UR Baseball (URB) squared off against St. Lawrence University (SLU) four times in two days with back-to-back double-headers on Friday and Saturday at Towers Field, part of the Prince Athletic Complex. The Yellowjackets dominated the other team, winning the first three games 11–1, 14–7, and 6–2. A late-game SLU rally on the fourth and final weekend contest prevented a sweep, as the ‘Jackets lost 7–8.
On Friday, UR senior and pitcher Evan Janifer collected the first win, throwing a complete game and surrendering only one run on five hits. This was a commendable follow-up to his three-hit shutout during his last timeout against RPI. Janifer’s impressive season continues with a record of 3–1 and an ERA down to 0.38.
Fellow seniors Dan Warren and Steve Eychner bolstered Janifer’s win. Warren was a perfect 4–4 from the plate, with two RBIs, and Eychner was 3–4, adding three RBIs of his own.
Freshman pitcher Jack Denzer took his first win of the year on Friday’s late afternoon rout, allowing no runs through six innings. Again, the bats were hot for UR. Both Eychner and senior catcher Nolan Schultz finished only a triple away from the cycle. Schultz also tallied a career-high five RBIs in the win. Junior infielder Pete Carrier scored four of the ‘Jackets’ 14 runs. The heavily-padded 14–0 lead through seven innings proved useful as the Saints got back within seven runs late in the game.
On Saturday, sophomore pitcher John Ghyzel kept the ball rolling as he picked up the win, improving his record to a clean 4–0, along with an ERA of 1.53. The Yellowjackets led throughout and the seniors again took charge of the offensive, as Warren and Schultz each went 3–4.
The backside of Saturday’s double-header was a different story. Up 7–3 after six innings, UR seemed to be cruising toward capping off the sweep. But, the Saints rallied to score five more times and stole the victory, winning the final contest by a score of 8–7.
URB is now 10-8 and will face Ithaca college on April 12 at home.
UR Softball has been off since last Wednesday when they dropped both sides of a double-header to Ithaca College.
With a 7–13 record thus far, it’s been a rocky start for one of UR’s most consistent varsity programs. There are still 24 games scheduled for regular season play, and the ‘Jacket’s 13 losses match their total for all of last season (they went 29–13).
Still, this group isn’t wavering, they have their minds set on postseason. “Our focuses remain the same as our goals set at the beginning of the season,” UR senior and infielder Mackenzie Cronin said. “We are looking to win the Liberty league and make it into the tournament.”
It is a sport, like softball or baseball, that can often become overwhelmed by profuse individual statistics (e.g. Janifer’s ERA), but still the value of team cannot be overstated. To approach their challenges in improving as they move forward, UR will be keeping this in mind.
“As a team, we would like to work on coming together and working as unit instead of as separate entities,” Cronin explained. “We are also are looking to focus on timely hitting, getting hits when runners on in scoring position.”
Softball faces Union College in a double-header this Saturday in Schenectady, NY, and will then travel to Troy, NY to take on RPI twice on sunday.
