ASSISTANT COACHES Jason Spaulding
Billy Cather
• Assistant Coach • Vermont ’00 • Third Season
• Assistant Coach • Maine ’09 • Third Season
Jason Spaulding enters his third season as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator of the Black Bears. Spaulding helped lead the team to an America East Championship title in 2011 and an NCAA Regional berth a year ago. During his time at Maine, Spaulding has mentored three pitchers who have been drafted in the Major League Baseball Entry Draft: Keith Bilodeau in 2011 and Jeff Gibbs and Stephen Perakslis in 2012. Spaulding worked directly with Maine’s pitching staff, which had one of the best seasons in recent memory. Maine pitchers finished with a 4.36 earned run average, the lowest since the 2005 season. Bilodeau, who was drafted by the San Francisco Giants, tied the school records for wins in a season with 10. In addition, sophomore Jeffrey Gibbs finished 8-5 with a 3.42 ERA. “We are fortunate to have someone of Jason’s caliber join our staff,” said Maine head coach Steve Trimper upon his hiring. “Having coached him at the University of Vermont in the 1990’s, I know what an outstanding student-athlete and pitcher he was. I think he will be a great asset to our veteran pitching staff.” “Jason has taken our pitching staff to a new level, not only in his knowledge, but also with his ability to get the most out of our pitchers.” In his two seasons with the Jaspers, Spaulding aided in all aspects of the program. Manhattan finished as the 2009 MAAC regular season champions. He served as the recruiting coordinator while at Manhattan, along with working with both the position players and pitchers. Spaulding was also responsible for scouting and travel organization. During the 2010 season, Manhattan posted a record of 31-20. The Jaspers beat Miami, who was ranked 10th in the nation at the time, along with West Virginia and Seton Hall of the Big East. Spaulding served as the head coach of the Essex American Legion team from June 2002 - August 2005. He led the team to four consecutive state championships and compiled a 68-0 record in the state of Vermont. He organized the operating budget and was responsible for individual skill instruction for all positions. Spaulding is a 2000 graduate of the University of Vermont. He was a four-year starter and two-year captain of the baseball team during the late 1990’s. Maine head coach Steve Trimper served as an assistant coach with the Catamounts while Spaulding was a member of the team. Spaulding’s wife, Margaret, is an assistant women’s basketball coach at Siena.
Former four-year standout Billy Cather returns for his fourth season on the Maine staff and his third as a full-time assistant coach. Cather served as a volunteer assistant coach with the Black Bears during the 2010 season. Cather worked with Maine’s hitters and fielders last season. Maine finished with 26 fewer errors than its opponents did a year ago. In 2011, he mentored Taylor Lewis, who was named Most Outstanding Player of the 2011 America East Tournament and was drafted in the 10th round of the MLB Entry Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. “Billy has worked very hard to become a very good coach at his age,” said Trimper. “He does a tremendous job with our hitters. He brings a lot of knowledge from being a great player. He has done a great job of taking his playing experience, both at Maine and professionally, and put it into his coaching philosophies. During the summer of 2010, Cather played for the Worcester Tornadoes and former Red Sox great Rich Gedman. He saw action in 62 games where he hit .302 with 31 runs scored and 22 RBI. He had 14 doubles to go along with three home runs. Cather saw action in 193 career games for the Black Bears starting 179, mostly in center field. He served as a captain for the Black Bears during the 2009 season. Cather was a two-time America East Second Team honoree. In 2007, he also earned a spot on the America East All-Tournament Team. Cather finished his career with a .323 batting average. He scored 146 career runs with 31 doubles, 13 home runs to go along with a pair of triples. He drove in 100 career runs and stole 60 bases over four years. Cather was selected in the 2008 Major League Baseball Draft in the 33rd round by the Washington Nationals. He also won back-to-back New England Collegiate Baseball League Championships with the Vermont Mountaineers in the summers of 2007 and 2008. Cather graduated in December 2009 with a degree in marketing and a minor in child development. He was named a Maine Scholar-Athlete Award winner and also named to the America East Academic Honor Roll.
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