UR Baseball hopefully found some much-needed momentum after an exciting 3–2 win at home against the Brockport Golden Eagles on Tuesday. This is coming off a long nine-day break in the season. Additionally, after a slow start in Florida, UR Softball (URSB) is regaining its own footing after splitting a doubleheader against St. John Fisher.
Sophomore reliever Luke Meyerson netted the win for the baseball team after a solid 3.0 IP with 1 ER and only 2 H allowed. This brings his record to 2–0 with a 3.75 ERA . Igniting the ’Jackets offense was senior right fielder Jake Meyerson, who went one-for-four with 1 RBI in the fifth inning.
The senior spoke about the team at large, saying, “We have overcome a lot of adversity since the beginning of the season in terms of injuries to key players. It now opens up opportunities for underclassmen to step up.”.
Injured starting pitchers and infielders can hurt a team’s morale, but that is not the case with UR. Underclassmen like sophomore starting right-handed hurler John Ghyzel and freshman catcher Aiden Finch stepped up big time on Tuesday. Ghyzel, as starting pitcher, pitched 4.0 innings with only 69 pitches, giving up 2 H and 1 ER. This brings his season ERA down to 1.17. Finch had a stellar offensive performance, while supporting solid pitching performances from behind the plate. He went 2-for-4 to set up some key opportunities for the ’Jackets
However, it was senior center fielder Matt Todd who cashed it in. Todd went a fantastic 3-for-4 at the plate. His speed allowed him to be one home run shy of the cycle, as he had a sacrifice hit, double, and triple, while driving in two runs in. Todd’s go-ahead RBI double in the sixth inning ended up being the difference-maker in the game, with senior closer Evan Janifer nailing down his second save of the year.
“The goal for us is to win a Liberty League Championship on our own home field during graduation weekend,” Meyerson said concerning future prospects.
The ’Jackets are now (5–4)—the game scheduled for Wednesday against SUNY Cortland was postponed. UR will take on RPI on Saturday in Troy.
URSB played a doubleheader at St. John Fisher on Tuesday, splitting the two games. In the first game, the ‘Jackets lost 1–0, after an amazing performance by junior starting pitcher Eleni Weschler, who went six innings pitched (IP) with zero earned runs (ER) and six hits. On the offensive side, Rochester’s only offense came from none other than Weschler, who went one-for-three.
The second game ended up with a better result for UR, as the women won 6–4 to improve their record to (5–11). Weschler went on to turn in another long pitching performance, going 7 IP with 4 ER. Despite improving her record to (3–8), Weschler has an outstanding 2.83 ERA. Once again, Weschler proved to be a star on the offensive end, boosting the team with 2 RBI’s in the fourth inning to put the ‘Jackets ahead 5–0. Overall, she went one-for-three in this game (or two-for-six for the day). Despite the impressive showing, her average went down to .373, proving that she has been a dominant force this season.
“I think we have really grown as a team in the past few weeks,” Weschler said. “We have a lot of new, young, and talented players on the team, and I believe that we are finally discovering and thriving. […] With 3 of our wins coming against top 20 teams, I only see us going up from here.”
This type of optimism coming from a leader of the team can only be positive, as URSB seems to be finding a rhythm after a rough start.
Freshman Catcher Harleigh Kaczegowicz had a dominant day on the diamond, both working closely with Weschler on the mound and going three-for-four with 1 RBI. She improved her season BA to an unreal .351. Another Freshman, Rachel Pletz added to the attack, going two-for-three with 1 RBI. Even though a home run by St. John Fisher’s Kristina Balsano made the game close in the seventh inning, UR held on for the win, bringing the URSB to (5–11) on the year.
On the future, senior Kayla Kibling declares, “We’ve had a slow start but those games down in Florida have given us experience against some extremely competitive teams,” she said. “Our goal is to win the Liberty League and gain a bid into the NCAA tournament again, and we are working hard every day and just focusing on one game at a time until we reach that goal.”
So, while Kibling acknowledges the slow start, she is helping set the tone for the team and stressing to look at the big picture of making the NCAA tournament.
