Baseball Splits Doubleheader with SUNY Cobleskill to Open Florida Spring Break Trip

Davenport, FL -- The 2022 Williams College baseball team began their Florida trip by splitting a doubleheader with SUNY Cobleskill at Northeast Regional Park. The Ephs were dominant in the first game, winning by a score of 8-1, and couldn't hold on in game two, losing 7-6.

The Ephs were firing on all cylinders in game one. Sean Hogan started on the bump, and it was clear early that he brought his bag of tricks with him. Hogan fanned six in 5.0 innings of work, only allowing one run on five hits and three walks. He was quoted as feeling "Just fine," after the game.
 
Hogan's bullish start was complimented by an equally aggressive Ephs offense. The lineup, referred to as 'The Death Squad' by some, scored at least one run in five of the seven innings played. Kurt Oelschlager got the party started in the first by ripping a single and stealing second a few pitches later. Oelschlager's craftiness on the base path paid off when Brendan Stannard roped an RBI line drive single to left center.
 
Matt Brown began the second inning by reaching first on an error, and never looked back. Moved to second by a masterful Ryan Young sacrifice bunt, Brown would score easily when senior captain Eric Pappas hit an opposite field single. Brown would finish the day 2 for 3 with two doubles.
 
Young would continue to make his presence felt in the third inning by smashing a triple in the right center gap, scoring two and forcing a pitching change. He would score soon after, when the third baseman could not handle a hard hit Pappas ground ball, bringing the score to 7-0. Pappas would finish the game 2 for 4.
 
Hogan was relieved by fellow-junior pitcher Bo Peponis in the top of the 6th. Using his patented corkscrew pitching motion, Peponis struck out the first batter he faced. "I felt great out here, and I knew I had more in the tank," said Peponis. Peponis go the next two batters to fly out to end the inning..
 
Catcher Henry Juan and third baseman, Dave Driscoll, must have looked something fierce at the plate as the two Eph power hitters combined for 5 walks in the game (2 and 3, respectively.)
 
Once again, Nick Skiera was the closer for the Ephs, coming off his first save of the season against RPI, and he looked sharp. Skiera struck out the side and allowed one walk in his one inning of work. Thirty minutes later, the Ephs were back on the field for game two of the doubleheader. Will Jeffries started for the Ephs and was one of the few bright spots for the club, pitching two scoreless, walk free innings with three K's. "It was a fine start, but I'm just gearing up for NESCAC play. SUNY Cobleskill tried to pull the ball too much and I took advantage of that. They were bona fide 'tuggers' and once I picked up that that was their game plan, I was able to capitalize."
 
Jakob Cohn led the way for the Ephs on offense, collecting three hits in the game, including a double in the third inning that began a scoring rally. After Cohn's double, Dave Driscoll and Brendan Stannard each had hits of their own to put the Ephs up 3-0.
 
A third inning pitching change put first-year James Murray on the mound. The new, young arm showed flashes of brilliance, but fielding errors were extremely costly for the Ephs. Three consecutive miss-played bunts put men on for the Fighting Tigers, and shortstop E. Garcia cleared the bases with a double. Murray continued to battle through the day, throwing 3 innings, striking out three and allowing five runs.
 
In the top of the seventh, the Ephs were down 6-5, and managed to play small ball to tie the game. Kurt Oelshlager reached first on a walk, and subsequently moved to second base on a passed ball. In his last at bat of the game, Jakob Cohn hit a single to score Oelshlager easily, making it a 6-6 ball game. After 13 total innings of ball, the sun-stroked Ephs offense had done as much as they could to keep the game even.
 
J.H. Vaughan took the mound for the Purple and Gold in the top of the seventh, hoping to get the Ephs another chance at the plate. A line drive off the glove of defensive substitute, Danny Lynch, at third base resulted in a man on second for the Fighting Tigers. A botched pick off move sent the baserunner to third, and the next batter hit a sacrifice line drive to center field to hand the Ephs their first loss of the season. The Ephs play Dartmouth in a rare Division I - Division III contest next.