The Brandeis men’s baseball team enjoyed a very strong showing last week, winning four of its five games, including a three-game sweep of conference rival New York University on Saturday. The squad’s impressive showing helps steady what had been a somewhat rocky season to date, and allows the team to draw on fresh forward momentum as they roll into the home stretch of the 2016 schedule.


Judges 8, Springfield 9

Despite strong performances from rookie infielder Benjamin Bavly ’19 and pitcher Daniel Schupper ’19, the Judges were unable to hold off a ninth-inning Springfield rally, dropping a nail-biter in crushing fashion. After pitcher Luke Zeccola ’18 failed to make it through more than two-thirds of an innings, Schupper stepped into the game and performed beautifully, giving up just three runs - one earned - on only four hits. Senior pitcher Jack Baldwin got the start from Springfield, going an impressive 6.1 innings, giving up just one earned run.


After a back and forth start to the game, the Judges secured an 8-5 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Springfield managed to load the bases, and ended up scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth to send the Judges home with their heads hanging low.


The Judges offensive attack was led by Bavly, who finished the game 3-5 with two RBIs and a triple. Impressively, Bavly’s triple was his seventh of the season, which leads all of Division III baseball. Unfortunately for Bavly, his heroics were not enough to stave off Springfield’s late attack.



Judges 3, Daniel Webster 1

The Judges ended a six-game losing streak on Thursday behind a strong pitching performance from pitcher Sam Miller ’16. The victory set in motion a series of impressive outings for the Judges, and could prove to be a critical turning point in the squad’s season.


The Judges jumped out to a quick start in the second inning, with the help of a well-executed and timely hit-and-run by centerfielder Liam O’Connor ‘16 and Bavly. While the Judges engineered one more run in the fifth inning, the two they got in the first turned out to be all they needed.


The Judges’ easy victory was led by Miller, who struck out eight batters in seven innings, a career high. The victory brings Miller’s personal record to 3-5 on the season.

The loss dropped Daniel Webster to 6-17.


Judges 7, NYU 3

The Judges had a phenomenal weekend on Saturday and Sunday, earning a clean sweep of their triple-header in which they faced off against conference rival New York University. The three victories not only helped the Judges significantly better their record, but gives them a reason to move toward the postseason with a certain degree of swagger that had been missing to this point.


In the first game, the Judges used a batting clinic to overwhelm NYU’s pitching, hammering out 11 hits - 6 of them doubles - and producing multi-run innings in the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th innings. The Judges offensive attack was led by third-basemen Zeccola, who finished the game a perfect 3-3 with 3 RBIs. Starting pitcher Liam Coughlin ’17 earned the win for the Judges, tossing a strong 4.2 innings while only allowing 6 hits.


Judges 6, NYU 2

In the second game of the day, the Judges jumped out to a quick 4-run lead after continuing their hot hitting in the bottom of the first inning. Eight of the nine Brandeis starters finished the game with hits, but the real offensive star of the game was Bavly, who finished 3-4 with two runs scored and an RBI double. Starter Ryan Pocock ‘18 earned the victory for the Judges.


Judges 11, NYU 9

In the squad’s third and final game of the series, the Judges and NYU engaged in a back-and-forth slugfest that ultimately saw Brandeis claim victory. After jumping out to a quick lead in the first inning, NYU was unable to sustain their advantage, allowing Brandeis back into the game with two runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings. NYU claimed the lead again, however, and took it into the bottom of the 8th inning. It was then that Bavly again played hero ball, smashing a deep home run over the right field fence to give the Judges the 11-9 advantage. The squad was able to lock NYU down in the top of the 9th, claiming their third victory of the weekend over the Violets.


The victories brought the Judges record to 12-15-1, while the losses dropped NYU to 12-15.


Looking ahead, the Judges have a week full of games, including matchups against Wentworth Institute of Technology and Babson College.

An earlier version of this article contained an old article corresponding to last week's issue.