In the last weekend of the regular season, Emory’s baseball team (28-9) faced Piedmont College (20-17) (Ga.) three times, winning two games 11-0 and 6-5 and losing the final game 10-4. The first and third games were played at Piedmont and the second game was played at Emory.
In the first game, Emory defeated Piedmont 11-0. The Eagles got a great start from junior pitcher Hans Hansen. Hansen threw eight shutout innings for the Eagles, allowing six hits and striking out three Lions. The outing was good enough for Hansen’s eighth win of the year, making his record 8-1 on the year.
At the plate, Emory’s senior second baseman Dylan Eisner (two), senior right fielder Chris Slivka (three), junior catcher Chris Young (two) and sophomore shortstop Nick Chambers (two) all logged multi-hit games. In addition, Chambers, Young and freshman first baseman Bubby Terp all drove in multiple runs, with Chambers and Young driving in two and Terp driving in three. Eisner and Chambers both knocked doubles, and Terp legged out a triple.
In the second game of the three-game series, Emory defeated Piedmont 6-5 in 11 innings. The game was Emory’s last home game and Senior Day, so Emory senior pitcher Paul Merolla got the start for the team. Merolla threw five innings, allowing five runs and striking out three. Junior pitchers Luke Emmet and Kyle Monk managed to finish off the rest of the game without allowing a single run, giving Emory a chance to get back into the game. Monk picked up his third win of the year, moving his record to 3-3 on the year.
Emory’s lineup proved to be top-heavy, as their one-two-three hitters had 10 of Emory’s 15 hits. Senior centerfielder David Coble had three hits, junior designated hitter Brian Hernandez had three hits and three RBIs and Eisner went four for four on the day. Terp also continued his recent hot streak since taking over for injured senior first baseman Ben Vizvary and finished the game two for four.
In the final game of the series, Emory fell to Piedmont 10-4. Junior pitcher Jackson Weeg got the start and struggled early on, allowing four runs in the first inning. However, Weeg managed another four innings without allowing a run. Freshman Billy Dimlow came in to start the sixth inning. He pitched two and two-thirds innings and allowed an additional six runs, although only three were earned.
At the plate, while Emory managed eight hits, all but one were a single. Chambers was the only Eagle to finish with multiple hits, with the sole double for the Eagles. Hernandez (two), Coble (one) and sophomore catcher Mitch Kerner (one) managed to knock in all of Emory’s runs.
While Emory ended the season with a loss and a record of 30-10, they might have a chance to play more baseball this year. They now await the announcement of whether or not they will make the regional postseason tournament.
Special Projects Editor | Jacob Durst is a Goizueta Business School junior from Dallas, Texas double majoring in business and political science. He has been a big sports fan as long as he can remember, and his teams are the Houston Rockets, Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys. He also wants to throw out there that Sports is the best section.
