The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 341

20 NorthWest THE BOSTON SUNDAY GLOBE JUNE 10, 1990 NHL has its eye on Medford player The following Sports Calendar activities are taking place in the Northwest Weekly area this week. Future events are included as space allows. BASEBALL mt1 '9 Ml 1.JUI i Injuries plague Maiden Catholic star; "We still had a chance of making the tournament," he said. "I really wanted to play. But I think I tried to do things I normally wouldn't do.

I tried to do too much." Just coming back was a big feat, but he said he felt driven because he was the captain and because he wanted to help his team. "I was down when it first hap- i 1 1 i Ti Keith Tkachuk, nursing his injured GLOBE STAFF PHOTO YUNGHI KIM at Boston University this fall. ankle, expects to be playing hockey Loweft Greater Lowell School -June 25-29 and July 9-13 (for ages 8-12) and July 16-20 (ages 8-15) at Cushing Field on the campus of the University of Lowell. For applications call (508) 934-2344 (days) or (603) 362-5230 (evenings). BICYCLING Concord: Charles River Wheelmen -Wednesday, 8 p.m.

meet at Concord Center at the Green for 15-mile Call 325-BIKE. HOCKEY Assabet Vafiey: Hockey openings -Roster openings for players born in 1975, 1980 and 1981. Contact Mark Pasterick (508) 263-8005. RACEWALKING Medford: North Medford Club walks Wednesday workouts at 6:30 p.m. 'at Fresh Pond, Cambridge and Industrial Avenue, Contact Phil McGaw '641-2600.

Acton: New England Walkers -Weekly 5-kilometer walks Wednesday, 6 jn. at the Church of Good Shepherd, 164 Newton Road in Contact Tom Knatt (508) SOCCER Medford: Youth soccer Indoor clinics are conducted Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at Medford High School. Referee ilinics Thursdays. Call Al Luongo 395-4512. Softball' IWoburn: Reading Men's Softball League June 22-24, Birch Meadow Eaton Parks, Reading Li brary Fields, Woburn.

Fee: $150 for Continued on next page. Savoring PJ. McCabe remembers when Connecticut State University baseball coach Bill Holowaty came to recruit him out of North Andover High School. "He showed me the ring his team got by winning the NCAA title in 1982, and he told me that the freshmen he was recruiting would go on to win a ring just like it by my senior year of college," said McCabe. "I couldn't believe he said that," McCabe said, chuckling.

"And can you beEeve I bought it hook, line and sinker?" Holowaty proved to be quite a prophet Eastern Connecticut which counts mfielder Paul Matachun of Lawrence and outfielder McCabe as starters, recently won the NCAA 3 tournament in Battle Creek, Mich. The ring ceremony, by the way, will be held in September. Eastern Connecticut, which went 33-6 during the regular season, put together a 7-0 mark in post-season play, going 3-0 in the regionals and 4-0 record in the Series. "We won our last 18 games and 31 of our last 33 games," said McCabe, who will be playing for Wilmington Athletic Club in the Inter-City League this summer. "We had a special kind of team because we played as one.

"We only lost one game the entire season by more than two runs," a 9-1 setback to St Joseph's of Maine, McCabe said, "and our pitchers didn't allow more than four runs in any post-season game." Matachun, who like McCabe bats lefthanded and throws right said: "We knew we had the hitting to have the season we did, but when our pitching came on strong late in the regular season, we felt confident we could take it alL What few games we By Nancy L. Marrapese GLOBE STAFF His coach had envisioned that this would be the year everyone would notice Keith Tkachuk. Tkachuk had envisioned his senior year would be the one in which he would help his Maiden Catholic hockey team to a shot at the state title. When it was over, neither had his wish. Instead, the team didn't make it to the tournament, and Tkachuk was limited to playing just six games in an injury-plagued season.

There's no need to worry about Tkachuk, however. He's not the type of person to be held back for any reason. He bounced back from two injuries and said he's hopeful of playing in the US Olympic Festival next month in Minneapolis. He will likely be drafted in next Saturday's National Hockey League draft and this fall he will attend Boston University on a hockey scholarship. But he acknowledges it has been a long, painful year.

The 18-year-old Medford resident, who had 30 goals and 16 assists in 17 games his junior year, had been expected to have a superlative senior season. However, in his first game, he strained left knee ligaments and was out for five weeks. In his first game back, he scored the winning goal against St. John's of Shrewsbury. Unfortunately the knee problem wasn't the end of his bad luck.

He played five games before breaking his left ankle, sidelining him for the rest of the season. "It was a freak thing," said Tkachuk, a 6-foot-2-inch, 212-pounder who is still wearing a brace on the ankle. "I got caught in between the ice and the boards." There was some doubt that Tkachuk would come back from the first injury. He got a lot of free advice, much of it suggesting he take his time with rehabilitation and not bother with any more high school games. But Tkachuk dismissed that.

as though I'm using the fact that I played a lot of positions to be an excuse for my average dropping off this year," said Matachun. McCabe, a leftfielder, batted .328 during the regular season in going 41 for 125. He didn't hit nearly as well during the World Series (.188, three for 16), but he was able to bang out a two-run homer against Wisconsin-Oshkosh. He also had a sparkling defensive play in that game, throwing out a runner who had taken a wide turn in rounding second. The assist came in the fourth inning and Eastern Con Sports Notebook Eastern Connecticut's NCAA tournament title 'He's a complete hockey player and a complete person.

He's a fierce competitor. He's always first on the ice and last off MARK TARMEY Maiden Catholic coach pened," he said. "I'd never really got hurt that bad before. Then the second injury, it was one of those things. I was down but what can you do? You can't really do anything." Tkachuk was written up in the Hockey News' annual NHL draft, preview, and the paper said he was considered by many scouts to be the top US high school prospect The article pointed out, however, that there is reluctance in trhe pro ranks to rate him a first-round pick because of his recent injuries.

Tkachuk says he doesn't really care too much about where he goes in the draft, although he acknowledged that as a native of the Boston area, he would prefer to be a Bruins' pick. "I really don't know hat much about it, he said. "I'm just concentrating on next year. It'd be nice to be picked by the Bruins though." Kevin Fleming, who coached Tkachuk in his junior season, said there's no end to what Tkachuk can do. TKACHUK, Page 21 necticut was leading 3-2 at the time.

McCabe, who batted behind Matachun in the seventh spot was third on the team in RBIs (41) and homers (6) and was fifth on the team in batr ting average. This was McCabe's second year on the varsity. He hit 29 playing in 39 games in the spring of 1988, and then sat out the season last year. His freshman year, the spring of 1987, was spent with the school's junior varsity team. "I have one more season remaining if I want it because of the year I NOTEBOOK, Page 21 IZT xjn 7i" VUC i J'' Paul Matachun of Lawrence and PJ.

McCabe of North Andover help their teammates from Eastern Con-1 necticut State University celebrate victory in the NCAA Division 3 college world series May 28. PAUL MATACHUN ing the season, batted an impressive .375 during the World Series in going 6 for 16. He was just as impressive in the field from his second-base position with 11 assists and 11 put-outs. Eastern Connecticut made 11 double plays during the four-game World Series. The final out in the Series came when Matachun, after fielding a grounder, tagged a runner coming from first Matachun, a spray-hitter, hit .302 (48 for 159) from the sixth spot in the lineup during the regular season.

In the spring of 1989, the former Law- PJ. McCABE lost were mostly second games in doubleheaders." The Warriors had an 8-4 win against Cal State-San Bernardino to open the World Series, and followed with a 7-4 verdict over Wisconsin-Oshkosh and 4-0 and 8-1 wins over Aurora (111.) University. Eastern Connecticut located in Willimantic, reached the World Series with a 5-3 win over Ithaca College, followed by a 7-4 verdict over host Southern Maine and a 4-3 win over Ithaca in the regionals. Matachun, who played second base, third base and shortstop dur rence High School standout played third base and was selected to the Ail-American team (second team) in hitting .419. "I felt I hit the ball just as hard as I did my sophomore season, but the liners weren't falling in like they were a year ago," said Matachun, who hopes to hook up with a Cape Cod League team this summer.

He started out at third base this season, was moved to shortstop when the usual starter had to sit out 13 games because of an injury. Matachun then found a home at second base. "But I don't want it to appear i.