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Volume CXXXII, Number 19 |
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Baseball swings back from loss
BOBBY DESAULNIERS
STAFF WRITER
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Due to late spring snow, the baseball team has had to travel to warmer pastures to play ball. (Karsten Moran, Bowdoin Orient) |
The concept of home field advantage has been heavily emphasized recently in sports. In the NCAA basketball tournament, Syracuse beat top-seeded Oklahoma in Albany, NY and University of Texas beat Michigan State in San Antonio. So yes, it may be an advantage to play at home.
On a side note, playing baseball in Maine provides you with an inherent disadvantage. Home games must be played away when the home diamond is still covered in snow-just a side note.
You want to know what else gives the home team a distinct advantage? When the opposing team drives four hours in a bus and, upon arrival, has an hour and a half to warm up. Not to make excuses for the 25-7 loss that the Polar Bears suffered last Friday against upcoming NESCAC powerhouse Trinity College, but that may have had something to do with it.
With the wind whipping up hard at Trinity, the Bears only went through three pitchers in an attempt to thwart the burning bats of the Bantams. When going on an away trip, which includes a double-header on Saturday, the key is to preserve your pitching staff. Despite the loss, Jared Porter '03 and Will Waldrop '06 pitched well and long to preserve the staff. With this loss put behind them, the Bears rose to the occasion on Saturday.
Andy Workman '04 took the mound for the first game of the double-header against Trinity. Despite the hitting clinic that Trinity put on for them the day before, Workman did not falter. The Bears pitching and hitting stepped up to send the game into extra innings, which in itself was a considerable step up from their previous performance.
Unfortunately, in the bottom of the tenth, the Bantams scored on a bloop single and walked off victoriously again. Although the Bears emerged with the loss, they proved to themselves and the Trinity squad that they showed up to play that afternoon.
The second game of the double header exemplified the fire with which the Bears are capable of playing. Mark Bulger '04, who has pitched quite well this season, started the second game. Along with Bulger's strong performance on the mound, the Bears' bats came alive.
Although putting up nine runs in the first game of the day was not a slouch of a performance, their bats were smoking as they put up 19 runs in a 19-10 win over Trinity. Notable offensive performances were provided by John Clifford '04, Manny Lora '04, and God's gift to baseball and life itself, Kevin Bougie '04.
The team returned to Brunswick with only one win, but they did have some momentum. After taking an extremely tough loss on Friday, the Bears bounced back and competed with a known league powerhouse. The Bears took that momentum into Wednesday's match-up against St. Joseph's.
The Bears flew out of the gates and came out to a 3-0 lead over St. Joe's early on. This early lead testifies to the momentum that carried over from the weekend. Later in the game, the Bears found themselves down by two, but again rose to the occasion and made crucial defensive plays when they needed to be made.
To take the lead in the ninth, Kevin Bougie-who else-launched a bomb over the left field fence to put the Bears ahead. Manny Lora also had a great day at the plate with two doubles. In addition, Lora decided to put on a show for everyone in attendance and hit himself into a rare, yet always amusing, triple play.
Ricky Leclerc '06 pitched five solid innings for the Bears. In relief, Jason Hafler '04, Travis Dube '04, and Erik Morrison '06 pitched well and sealed the win for the Bears.
Overall, in the game against St. Joe's, the team tightened up defensively when they needed to. The pitchers threw strikes, and they avoided long innings. When presented with the opportunity to pull out a win against a well-drilled team, the Bears jumped at the challenge and were successful.
Their momentum builds as they face off against archrival Colby this weekend. Come on out this afternoon at 3:00 p.m., and support the boys. You'll also get to see Kevin Bougie, I swear.
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