The Brandeis baseball team arrived at Marcus Field on Saturday with a 10-game winning streak and an impressive national ranking of 22 in all of Division III. Despite two late-inning losses to Trinity College, the Judges continued to produce a plethora of remarkable pitching performances. The week was also a historic one, highlighted by the exploits of centerfielder and tri-captain Jim Freethey '02.
On Tuesday, Freethey stroked the first pitch of the game from Wentworth starter Shaun Hruzd through the left side of the infield for a single. The hit was the 195th of the senior's career, surpassing the batting standard set by Mike Wiseman in 1989. Brandeis, no doubt inspired by Freethey's record-breaking performance, proceeded to rout Wentworth College by 15 runs (16-1), as Mike Botelho '04 (3-2) hurled seven shutout innings.
Freethey, Andrew Kahn '03, and Dan McIntosh '04 contributed with multi-hit games.
On Wednesday, Brandeis traveled north to the University of Southern Maine. Undeterred by the grueling trip, the Judges cruised to a 9-2 victory versus another tough New England opponent. While spot-starter Chris Pickford '03 turned in a remarkable performance, shutting down the Huskies for five solid innings, Freethey and Maine native Lars Borssen '04 each smacked home runs. Mike Parissi '03 earned the four- inning save, as Freethey became the first Brandeis player to top 200 hits in a season, extending his hitting streak to 18 games. Following a performance in which he registered four hits, Kahn owned a hefty .382 batting average.
Saturday's games attracted a smattering of fans along the comfortable hills that surround Marcus Field. With aces Tom McShane '03 and Parissi scheduled to face a formidable Trinity squad, the Judges had high hopes of maintaining their startling 10-game winning streak. But Trinity right-hander Johan Bayliss (Williamstown, MA) had other ideas. Bayliss (5-1) entered the game with 60 strikeouts in just 43 innings of work. Sporting a fastball in the low 90's and an effective slider, Bayliss shut down Brandeis in front of a number of attentive Major League scouts.
McShane (7-3) matched the highly- touted Bayliss pitch for pitch, using an impressive arsenal to baffle Trinity hitters. The Brandeis pitcher, however, struggled with his control, and was forced to grind through several early Trinity threats. McShane walked six and struck out eight over six innings of work. He surrendered four earned runs.
With Trinity ahead 1-0 in the top of the sixth, savvy Brandeis catcher Sean Ewers '03 provided some excitement with an intelligent play on the defensive side of the ball. With one out and a man on third, Trinity's Robert Dolliver swung through a dropped third strike. As Dolliver sprinted down the line to first, Ewers faked the throw to first and caught Trinity catcher Andrew Fries too far off of third base. Ewers ran down Fries and eventually threw to Jeff Krasner '05, for the inning's final out.
Brandeis knotted the score at one in the bottom of the sixth, as David Graham '04 walked and reached second on an error by Trinity hurler Bayliss. Judges' fans had reason to celebrate when Jon Brown '03 stroked an RBI double. Unfortunately for Brandeis, however,Trinity quickly returned the favor.
After loading the bases on two walks and a hit batsman, sheer exhaustion ended McShane's valiant effort. A disastrous eight-run inning ensued, as Trinity's Kurt Piantek took a heater to the forearm, notching the first of Trinity's seventh-inning runs. Junior catcher Andrew Fries contributed to the hitting derby with a single, as third baseman Jayme Dorr added a three-run double to the left centerfield wall. The Judges responded against Bayliss in the bottom of the inning, scoring two runs on a succession of singles and errors. That short-lived comeback fell short, however, as the Judges dropped the first game of the double-dip by a 9-3 margin.
The final game of the double-dip versus Trinity proved equally exciting. The final result, however, was a disappointing 4-3 extra-inning defeat. Brandeis hurler Parissi (6-2), who entered the game with a stellar 1.50 ERA, pitched all eight innings for the Judges. As he has done all year, Parissi threw economically and effectively. Spotting both his fastball and breaking ball, he surrendered a mere six hits, consistently supplying his sure-handed infielders with numerous ground ball opportunities. Parissi's mound counterpart, Trinity first year right-hander Mark Tremblay, surrendered just two runs on four hits in seven innings of work.
Brandeis broke the scoring open in the first inning, as Freethy took one for the team and Kahn singled to put runners on first and third. With no outs, confusion on the base paths resulted in a successful double steal. Kahn took off from first, drawing a pickoff throw from the Trinity pitcher. Quickly noticing the mistake, Freethey scampered home during Kahn's prolonged rundown. Freethey would go 2-4 on the day, scoring two runs to break the all-time Brandeis career mark of 147 set by Floyd Graham in 1993.
With the score tied at 2-2, the game moved to extra innings. Trinity plated two runs in the top of the eighth on a Dolliver RBI double. In the bottom of the frame, the Judges threatened: after a Freethey double, Kahn walked and Brown laced a two-out RBI single. Third-baseman Jeff Krauser '05 was plunked on the arm on the next pitch. With two down and the bases loaded, Borssen '04 lined a sharp drive directlyat the Trinity shortstop.
Botelho summed up the week's exploits: "We 've had a really dominant stretch, but it's important that we preserve our focus after a couple of losses," he said. "The next few games will serve as the crux of our season. We know we can beat any team out there, and we haven't experienced the pinnacle of the year just yet. This team is about a whole lot more than a ten- game winning streak."
While the Judges go into their final six games with an impressive 21-10 record, their quest to reach the New England Regionals is still undetermined. Sunday's game against Colby was rescheduled for Thursday May 2. The Judges open up the week's action today at 3 p.m. against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.