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Baseball suffers sweep to Army

By Andrew Arnao
Writer

The baseball team had a rough weekend after getting swept at Army, but managed to end the week on a positive note after winning game two of a home doubleheader against St. Bonaventure. Bison pitcher Bryson Hough ’15 was also named Patriot League Rookie of the Week.

“The Army series was a highly competitive one,” head coach Gene Depew said. “There was outstanding pitching on both sides. Army was successful because they played very solid defense throughout and we did not.”

The first two games against Army on Saturday were both pitching duels, with the Bison being defeated by final scores of 1-0 and 2-1. All of Army’s runs were unearned, spoiling dominant pitching efforts from both Dan Weigel ’14 and Hough. Weigel threw a complete game while allowing only four hits, while Hough pitched 7.1 innings and surrendered seven hits. The Bison offense struggled to score runs, with the only Bison lead coming from a first-inning RBI single by second baseman Travis Clark ’13 in game two.

“The series against Army this past weekend was really disappointing,” left fielder Matt Busch ’13 said. “Although our pitching was very good, our offense did not show up in any of the games. It’s really hard to lose three one-run games in a weekend, especially with our pitching staff doing so well.”

Game three saw the Bison fall victim to a no-hitter at the hands of Army pitcher Logan Lee, who carried a perfect game into the last inning until issuing a lead-off walk to center fielder Bob Donato ’12. The Black Knights won by a final score of 8-0.

Game four was perhaps the most painful for the Bison, as they fell by a final score of 2-1 after 15 innings, tied for the second-longest game in program history. Despite loading the bases in the 12th, 13th and 15th innings, the Orange and the Blue were unable to pull ahead. The winning run hit off Russell Seidell ’12 was unearned, ruining fantastic pitching efforts by Ryan Ebner ’12 and Alex Cillo ’12, who went a combined 13 innings while giving up only one run.

“Our pitching staff did a remarkable job shutting down the Army offense and giving our team the chance to win every game,” first baseman Luke Lombardi ’14 said. “A few timely hits separated us from what could have easily been a 3-1 weekend.”

The Bison endured another excruciating loss as they fell to St. Bonaventure 6-5 on Tuesday, with the Bonnies scoring the winning run in the top of the seventh inning. After falling behind 4-0, the Bison managed to climb back and tie the score 5-5, but were unable tack on any more runs.

The Bison rebounded nicely in game two, with six pitchers combining to throw a two-hit shutout in an eventual 5-0 victory. The game was highlighted by an unassisted triple play by shortstop Greg Wasikowski ’15 in the fourth inning. Wasikowski also led the Bison offense in RBIs, with two.

The Bison will face Lafayette in a four-game series over the last weekend of the regular season. They need two wins to clinch a spot in the Patriot League Tournament for the fifth straight year.

“We need to finish the last week of our regular season by getting back to making plays defensively and by getting some offensive momentum going,” Depew said. “As usual the postseason teams will be decided this last weekend of the season, and we are in control of our own destiny by having to beat Lafayette to make the four-team tournament.”

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Baseball Men Sports

Athlete of the Week: David Duffett

By Chris McCree
Sports Editor

Player Profile:

David Duffett

Senior

Infielder

Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa.

Major: Mechanical Engineering

Season Statistics:

Avg: .329

GP-GS: 38-38

H: 50

RBIs: 29

SLG percentage: .454

OB percentage: .378

During a weekend of major playoff implications, David Duffett ’12 propelled the men’s baseball team to a 3-1 series win over Lehigh behind his consistent offensive production over the two days. The senior infielder batted .500 over the four games, notching three RBIs and three runs scored against the Mountain Hawks pitching staff. Starting strong in game one, Duffett was the only Orange and Blue player to record multiple hits and was able to get on base at least twice in each of the four contests. During the series finale, Duffett produced his strongest offensive performance of the weekend, going 3-5 to help the Bison to a one-run victory.

“My coaches and teammates put me in great opportunities to contribute to the team and I was fortunate enough to come through for them,” Duffett said. “We knew we were capable of playing well and we were able to put it all together this weekend against Lehigh. The pitching staff did a great job against their offense and we were able to hit well enough to win the series.”

Duffett emerged as one of the team’s most talented players last season when he took over the starting job as a junior. Last season, Duffett ranked second on the team with a .361 batting average during the regular season and recorded 18 multi-hit games. For the Bison, Duffett’s greatest quality is his durability. As a sophomore, Duffett played in 58 of 60 games and currently leads the team in games played with 38 this season.

This season, Duffett has turned his attention to being a good leader for the younger players on the team.

“My role on the team has changed a lot over the past four years,” he said. As a younger guy I always looked to the seniors to lead the team in the late innings, but now I’m one of the guys trying to help the team down the stretch. I would not have made it to this point in my career without all the support from my coaches and teammates over the years.”

Looking ahead, Duffett and the Bison have two key Patriot League series remaining on the schedule. This weekend, the team will travel to West Point to take on Army and then will close out their season at Lafayette one week later.

 

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Coach Gene Depew to retire after 31 seasons

By Eric Brod
Senior Writer

When Gene Depew’s career comes to an end at the conclusion of the 2012 season, his 31st as manager for Bison baseball, he will leave a legacy as the top manager in program history and one of the greatest leaders of the entire sports program. While accumulating numerous personal accolades, Depew has established the Bison as a perennial contender in the Patriot League and one of the most consistent programs in the nation. More than that, he has molded leaders through his teaching of baseball and life.

Depew, a 1971 graduate of the University, has won Patriot League Coach of the year four times (1993, 1996, 2003, 2009) and over his 31 years as manager has racked up 570 wins, by the far the most in program history. What is most impressive is how much the program has improved throughout his career, especially within the past 16 seasons.

During this time, the Orange and Blue have finished in first or second in regular season league play eight times, have recorded 20 wins in 12 of those years and have had three 30-win seasons. Most impressively, the team has won five league tournament titles and captured the regular season title six times in past 16 years.

From 2008 to 2010, he was at the helm of three Patriot League title teams, with the team winning the league tournament in 2008 and 2010 and earning a regular season title in 2009. These three seasons represent arguably the most impressive stretch in program history. In 2010, Depew led the team to its fifth league title during his career as the fourth-seeded Bison defeated both top-seeded Army and two-seed Holy Cross on back to back weekends. During the 2009 campaign, Depew guided the team to a 13-7 record in league play. In 2008, Depew oversaw the most memorable and impressive win in program history when the Orange and Blue defeated No. 4 Florida State in the first round of the NCAA tournament. For Depew, this was also the most memorable moment of his career:

“I can’t choose a [favorite] team, there have been too many great ones. I can choose a game and memory: the Florida State 7-0 win in the NCAA tournament in 2008.”

It was only the fourth time ever that a Patriot League team won a game in the NCAA tournament.

Depew has also overseen great individual players, having coached four Patriot League Pitchers of the year (Mike Tomko, 1996; Mike Anders, 1998; Kevin Miller, 2003; Ryan Ebner, 2011), four Patriot League Players of the year (Kevin Silverman, 1996; Frank Fresconi, 2000; Jason Buursma, 2008; Andrew Brouse, 2010) and two Rookies of the Year (Phil Futrick, 2003; Ben Yoder, 2007). While all the accolades won through his time have meant a lot, Depew says the most rewarding part has been to work with so many different players.

“The opportunity to work with talented, motivated and quality student athletes. So many things have changed over the years, but that has been the constant,” Depew said.

For Bob Donato ’12, Coach Depew has certainly left a mark.

“Throughout the four years I have been with Coach Depew I have learned to always look at the positive side of things,” Donato said. “He wants us to get better every day and put everything we have into it.”

Depew’s presence was felt off the field as well. 

“My favorite memory is the Johnny The Bell Hop card trick that [Depew] does at the airport right before we fly down to Florida for spring break. He has never messed it up in my four years,” Donato said.

While Depew still has to finish this season out, he already has an idea of what he wants his lasting legacy to be on the program.

“I want to be remembered as someone who contributed to a positive Bucknell educational experience for my players.”

 

 

 

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Baseball Men Sports

Baseball takes down Lehigh

By Andrew Arnao
Senior Writer

On a weekend dedicated to the legacy of head coach Gene Depew, who will be retiring at the end of the season, the baseball team played exceptionally well en route to taging three of four home games from Patriot League rival Lehigh.  The Bison are now 19-20 overall and 6-6 in Patriot League play.

In game one, Lehigh defeated the Bison 8-1. Pitcher Dan Weigel ’14 had his second loss of the year, while first baseman Russel Seidell ’12 brought in the lone RBI on a groundout.

“We kind of got off to a slow start in game one but we did a great job bouncing back and not letting the loss affect us,” starting pitcher Bryson Hough ’15 said. “Taking the next three games from Lehigh was huge because they were right behind us in the standings and we’re still at the edge of the playoff bubble.”

Hough played an instrumental role in winning game two, pitching 6.1 strong innings while allowing only three earned runs. The Bison offense also managed to break out, recording 17 hits behind strong efforts from shortstop Robb Scott ’13 (four-for-four with three RBIs), left fielder Colby Vanderbeck ’14 (three-for-four with four RBIs), and designated hitter Carter Bumgardner ’13 (three-for-five with three RBIs). The Bison finished the game on top 11-5.

In game three, Ryan Ebner ’12 pitched a seven-inning, three-hit shutout, the first for the Bison this year. The Bison offense contributed nine hits to the eventual 6-0 victory, with second baseman Travis Clark ’13 leading the way with three hits, including a home run.

Game four featured perhaps the most drama of the series, with five lead changes and a walk-off hit by first baseman Rob Krentzman ’15 in the bottom of the seventh inning. Krentzman’s clutch hit gave the Bison a 7-6 victory.

“We played very well all around this weekend,” Ebner said. “We had guys come up with big hits in big situations, especially Rob Krentzman [with] the game-winning hit in a much needed game four win. I also thought we played great in the field. [Third baseman] Dave Duffett [’12] made a ton of nice plays at third and Robb Scott and Travis Clark made some run-saving plays.”

“We needed to win a series this past weekend and we took care of business,” Depew said. “I thought after losing game one we came back and played our best overall baseball of the season in the last three games. We pitched well, played good defense and got good and timely hitting. We are looking forward to the challenge of going to Army to compete against a team that is 12-0 in the league, [which should be] a great opportunity for us.”

The Bison also traveled to Penn State on Wednesday, where Seidell and Jack Boehm’12 combined to give up only 2 runs over 7 innings, but the offense was quieted by the Nittany Lions, recording only 4 hits in a 2-0 loss.

The Bison’s stint away against undefeated Army starts at noon on Saturday.

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Baseball Featured Men Sports

Baseball splits Navy rematch

By Andrew Arnao

Writer

The baseball team went 2-3 over the past week, splitting a four-game series at home against Navy over the weekend while falling on the road to Towson on Tuesday. The Bison are now 16-18 for the season.

Game one on Saturday started off as a pitcher’s duel, with both Dan Weigel ’14 and Navy’s Ben Nelson firing blanks until Navy broke through with a run in the fourth. The Bison brought it to 2-1 in the sixth on a two-RBI hit by third baseman David Duffett ’12. Navy tied the game to force extra innings, but Duffett hit a walk-off single in the 10thto give the Bison a 3-2 win.

Game two ended as a tough loss for the Bison. Despite taking a 2-1 lead into the seventh, the Orange and the Blue were unable to hold on as Navy scored two runs to win by a final of 3-2. Pitcher Bryson Hough ’15 went eight strong innings, giving up only three runs on eight hits, while left-fielder Colby Vanderbeck ’14 and designated hitter Matt Lamore ’12 each contributed one RBI. Game three on Sunday also resulted in a frustrating 3-2 loss for the Bison, as the Bison took a 2-0 lead into the sixth when Navy finally got to pitcher Ryan Ebner ’12 for three runs.

“When our starters give us quality pitching performances, we should expect to sweep the series,” outfielder Matt Busch ’13 said. “Pitching alone, however, does not win ball games. Our offense struggled in all but the last game and we were only able to put up a few runs in the first three games.”

The Bison offense was finally let loose in game four, pounding Navy for 10 runs in an eventual 10-3 victory. Pitcher Dan Goldstein ’13 recorded the win while five Bison recorded multi-hit games. The Bison had their best inning in the fourth, when nine men were sent to the plate and pinch-hitter Scott Reed ’12 hit a three-run homer.

“Our starting pitching did a great job of keeping us in the games,” assistant coach Jim Gulden said. “All the games were well pitched games by both teams. Our bats came alive in the fourth game to split the series, which we needed to stay ahead of them in the league.”

The offense continued to rake against Towson, scoring eight runs thanks in part to a grand slam by Busch, but it wasn’t enough as the Bison fell 10-8. Each team tied the score five times before Towson went ahead for good in the bottom of the seventh. Busch and center fielder Bob Donato ’12 each had two hits and multiple RBIs for the Orange and the Blue.

“Against Towson, we played well offensively and struggled on the hill,” Busch said. “The positive thing we can take from this is that we have solid pitching and an explosive offense. The trick is getting both aspects to work at the same time.”

The Bison will be at home this weekend for a four-game series against division–rival Lehigh, starting at noon on Saturday.

“This weekend is a huge weekend for us [because] we are a game ahead of Lehigh in the league and need to stay ahead of them,” Gulden said. “The keys to this weekend are to get good quality starts from our pitchers, timely hitting from our offense and play mistake-free baseball. If we play the way we are capable [of], we are a tough team to beat.”

 

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Baseball Men Sports

Baseball loses two of four, falls to 14-15

Andrew Arnao
Staff Writer

The baseball team opened Patriot League play last weekend with a 1-3 showing at home against Holy Cross. The Orange and the Blue also dominated Lock Haven on Tuesday, but dropped their third contest of the week at Maryland 8-3. After the three games, the Bison now stand at 14-15 on the season.

Both of the games against Holy Cross on Saturday were well pitched by both teams. Game one featured a complete game by Dan Weigel ’14, who allowed one run on six hits over seven innings in a 3-1 victory. The Bison scored all three of their runs in the first inning, on a pair of RBI hits by Travis Clark ’13 and Scott Reed ’12.

Bryson Hough ’15 followed up with a strong pitching performance in game two, giving up two earned runs on seven hits, but the Bison offense was shut down in an eventual 3-1 defeat.

In the two games on Sunday, Holy Cross managed to take early leads and never looked back, winning game three 5-1 and game four 11-7. The Bison offense was limited in the first game, but six Bison had multiple hits in game four, allowing the team to end the series on a positive note offensively. Bob Donato ’12 also had his 21-game hitting streak snapped in game three but is still batting a team-high .421.

“This weekend was not our best weekend but it was a good reality check for what we will need to work on to win Patriots this year,” Clark said. “Our team reminds me a lot of the team we had two years ago when we went to the NCAA regional tournament.”

The offense carried its improvements from game four over to another home game against Lock Haven, where the Orange and Blue came out on top, 10-3. Pitchers Ryan Ebner ’12 and Jack Boehm ’12 did not allow any baserunners through 4.2 innings. Catcher Justin Meier ’14 led the offense with two hits, while three Bison recorded multiple RBIs.

Ending their three-game stretch at Maryland, the Bison were overmatched by a hot Terps offense that knocked up starter Russell Seidell ’12 for seven runs. Through seven innings, the Orange and Blue trailed 8-0, but managed to cut it to five in the top of the eighth. As a team, the Bison recorded six hits in the game with five of them coming from Donato and Gerry Runyan ’12.

The Bison will be back in action this weekend at home against Navy. The first game is at noon on Saturday.

“We have a solid older team again and we’re just a few steps from putting everything together and reaching our potential,” Clark said. “This week we will have a good chance of putting everything together and taking two victories into our weekend series with Navy.”

 

 

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Baseball Men Sports

Baseball earns three wins with split

Andrew Arnao

Staff Writer

The men’s baseball team went 3-3 over the past week, splitting a four-game series at Saint Joseph’s over the weekend and also splitting a doubleheader at home against Binghamton on Tuesday. The Orange and the Blue are now 12-11 for the season.

“The Saint Joseph’s series was very competitive, with three games decided by one run,” head coach Gene Depew said. “I think the biggest positive for us was that we got quality pitching throughout the weekend.”

Friday’s game against Saint Joseph’s was incredibly close, with the Bison taking the lead twice, but the Hawks managed to tie the score in the bottom of the inning both times. The Bison went ahead for good on a two-out RBI single by Robb Scott ’13 in the eighth inning, and finished the game with a 4-3 victory. Pitcher Dan Weigel ’14 pitched 7.2 innings to improve his record to 5-1, and Alex Cillo ’12 recorded his fourth save.

“We played very well defensively, and since most of our pitchers are not big strikeout guys, we rely heavily on the defense to make plays, which they have done very well all year,” Weigel said. “Shortstop Robb Scott also had a huge weekend, hitting over .500 including a game winning RBI single in game one while playing great defense all weekend.”

Games two and three on Saturday were both low-scoring, with the Bison winning game two by a final score of 4-3 and the Hawks winning game three 2-1. In game two, pitcher Ryan Ebner ’12 received four runs of support in the second inning and made it last, giving up only two runs over six innings. In game three, Bryson Hough ’15 threw a complete game while allowing only two runs, but the Bison offense was unable to back him up, scoring only one run on an error. The offense struggled again in game four, resulting in a 7-1 defeat.

“The pitching was overall very solid against St. Joseph’s this past weekend,” Hough said. “Even though the hitting was a little off this past weekend, we’re not particularly worried about it. I’ve seen our hitters do some amazing stuff in our past games, so I know it’s definitely there.”

The Bison won the first game of the Binghamton doubleheader 2-1 behind tremendous pitching from Russell Seidell ’12, who threw a complete game and gave up only one run. Infielder Will Mooney ’14 drove in the eventual winning run in the fifth inning. Binghamton managed to split the doubleheader by ending the second game in a 10-4 Bison loss.

The Bison have their first Patriot League matchup this weekend with a four-game homestead against Holy Cross, starting at 12 p.m. tomorrow.

“It’s an exciting part of the season for us as we head into Patriot League play this weekend,” Scott said. “It’s time to see what we’re made of.”

 

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Baseball takes two of four against Navy

By Chris McCree

Writer

The baseball team won two of its four games this past weekend during their two-day doubleheader series at Patriot League counterpart Navy. Taking game one 2-1 and then game four 15-7, the Bison looked like a completely different team each day but came away with two victories nonetheless, leaving them with a Patriot League record of 4-8.

Behind a spectacular pitching performance by Ryan Ebner ’12, the Bison started off the series with a 2-1 victory over the Midshipmen. The Bison fell behind first when Navy scored their only run of the game in the fourth inning, but their lead didn’t last long. After an RBI single and bases-loaded walk by Doug Shribman ’11 and Bob Donato ’12 respectively, the Bison took a one-run lead, and that was all the support that Ebner would need. Ebner finished out the game allowing just four hits along the way to improving to a team best 5-1 on the year.

“I thought game one was good to set the tone for us as a pitching staff. We really needed to step it up because last weekend we gave up too many runs,” Ebner said.

The following day, the Bison came away with another split doubleheader but in dramatically different fashion. Unlike their first set of games, the Bison relied heavily on their hitting on day two, recording a total of 20 runs compared to the four they totaled on day one.

Most of the 20 runs came in the Bison’s 15-7 domination in game four. The Bison received strong hitting performances from just about everyone in the lineup. Six different players recorded multi-hit games, with Travis Clark ’13 and Justin Meier ’14 each tallying four hits. Collectively, the Bison amassed a season-high 19 hits. After riding the pitchers earlier in the series, the Bison offense provided more than enough support in game four.

In game two, the Bison once again plated two runs, but it was not enough to match the Midshipmen who tallied five against starter Dylan Seeley ’11. Shribman gave the Orange and Blue an early lead with a first inning homerun, but they quickly lost their lead in the bottom of the inning and faced a deficit for most of the game. Seeley lasted five innings and was replaced by reliever Alex Cillo ’12 who gave the Bison 2.2 scoreless innings of relief, lowering his ERA to a team best 3.04.

In game three, the Bison lost in heartbreaking fashion as Navy’s Nick Driscoll hit a game-winning walk off single to seal a 6-5 victory for the Mids. During the extra inning thriller, Clark and Gerry Runyan ’12 put the Bison in good position, going a combined 6-for-8 with two RBIs, but it wasn’t enough for the Bison to hold off the Mids’ late charge. Reliever Cillo was charged with the loss; his one earned run marked the end of his impressive 24 scoreless inning streak.

“The weekend came down to the hitters who really did well the last game which tied the series,” Ebner said. “Game three was a big game but we fell just short on both ends, and it felt good to dominate them in game four.”

The Bison will continue Patriot League play against Lehigh this weekend, traveling to Bethlehem, Pa. for a pivotal four-game series which has major playoff implications.

“We were disappointed that we could not win all four games, but I think everyone played hard every out and stayed positive. I am confident we will finish strong this season,” Drew Constable ’11 said.

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Clark ’13 blasts three homers in series

By Chris McCree

Writer

Despite notable individual efforts from Travis Clark ’13 and Doug Shribman ’11, the men’s baseball team dropped three of four during this weekend’s pivotal four-game series at Holy Cross.

“We knew Holy Cross was a very good baseball team going into the weekend, and we felt prepared to compete with them,” David Duffett ’12 said. “They got off to a fast start and scored some runs early to open up the weekend. We knew we were in for a battle.”

During day two of the series, the Bison didn’t fare as well as they had hoped, losing both games, including a heartbreaking 6-5 loss in game three.

During the final game of the series, Shribman belted two home runs and batted in six runs, but the Bison still fell by a 13-7 margin. Starter Jack Boehm ’12 lasted just one inning on the mound, allowing five runs. The pitching woes continued throughout the game as the Bison used five different pitchers over the course of the contest.

Facing a 3-0 deficit after the first inning of play in game three, the Bison battled back to tie the game in the fifth thanks to a crucial two-RBI double by Bob Donato ’12 and three hits by Duffett. Unfortunately, a late-inning Orange and Blue error allowed the Crusaders to regain a one-run lead and hold on for the victory.

After splitting the first day of play one game apiece, the series showed every indication that it would be a great battle. On the day, each team recorded their own 8-5 victory, yet in very different ways.

Game two stayed tight the entire game, setting the stage for an unlikely hero to bring home the victory for the Bison. Going into the eighth, the two teams were squared at five runs apiece yet with one swing of the bat, Clark was able to break the tie with his third home run of the day. Amazingly, Clark had not hit a home run in his career as a Bison coming into the series, yet he managed three in one day, including the very important game-breaking home run in game two. Donato had a home run of his own in the fifth inning as the Bison continued to use the long ball to their advantage.

In game one, the Crusaders got out to an early lead and never looked back. The Bison received a shaky pitching performance from Dylan Seeley ’11, giving up eight earned runs in 4.2 innings and recorded three of their five runs in the last two innings, when the game was already out of hand.

With the three losses on the weekend, the Bison now find themselves in a difficult spot at the bottom of the Patriot League.

“We were surprised that we didn’t win at least two games,” Donato said. “We are now at a point where every game matters. It’s time to bear down and focus on what we need to accomplish as a team.”

This weekend, the Bison will travel to Navy for a four-game series.

“We know what has to be done now, and we are very close to putting it all together,” Clark said. “Everyone’s pretty confident that with a few adjustments we can win the next three series and grab a spot in the playoffs.”

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Sports

Baseball drops four of five in homestand

By Chris McCree

Writer

The baseball team dropped four of five to Marist and Lafayette in a homestand last weekend, with three of the losses coming against its Patriot League rival.

During the weekend’s four-game series, the Orange and Blue were outscored 24-to-21 by Lafayette and quickly fell to a League record of 1-3. To add to the struggles, the Bison fell to Marist 13-1 to finish up their five-game home-stand. Against the Red Foxes, the Bison never found their groove, going through eight different pitchers and serving up 16 walks.

“Obviously this week did not go the way that we wanted it to g,o as we are trying to repeat as Patriot League Champions,” Trey Frahler ’11 said. “We made too many mistakes, and they were able to capitalize on them.”

The Bison got off to a slow start, losing 11-5 during the first of two games on Saturday. The team fell behind 7-0 after the top of the fourth, but pulled within two before the Leopards tacked on four more insurance runs.

Game two was a completely different story as the Bison recorded 11 runs of their own and received an impressive pitching performance by Ryan Ebner ’12 to record their only win of the week 11-2. Ebner continued his string of impressive outings by going seven innings and allowing just two runs to claim his fourth victory of the year. Offensively, the Bison outhit the Leopards 15-5 thanks, in large part, to impressive individual performances by Bob Donato ’12 and Matt Lamore ’12 who combined for seven hits and six RBIs.

The Orange and Blue followed this strong offensive performance by outhitting the Leopards 17-16 during Sunday’s doubleheader, but still lost both games. During game three’s 5-2 loss, Gerry Runyan ’12 had a team-high three hits, but the team fell behind early and never fought their way back. Similarly, in game four, the Bison couldn’t overcome an early four-run deficit and lost 6-3.

“As much as it is tough to start going 1-3, we have not lost our confidence,” Frahler said. “We know now that we have our work cut out for us. One of our goals was to win every series in the regular season and post-season, but now we are going to have to work even harder to come dig ourselves out of this hole.”

The Bison will continue Patriot League play this weekend as they travel to Holy Cross for an important four-game series. Although it is still early in Patriot League play, a loss to the last-place Crusaders would be a serious hit to the Bison’s title chances.

“Our team in the past few years has done a great job at rebounding after tough weekends, and we plan on doing that this weekend and the rest of the year,” Frahler said.