To squeeze into the NESCAC playoffs, the baseball team must replicate its feat from last year and sweep its final four league games against Williams and Middlebury.
The first three of these four games will be against Williams this weekend. The Cardinals visit the Ephs on Saturday, while Williams comes to Andrus Field on Sunday. Beating Williams will require a great effort from the team, which will face a team ranked second in the NESCAC West and one of the top-hitting teams in New England.
On Wednesday the baseball team used its match-up against Eastern Connecticut University as an opportunity to prepare for the weekend. Though the team lost 3-2, nine different Cardinal pitchers saw action and six recorded shutout innings. Catcher Adam Kopiec ’07 also contributed a solo home run. The pitching staff should also go into this weekend’s series versus Williams rested and confident.
One thing the Cardinals have working in their favor is a long season of teamwork behind them. As it proclaims in Wesleyan Baseball’s 2006 media guide: “At Wesleyan, it is believed that players are only able to excel at baseball when they join great technique with relaxed concentration and enjoyment of the game. At the core of this is a positive learning environment where players are coached in order to bring practice technique into the game.”
With a season of intense practices almost complete, dividends from the intense practices are bound to show.
“The ‘positive learning environment’ of our practices has benefited the whole team,” said Chris Simpson ’08. “As long as we execute the good hitting, tight fielding and solid pitching we’ve been honing in practice, I think we’ll have a great shot this weekend.”
The contest at Williams is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., with the second game of the doubleheader beginning soon after. On Sunday, the Cards match-up against the Ephs will begin again at 1 p.m. at home.
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