Baseball Looks To Bounce Back

The Eagles’ baseball team is off to a slow start this season; however, after a recent two-game winning streak, look for the Eagles to stay hot. They defeated Wesley College 6-5 and Muhlenberg College 15-6. So far this season the Eagles have three wins and eight losses, and the offense and pitching has struggled. The Eagles are beginning this season similar to last season and hopefully that changes.

Joe Grato hits the ball. Erica Engle | EU Sports Information

The Eagles’ first win came against Wesley College. Chris Marinaccio was the starting pitcher and pitched four strong innings. Then Mike McCracken relieved him for two innings to get the win. Left fielder Angelo Kelly had two hits with two runs scored. First baseman Joe Grato went one for three with two RBI’s. It was a really close game till the end as Wesley College scored two runs in the final inning; however Josh Freed closed the game earning his first save.

Here are some Eagles to watch as they have started the season strong. Kelly is batting .345 with 12 hits in 29 at-bats. With 11 walks, his on-base percentage is the highest on the team at .525. Freshman Timmy Gorton has demonstrated his skills at the plate, with 12 hits in 37 at bats. He is batting .324 with 5 RBIs. Senior pitcher Austin Little is also playing well. In four appearances, two of which he started, he leads the team with 13 strikeouts and an impressive ERA of 3.38. Freshman McCracken has taken well to his relief role. In 4.2 innings pitched opposing batters have hit .125. He also has not allowed a run yet in his 3 appearances.The mix of the freshman and veteran talent so far this season is proving to be successful.

As March comes to an end, the April games begin. The Eagles will face, FDU-Florham (4/1), DeSales University (4/2) (4/6), Immaculata University (4/8), King’s College (4/10-11), Manhattanville College (4/12), Widener University (4/15), Misericordia University (4/17-18), FDU-Florham (4/19), Messiah College (4/20), Lebanon Valley College (4/22), Delaware Valley College (4/24-25), and finally Rutgers-Camden (4/27). The month of April is composed of challenging games and requires the Eagles to stay focused and play at a different level than they did in the month of March.