This weekend was a rollercoaster ride for the Georgetown baseball team. Unfortunately for the Hoya faithful, the ride was bumpy, unpleasant and full of free falls.
Despite jumping out to early leads in two of three contests, the Blue and Gray were swept by No. 25 Connecticut over the weekend. With the losses, the Hoyas fall to 18-18 overall, 2-10 in the Big East.
Although the Hoyas are currently tied with Villanova for last in the Big East, their record is rather misleading. Nine of their conference losses have come at the hands of Connecticut, Rutgers and South Florida, who boast a combined conference record of 28-8, with the Huskies and Scarlet Knights currently tied atop the Big East Standings.
Friday’s game could be classified as the one that got away. After the Hoyas built up a decent lead, the Huskies stormed back in the later innings and earned a dramatic 9-8 victory.
Heading into the fifth, Georgetown was enjoying a 5-3 advantage. After senior shortstop Tommy Elliott led off the inning with a single up the middle, sophomore third baseman Andy Lentz was hit by a pitch to put two runners on base. With runners at the corners, senior center fielder Tommy Lee drove in Elliott, and an error allowed Lentz and Lee to move into scoring position. Sophomore right fielder Rand Ravnaas followed up with a two-run single, to give the Blue and Gray a comfortable 8-3 advantage.
Unfortunately, the five-run margin proved to be inadequate. Perhaps the Huskies have been watching the Hoyas, the masters of the late inning comeback, because UConn took a page right out of Georgetown’s book. With two outs in the seventh, the Huskies proceeded to launch an impromptu hit parade, exploding for five runs to tie the game at eight.
Georgetown was unable to respond in the bottom half of the inning, allowing the Huskies a chance to build upon their momentum. In the top of the eighth inning, two fielding errors allowed a Connecticut baserunner to reach third base, and a sacrifice fly then gave the Huskies the final 9-8 edge.
Errors have haunted the Hoyas throughout the season. If it were not for a few untimely fielding miscues, Georgetown would have emerged from the first game victorious. The Blue and Gray committed four errors in the contest. With that many fielding gaffes, it was remarkable that the Hoyas were able to nearly defeat a top-25 opponent.
Saturday was a different story. Georgetown was thoroughly outperformed in an 8-2 defeat.
On Sunday, the Hoyas hoped to salvage the final game of the series and avoid the sweep. Despite a heroic effort, the Hoyas fell just short, losing a tight contest by a score of 3-2.
The Hoyas jumped out to a 2-0 lead after four innings, but the Huskies methodically put together another comeback, culminating with the plating of the game-winning run in the ninth inning.
The game was not without controversy, as the Huskies’ first run scored under questionable circumstances. With two outs and a runner at third, UConn’s Pierre LePage hit a liner that was initially ruled as having been caught by senior leftfielder Billy Cupelo. After the umpires conferred, however, the play was ruled a hit, and the runner at third scored to cut the Hoya lead to 2-1.
Georgetown returns to the diamond tomorrow, when they host Delaware State. The game will provide a terrific opportunity for the Hoyas to get back on track, and gear up for a weekend series against a very beatable St. John’s squad.
First pitch is slated for 7 p.m. at Shirley Povich Field in Bethesda, Md.
