The baseball team's weekend series against Bowdoin presented a unique scenario in which both squads controlled their own destiny. Whichever team won two games out of the three-game set would earn the NESCAC East Division's No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
Although the Jumbos (22-6-1 overall, 11-1 NESCAC) and Polar Bears (20-10, 8-3) were both already assured of a berth in the playoffs, each wanted to make a statement. Both teams met in the conference championship game last year — won 6-1 by Tufts — and confidence could make all the difference in a rematch this postseason.
"Every NESCAC series is important, and this one especially because there's a good chance we'll see these guys again in the playoffs," sophomore first baseman and designated hitter Eric Weikert said. "We really wanted to set the tone in the event that we play them again."
Senior starter Derek Miller did just that in the rubber match on Saturday afternoon, earning the win in his final career outing at Huskins Field and clinching the division title with a 5-0 victory. Miller hurled eight innings of shutout ball, allowing four hits and three walks, while striking out three.
"I was lucky to see the first two games and see how [Bowdoin's hitters] reacted to our starters," Miller said. "They have a really aggressive lineup, and I felt that if I could control my offspeed stuff enough to throw it in any count — whether 0-0 or 3-2 — I could be successful."
Each goose egg Miller put up gave the Jumbos' offense a chance to take the lead against Polar Bears freshman starter John Lefeber. The pivotal moment came in the third inning, when Miller retired cleanup hitter Brett Gorman on a comebacker with the bases loaded, firing up the Tufts dugout.
A few minutes later, Weikert smacked a fastball over the right-field fence — his second go-ahead homer of the doubleheader — to give Tufts a 2-0 lead.
The Jumbos posted three more runs in the eighth inning on a rally fueled by Weikert's leadoff single and RBI hits by senior right fielder Chase Rose and sophomore first baseman Tom Howard, but the insurance was merely a luxury. Miller retired 12 consecutive batters from the fifth through the eighth innings to seal his third win of the season, and senior Ed Bernstein hurled a scoreless ninth.
Earlier on Saturday, with the Jumbos' backs against the wall, the offenses combined for 12 runs in a tight duel. The starters — junior Dave Ryan for Tufts and sophomore Oliver Van Zant for Bowdoin — each failed to make it out of the fourth inning.
The Polar Bears used a four-hit rally, capped by junior shortstop Jordan Edgett's two-run double, to take a 3-0 lead in the top of the second, but the Jumbos quickly answered with three runs of their own. Senior left fielder Ian Goldberg led off with a double, Howard followed with an RBI single, senior co-captain shortstop David LeResche doubled him home and senior centerfielder David Orlowitz plated the tying run with a single.
Another Goldberg double and Howard single produced a go-ahead run for Tufts in the bottom of the third, but that lead was short-lived as well. Lefeber and Edgett each had RBI hits in the top of the fourth that put the Polar Bears back ahead 5-4.
That's when Weikert took matters into his own hands. The sophomore jumped on a Lefeber fastball and powered it out of the yard for a two-run blast that tilted the game in the Jumbos' favor.
"Both of their starters on Saturday had good stuff, so my approach was to get a fastball and drive it deep into the gap," he said. "I was lucky enough to recognize fastballs on the [inside part of the plate] and get the barrel on them."
After entering with his team down, freshman Christian Sbily was suddenly armed with a 6-5 lead and a chance to pick up his first collegiate win. He took advantage, tossing 2 1/3 innings of shutout ball and providing much needed stability to a struggling staff.
Orlowitz padded the Tufts lead with a solo homer in the bottom of the sixth, and Bernstein pitched a clean seventh for his sixth save of the season in the 7-5 win.
The Jumbos had to win both games on Saturday because of a sloppy showing in Friday's opener that resulted in their first NESCAC and home loss this season.
Junior starter Kevin Gilchrist was unable to miss any Bowdoin bats: 36 of the 40 hitters he faced put the ball in play. He saved the bullpen by lasting 8 1/3 innings but coughed up six runs (four earned) on 13 hits and two walks, falling to 5-2 on the season. Junior Jake Crawford struggled in relief, surrendering a two-run homer to freshman left fielder Kyle LeBlanc and four total runs (three unearned) in just two-thirds of an inning.
An impressive performance by Bowdoin freshman starter Christian Martin left the Jumbos trailing 9-3 in the ninth. The lanky left-hander allowed two runs in the first inning, then settled down to pitch eight innings, giving up just one more run and striking out eight. His deceptive delivery had the Jumbos flailing at pitches outside the strike zone, and Martin ultimately earned his fifth win of the season.
Tufts loaded the bases and scored two runs against junior reliever Ian Edwards, but junior co-captain third baseman Sam Sager struck out to end the game at 9-5.
The Jumbos were pleased with their overall performance this weekend and look forward to their upcoming tuneups for the NESCAC Tournament. They'll travel to Eastern Connecticut State for a 7 p.m. start this evening, visit Wesleyan for a 3:30 p.m. contest on Wednesday and get a preview of postseason foe Middlebury in a doubleheader on Sunday.
"We're going to continue to play hard and stay focused on the last couple games on our schedule," Weikert said. "Eastern Connecticut State and Wesleyan are really solid, tough teams that we need to prepare for before thinking about the NESCAC playoffs."
The NESCAC Tournament will take place at West No. 1 seed Amherst on May 13-15.
