By Chris McCree
Writer
The baseball team came away with three crucial wins this weekend during its four-game series at Lehigh. Powered by the impressive play of Doug Shribman ’11, the Bison offense exploded for 40 runs over the four games, giving the team more than enough support to take down the Mountain Hawks and regain ground in the Patriot League.
“The series was very important for us. We were playing to keep our postseason hopes alive and we put ourselves in a good position to make the playoffs,” Jack Boehm ’12 said.
On Saturday, the Bison split their fourth consecutive doubleheader, winning the first game 10-3 but losing the second 8-4. In their game-one victory, the Bison held a slim one-run lead after three innings but plated six unanswered runs over the next four. Bob Donato ’12 and Shribman anchored the Bison offense with three hits apiece, and Alex Cillo ’12 came away with the win, pitching 3.1 scoreless innings of relief.
Game two featured a late-inning collapse by the Orange and Blue. Going into the bottom of the eighth, the game was knotted at four apiece, but a two-out rally by the Mountain Hawks gave them the four-run victory.
The Orange and Blue responded to the game-two loss with two lopsided victories on Sunday. The Bison outscored the Mountain Hawks 26-11 over the two games, winning game one 15-5 and game two 11-6.
“The key to our success was our offense,” Boehm said.
Drew Constable ’11 and Donato combined for three home runs and nine of the team’s 29 hits. Shribman was the star of the day though, going 6-11 with three home runs and seven RBIs to move within 10 of the program’s all-time record.
“When Doug is hitting like he did this weekend, our whole team feels a lot more confident. He’s a really explosive player, when he hits our whole team hits,” Boehm said.
The team also received a great performance from its bullpen. The combination of Eric Jarrett ’11, Cillo, Dan Goldstein ’13 and Steve Carlin ’11 allowed just three runs over six innings of play.
“The whole team was working together, pitchers and hitters, to keep the momentum with us which is a big reason we were able to win three out of the four games,” Cillo said.
The Bison now stand tied with the Mountain Hawks for the final spot in the Patriot League playoffs. Each team will play its final Patriot League series of the season, and the outcomes will decide which team will make it to the postseason. The Bison will play host to first place Army, but they aren’t at all intimidated.
“We stand a pretty good chance making the playoffs if we keep playing the way that we did this past weekend,” Cillo said. “We generally have success against Army, and with the series being here this year, we have the home field advantage. Winning three out of four this coming weekend will guarantee that we make the Patriot League Tournament.”