Over the weekend, the Cardinal baseball team squared off against Little Three rival Williams in a three-game series played both in Middletown and Williamstown. The Cardinals slipped in the twinbill but prevailed in the last as the Ephs took the series 2-1. Williams took both games of the doubleheader on a sweltering Saturday in front of a large Foss Hill crowd, but Wesleyan bounced back to win 8-6 in Williamstown on Sunday, its first win in the Purple Valley since 2000.

Williams stormed to a 10-0 lead through four innings in the first match, a seven-inning game, on Saturday. With a run in the first, two in the second, four in the third, and three in the fourth, the Ephs came out swinging. They also commanded defense, as starter Dan Benz no-hit the Cardinals through five and two-thirds. The Cards attempted a comeback in the final frame of the game with a five-run outburst, including a two-run triple by Brice Kelly ’10 and a two-run single by Drew Dominguez ’09, but Williams snuffed the rally for the 10-5 final.

The men regrouped and hit the field for game two. A wild pitch brought Julian Sonnenfeld ’11 home as the Cards took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. They added another run in the second as Jeff Bizinkauskas ’10 hit a double to drive in Justin Freres ’11. Williams responded in the top of the fourth with a run before Wesleyan scored three more to make it a 5-1 game. Williams scored three on four hits in the top of the seventh, but the Cards got one back as Kelly led off the bottom of the inning with a home run to make it 6-4. After seven innings on the mound, Brett Yarusi ’12 left the game having allowed ten hits and four runs while striking out four. The top of the eighth proved to be fatal for the Cardinals, as the Ephs scored seven runs on seven hits and an error to take an 11-6 lead in the game. Williams never looked back and went on to win 13-8.

Losing twice on their home field was tough, but the Wes men were ready to exact revenge on Sunday.

“It was definitely tough to get swept at home in front of a great crowd,” said Jon Sheehan ’11. “We’ve worked hard since September, and we deserved a better result.”

Dominguez had a strong showing on the mound in Williamstown, pitching a complete game and leading the Cards to an 8-6 victory. He allowed 11 hits and had five strikeouts, giving up three earned runs. This was Dominguez’s fifth complete game of the season, and it improved his record to 5-1. He also had two hits to add to his team-leading total of 49.

Wesleyan took a 3-0 lead to start off the game and never looked back. After Sonnenfeld doubled to left center and advanced to third on a wild pitch, Derek Dettorre ’11 drove him in with a single. After a walk to Kelly, Alex Meadow ’12 doubled to left-center to score both Detorre and Kelly. Williams, however, got two unearned runs in the bottom of the frame to keep the game close. Wesleyan took a 4-2 lead in the third when an RBI groundout by Meadow scored Kelly, who had tripled. With two more in both the fourh and the sixth, the Cards were able to hold off the Ephs and keep their playoff hopes alive. 

Currently in third in the NESCAC West at 6-5, Wesleyan needs to move up a slot to make the postseason as only the top two teams in each division qualify for the conference tournament. In order for the Cards to advance, they need to beat Middlebury in a makeup game on May 2. Also, Amherst, which is currently in second place with a 7-3 record, must lose to both Hamilton and Williams.

Wesleyan’s next game is at home against Westfield State on Tuesday. After the game in Middlebury on Saturday, the men travel to Trinity to challenge the defending national champion Bantams in a doubleheader Sunday.