The final pitch was thrown, the final out was counted, and just like that the season was over. The Cards ended on a low note, dropping two straight blowouts to Trinity College, a 7-1 loss followed by a 15-6 loss, leaving them with a 12-23 overall record (3-9 NESCAC West).
The Cards, who have not qualified for the NESCAC tournament since 2005 and haven’t had a winning season since 2003, were filled with a feeling to which they were accustomed.
“Finishing my baseball career with another missed playoffs and a brutal record seems all too familiar,” said Charlie Munzig ’07.
Over the course of the past four years, the Cards have never made it above .500, even early in the season. Although they reached that mark several times, they’ve always proceeded to drop several games in a row. Despite the recent struggles, the baseball team came into the 2007 season with a profound sense of optimism and the singular goal of winning the NESCAC. This season, though, Wesleyan found itself wading through familiar waters. Simply not able to string together wins, the Cards found themselves in late April going into a three-game series with Little Three rival Williams, fighting for their chance to make the playoffs. Although the Cards were up to the challenge in heart, they were not up to the challenge on the field, dropping three straight to the NESCAC powerhouse and ultimately falling short of the preseason goals.
“Despite the fact that our record was not where we wanted it to be, some great things did happen this season,” said Rob Coughlin ’07. “A great comeback against a ranked Pomona team, a triple play against Middlebury, and a sweep of UMass Dartmouth, to name a few, were some of the great memories that I’ll take with me.”
The Cards have used the past few weeks to bid farewell to the nine graduating seniors on the squad: Coughlin ’07, Munzig ’07, Alex Mautone ’07, Chris Graceffa ’07, Adam Kopiec ’07, Kyle Lee ’07, John DelGiudice ’07, Brian Mahr ’07, and Chris Waelsch ’07.
“The season has so recently ended that the fact that it’s over hasn’t really sunk in yet,” said Mautone, who led the Cards in hits (46), RBI (27) and batting average (.338) on the year. “For me, the career has flown by. I lost much of my sophomore and junior years to injuries, but I am glad that I was able to play well and help the team as a senior.”
“It’s disappointing to have my career end in the fashion that it did,” Coughlin said. “We all had higher hopes for the season. At the same time, I want to thank all my teammates for playing hard until the last out and wish the underclassmen all the best of luck in the years to come.”
Heading into next year the Cards are looking to build on a strong pitching rotation, headlined by Lou Gabel ’08 and Kit Tholen ’08, that will remain relatively intact.
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