Quakers fall to Division II West Chester

Penn didn't getPenn didn't getoffense, defense,Penn didn't getoffense, defense,pitching or intensity Following the Penn baseball team's game against West Chester, Quakers assistant coach Bill Wagner had three lessons for his players. "Nothing good comes easy," Wagner said. "You've got to work hard all the time. Don't underestimate your opponent, because if you do, you're going to get an ass-whipping." And that was just what happened, as Penn fell 12-3 to the Division II Golden Rams. Weak in all facets of the game, the Quakers were left looking for answers. To Wagner, the causes of the loss were quite clear. "We didn't do it in all the three areas, plus a fourth," Wagner said. "We didn't hit. We didn't field. We didn't get good pitching. We didn't come to play with intensity. That's why we got ripped." Hoping to find budding stars who could step into weekend Ivy League games, the Quakers started a number of young players in yesterday's contest, including the initial battery of freshman lefty Ray Broome (0-1, 7.36 ERA) and sophomore catcher Dave Corleto. Broome showed promise, striking out the first batter on three pitches. However, he became erratic and left the game in the third inning, having given up three runs on only two hits, three walks, while striking out three Golden Rams. He would get the loss in the contest. West Chester pitcher Chris Frey (1-2, 7.20) managed to scatter six Penn hits without ever appearing particularly dominating. The Quakers' first run resulted from a Derek Nemeth double up the left field line. He then moved to third on a Frey balk. Shortstop Mark DeRosa got the RBI on a single over second base. It would be the last run Penn would score for six innings, while the Golden Rams piled them on. West Chester third baseman Tom Schneider drove in two runs with a double in the first inning. In the fifth, a series of West Chester singles off junior righthander Alex Hayden led to three more Golden Rams runs. They narrowly missed scoring another when West Chester second baseman Bob Saeger failed to slide into home plate. It was the seventh inning that proved deadly for Penn. Already down by six runs, the Quakers gave up six more, four of which were unearned following an error by centerfielder Sean Turner. The Golden Rams batted around in the inning, roughing up righthanders Sean McDonald (2-0, 4.73) and Travis Arbogast (0-0, 0.00). "We got our tails whipped today," Wagner said. "As a team, we really didn't come out there with guts and drive. The guys have to pick it up otherwise there'll be hell to pay." There was no reason to expect a letdown yesterday. The Quakers had won six straight games and 10 of their last 12, including four victories over Gehrig Division rival Columbia. "We've had guys playing like there's no tomorrow," Wagner said. "We were on a nice roll. Then we sat back and got a whipping." That may be because history was on the side of the Golden Rams. The Quakers are notoriously poor performers in midweek contests. Mustering up intensity has been a recurring problem, particularly when Penn faces lesser opponents, such as it did yesterday. "We weren't motivated to play West Chester," Turner said. "When we played Columbia, we were ready to play. We came out here aggressive, and the dugout's up, and we did what it took to win. In these midweek games against Division II schools, we don't play up to our level. We just play asleep, down to their level. [Yesterday] they just handed it to us." Penn took the loss as a team. Though junior P.J. Bess performed admirably in the outfield in only his second start, and Arbogast and sophomore righty Ed Kimlin (0-0, 3.52) combined to end the West Chester threat in the late innings, there were no stars in yesterday's contest. "No one was doing it. You weren't doing it," Wagner told the Quakers following the game. "You were looking around at each other waiting for somebody when you should've been doing it. Don't let it happen again."

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