The Emory baseball team opened its 2019 season by facing LaGrange College (Ga.), Pacific Lutheran University (Wash.) and Whitworth University (Wash.). The Eagles had a dramatic 2-1 walkoff win over LaGrange, lost a hard fought game to Pacific Lutheran 9-5 and bounced back to defeat Whitworth in a high-scoring, 12-5 game.
Emory’s home and season opener against LaGrange on Feb. 13 was a low-scoring affair. The game was quiet until the bottom of the third inning when junior catcher Jacob Greene hit the ball to second to bring in junior pitcher Richard Brereton for the Eagles’ first run. LaGrange then tied the game in the seventh inning, and the score remained even until the bottom of the ninth inning when sophomore outfielder Jack Rubenstein smacked a ball to deep short.
LaGrange made an error in the outfield, which allowed junior infielder Ryan Adelman to come in from third base and score the winning run. Brereton pitched eight innings and struck out eight batters, but the win went to freshman pitcher Jack Brodsky, who took over in the ninth inning.
The win was the first of Brodsky’s college career.
“I think the biggest thing that kept us alive in the first and the third game was [our] amount of energy,” Brodsky said. “As a pitcher, having a team back you up the way mine did this past weekend is an extreme confidence booster, and I hope that this energy level will continue.”
On Feb. 15, the Eagles faced off against Pacific Lutheran. The game was evenly played despite the score: Emory had a total of 11 hits with no errors, while Pacific Lutheran had 12 hits and made two errors. Pacific Lutheran was, however, able to capitalize on their opportunities.
Emory had a slow start, allowing three runs in the first inning and one run in the second. The Eagles came alive after a home run by senior infielder Bubby Terp in the bottom of the fifth inning. Terp also hit a double in the bottom of the seventh to bring in sophomore catcher Caleb Shulman. In the bottom of the ninth, Emory was able to load the bases after two singles by Brereton and senior catcher Eric Terry and a hit-by-pitch by Rubenstein. Unfortunately, the Eagles struck out at the plate before they could bring home any runners.
Emory bounced back in their game against Whitworth on Feb. 16. They came out strong, scoring three runs in the first inning and four runs in the second. Junior pitcher James Robertson kept it scoreless in the first three innings with four strikeouts, but ended up giving up seven runs to Whitworth in the fourth.
The score was tied at seven until the bottom of the seventh inning, when Emory scored an impressive five runs with Rubenstein starting off at bat. Rubenstein hit the ball in between the second baseman and the center fielder to make it to first base. He then stole second while Terp was at bat and made it to third after Terp hit a single. There was a balk call against the Whitworth pitcher which brought Rubenstein to the plate. Terp and junior catcher David Shore brought in another two runs. The highlight of the game was a two-run homer by Adelman to cap off the seventh inning. Brodsky and fellow freshman pitcher Bryant Wise were able to keep Whitworth off the board for the last five innings of the game.
Brodsky believes that the key to the Eagles’ performances in their three games was their eager and aggressive attitudes.
“The entire team was very aggressive at the plate, which is why we scored just about 20 runs in three games,” Brodsky said. “I think as a whole, the team's pitching staff did an unreal job this weekend. Regardless of the loss, every pitcher was eager to play and threw strikes when their number was called.”
Head Coach Mike Twardoski said he was proud of the team’s performance in their home openers, while recognizing their need to improve on certain aspects of their game.
“We played three good teams, and I am happy to win two of the games,” Twardoski said. “But we have a lot of work to do in order to be more consistent. We have five days before we play our next game. We will use these days to work on some things.”
The Eagles’ game against Christopher Newport University (Va.), which was originally scheduled for Feb. 17, was canceled due to rainy weather.
Emory’s next game is on Feb. 22 at Chappell Park against Washington and Lee University (Va.).
