn’t it nice to know that Conval’s varsity baseball team is just that this year. Congratulations!”

THE ’75 STATE CHAMPS…Front (from left); Jerry Smith, Jay LaRoche, Bill Nesbit, Craig Whitney, Chris Joseph, Doug Smith, Steve Crowe, Coach Dick Hebert. Standing: Assistant Coach Paul Fecteau, Terry Halvonik, Rick Cuddihy, Jeff Clough, Keith Lapointe, Dick Ellingwood, Marshall White, scorekeeper Amy Webber, Peter Lamb.