Coventry all-state pitcher Matt Cook headed to Mitchell

Matt Cook threw his final pitch for the Coventry High baseball team a year ago and it gave the Patriots their first state championship since 1984.

The coronavirus pandemic ended his senior season before it began this spring but the two-time Class S All-State selection will get a new start this fall as he’ll attend Mitchell College.

“It will be good for him,” Coventry coach Ryan Giberson said. “It’s a place where I think he will feel comfortable, have an opportunity to play right away and be successful, and focus on his academics.”

Mitchell is a Division III program that plays in the New England Collegiate Conference. The Mariners are coached by Travis Beausoleil and have won the NECC title in four of the last six seasons it’s been contested. They were 5-3 to start the 2020 season before play was halted due to the pandemic.

Cook helped Coventry reach back-to-back Class S state tournament finals with the Patriots taking the title in 2019.

As a junior, the right-hander was 11-0 with a 1.08 earned-run average. In 71 innings, he struck out 108 and walked 11 while limiting opponents to a .185 batting average. At the plate he hit .406 with a homer and 24 RBIs.

The Patriots (25-2) won their final 21 games en route to their first North Central Connecticut Conference title and second Class S final. In the finale against Shepaug Valley at Palmer Field in Middletown, he fired a four-hitter with nine strikeouts in a 3-0 victory.

“I think Matt will need to get a little stronger, a little more mature, and develop a third pitch to go with his fastball and breaking ball,” Giberson said. “I’m sure the coaches at Mitchell will give him more structure.

“He’s a good kid. He’s coachable and loyal. I still think that the sky’s the limit for him and I hope everything works out.”

— Journal Inquirer (TNS)