Maybe the Penn baseball team started their spring a little too close to Disney World.
The Quakers capped a rollercoaster trip to Rollins College Baseball Week with a 5-4 loss to Georgetown Sunday. The loss left Penn 3-6 on the trip to start the season, a record coach John Cole called “misleading.”
After losing a game each to Maine and Georgetown to open their season, the Quakers avenged both losses. But the Red and Blue then dropped consecutive games to Division II Rollins before taking the first of a three-game set against the Hoyas.
Cole was pleased with the Quakers’ pitching and defensive performances, but pinned the losses on the Quakers’ inability to hit with runners in scoring position.
“You got to win those one-on-one matches in baseball, and we lost 80 percent of the time,” he said, referring to Penn’s near-.200 average with RISP.
“I think we were consistent the way we pitched and played defense,” he said. “To put a winning streak together, you have to put all three phases together.”
Senior Dan Williams thought the Quakers became too complacent after victories.
“After we lose a game, we come back more hungry, more aggressive,” he said. “We need to find a way to keep that hunger and that aggression more consistent.”
Though the results on the field were not what Penn hoped, several freshmen made exceptional collegiate debuts.
Second baseman Brandon Engelhardt led the Quakers with eight RBIs and his .351 batting average, second on the team behind senior Jeremy Maas, who is batting .370.
Freshman Matt Gotschall led all Penn pitchers in 16.1 innings pitched and a 3.00 ERA. Gotschall’s week included an eight-inning, one-run start in a 9-5 win over the Hoyas and 7.1 shutout innings of relief in Sunday’s loss.
“The freshmen were outstanding,” Cole said. In addition to the efforts of Engelhardt and Gotschall, Cole singled out the defense and hitting of Rick Brebner.
The Quakers get back on the field Wednesday when they play the Temple Owls.
Though Cole believes the team will be fine if they can correct their offensive woes, he said, “Bottom line, you still got to win ball games, you got to find a way to win.”
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