With a game under their belts, the Jeffs entered Sunday's game hoping to rebound from the tough opener. Instead, the game turned out to be a mismatch, as Amherst's opponent, Salisbury University, had played 17 games-to the Jeff's one-entering the contest. The final score of 22-3 was disheartening by itself, but there were some bright spots for the Jeffs. Senior outfielder Tom Scott, who has a career .304 batting average, hit .429 over the two games, including a pair of singles, a sacrifice bunt and a stolen base.
Though the team played a much more polished game on Monday, taking the Saint Lawrence University Saints to extra innings, the outcome was nevertheless the same. The Jeffs' 2-1, 10-inning loss featured an exceptional performance from senior pitcher Nick Kehoe and a light-hitting offense. Kehoe went six innings, striking out ten while allowing only five hits, one of which landed in the seats in the fourth inning. First-year John D'Angelo pitched the final 3.1 innings, stranding five runners before the Saints were able to cross home plate for the victory. The Jeffs got on the board first, when shortstop Andy Thal '10 led off the third inning with a free pass. He stole second, allowing him to score on infield error. Amherst managed a mere three hits against the Saints' collection of hurlers; sophomore third baseman Brendan Powers had a double and senior second baseman Mark Mazzone and first-year designated hitter Will Lawton each reached on singles.
Sometime between Monday night and Tuesday morning, something clicked for the Jeffs. In an impressive turnaround, Amherst's offense scored a combined 28 runs in the doubleheader. In the morning contest, which the Jeffs took 15-4, first-year pitcher Teddy Blank won his first collegiate start, giving up four runs and seven hits over six innings. Lefty Ryan Plazbecker '09 got the victory in the nightcap, scattering three runs over six-plus innings in leading the Jeffs to a 13-4 triumph.
It was the offensive that stole the show, however. In the 18 innings, the Jeffs got 32 hits, 13 of which came from the bats of senior outfielder Jared Banner and junior catcher Neal Allar. Banner, who holds a sparkling career average of .341, was flawless, going 8-for-8 with three doubles, while knocking in four runs and scoring two of his own. Allar, a career .315 hitter, was equally impressive: His 5-for-7 performance included a grand slam and a double, helping him rack up a remarkable 10 RBIs and five runs scored, all of which saw him pick up NESCAC Player of the Week honors.
The Jeffs' next game, played Wednesday afternoon against Babson College, was about as frenzied as they come. Finding themselves down by 10 runs entering the final frame, the Jeffs rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth inning at 16-16. Sophomore Angus Schaller had the big hit, tying the game with a three-run homer on a two-strike count and the Jeffs down to their final out. Unfortunately, despite Powers' 6-for-7, six RBI-game, the Jeffs gave up the game-winning RBI single in the top of the tenth inning to take the loss.
The Jeffs' next doubleheader turned out to be just as successful as the first. Amherst again scored 28 runs in the twinbill, this time against Plymouth State College, racking up 32 hits in the 16-3 and 12-4 victories. Kehoe pitched a rare complete game in the opener, fanning eight and allowing only three earned runs. The outcome of the second game was not obvious until the end. With the score tied at 4-4 entering the eighth inning, the Jeffs scored eight runs, behind Mazzone's first home run of the season and a run-scoring triple from Allar. Thal gained his first collegiate victory in relief.
The trip ended for the Jeffs almost as it began. Saturday's 8-2 loss to the Universtiy of St. Thomas saw Amherst's offense return to its early-trip form, as the Jeffs managed just four hits while committing an equal number of errors. The Jeffs left Florida with a 4-5 record. After a few days of practice and adjusting to the cold, the Jeffs take on Westfield Sate on Thursday, before opening their conference slate on Friday against NESCAC rival Wesleyan University.
"The transition from the Cage to the field was tough," said Platzbecker. "When we finally got outside, it was a totally different game. As we played more though, we started to clean up our game, and by the end of the week we were playing much better baseball, even if our record doesn't reflect it.
NESCAC Notes
Trinity College is off to a blistering start so far, with a record of 11-1. The next-best record belongs to Tufts University, at 7-4, and five teams find themselves below .500.