After coming off a loss to No. 17-ranked Piedmont College (Ga.), the Emory baseball team dominated their series against Brandeis University (Mass.) last weekend, handily winning all four games. Three of the four games did not go the full nine innings because of the 10-run mercy rule. Emory now leads the University Athletic Association with a record of 4-0.
Emory had a promising start against Piedmont, but multiple defensive errors led to their downfall. The Eagles took the lead in the bottom of the first after scoring one run. Piedmont then scored six unanswered runs, including a four-run inning in the top of the sixth, to put the game out of reach. The loss can be partly attributed to the five errors made by Emory, three of which came in the sixth inning. The Eagles managed to score another run in the bottom of the ninth off a double from junior infielder Ryan Adelman, who brought in senior infielder Bubby Terp. The game ended soon after with a final score of 6-2. Despite the loss, Terp put in a strong performance, going 3-for-5 at the plate with one RBI and a run scored.
Due to Adelman’s performance in this game and the series against Brandeis, he was named University Athletic Association’s Co-Hitter of the week.
Emory bounced back in their four-game series against Brandeis. Sophomore outfielder Jack Rubenstein believes that the Eagles finally clicked in this series.
“This past weekend was the first time in weeks that we finally flushed our recent struggles and played the way Emory baseball is supposed to play,” Rubenstein said.
Emory won the first game 11-1 in the seventh inning by virtue of the mercy rule. The win went to sophomore pitcher Jack Moore, who held Brandeis to no hits in the first six innings of the game. In total, he allowed only one run off of three hits, gave up four walks and struck out six batters. Terp, senior outfielder Jackson Grayson and junior outfielder Richard Brereton combined for seven of the team’s 12 hits. Senior outfielder Michael Wilson hit the game-ending two-RBI single to right field. When the ball scooted under the defender’s glove, Grayson and senior catcher Eric Terry were able to score.
Emory and Brandeis then played a doubleheader on March 30. Both games were high-scoring affairs, but Emory won them easily. The Eagles took the first game 13-8. Brandeis started off by bringing in two runs in the top of the second, but the Eagles turned the game on its head by scoring eight runs later in the inning. Down by six, Brandeis faced an uphill battle and could not catch up as the Eagles continued to bring in runs. Sophomore infielder Jacob Singer had a strong showing with three runs in a three-hit game. Both Brereton and freshman infielder Zeke Diamond had three hits and together secured two runs. Singer, Brereton and Diamond combined for half of the team’s 18 hits. This was the only game the Eagles would play against Brandeis that would last the full nine innings.
The second half of the doubleheader went only eight innings, with Emory winning 16-6. The Eagles scored six in the first two innings before Brandeis put one on the board in the third. At the top of the seventh, Brandeis brought in two runs to make the score 11-6. However, Emory came out and scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth to put the game away. The final five runs came off hits from Brereton, junior infielder Christopher Stern and sophomore outfielder Michael Edelman. Rubenstein had a stellar performance, going 4-for-5 at the plate with two RBIs, two stolen bases and three runs. Brereton also recorded his third straight three-hit game and drove in three runs.
In the final game of the series, the Eagles showed their resilience. Emory found themselves down 7-2 entering the bottom of the fifth inning, only for the team to score 15 unanswered runs. Nine different Eagles plated runs. Diamond drove in a career-high four runs, and Rubenstein recorded his second four-hit outing, adding one RBI and three runs. Terry put an exclamation point on the win by nailing a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning. Sophomore outfielder Drew Bartholow finished the game by hitting in the 17th run shortly after Terry’s homer.
Terry was excited about the win and noted that his team is now prepared to face their future opponents.
“We were really happy to sweep Brandeis,” Terry said. “It was the momentum we needed before facing—and beating—Birmingham Southern on Tuesday.”
The Eagles beat Birmingham Southern (Ala.) on April 2 by a score of 7-3. Brereton collected his fourth three-hit game out of the last five contests before returning to the mound to get the last two outs on defense. Freshman pitcher Bryant Wise pitched a career best 4.2 innings, allowing only two runs off three hits and three walks while striking out two batters.
The Eagles hope to continue their winning streak when they travel to Huntingdon College (Ala.) on April 5.
