Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

BASEBALL | Consistency Evades Hoyas

The lingering winter weather has taken its toll on Georgetown’s baseball schedule. The Hoyas were scheduled to face the University of Maryland-Baltimore County on Tuesday, but they were forced to postpone a game for the third time this season because of snow.

Georgetown is coming off of its spring break trip to Florida, where it played in the Snowbird Classic. The Hoyas had mixed results in the Sunshine State, finishing the week with four wins and four losses.

The hitting started out strong as the Hoyas scored five runs in each of their first four games. The pitching, however, was not as strong, giving up 15 runs to Saint Joseph’s in one game and 13 to Iowa in another.

The team began its week in Florida with a loss to Western Michigan (9-8), but quickly rebounded, sweeping South Dakota St. in back-to-back games by scores of 7-4 and 9-4. Next up for Georgetown was a three-game set against St. Joseph’s (8-6). The Hoyas took their first game against the Hawks but then dropped their next two, 3-2 and 15-1.

The team rebounded to finish off the week with a 10-1 win over Iowa (12-5) after getting blown out 13-1 the previous day against the Hawkeyes.

Sophomore catcher Nick Collins led the offense all week long. Collins hit .500 in his last six games of the tournament and, in the process, impressed Head Coach Pete Wilk.

“I can expect that to continue with [Nick]. He is a very talented young man. His numbers might not reflect what he has even done out there. He has hit the ball hard all year,” Wilk said. “His numbers in Florida were good, but what you didn’t see is probably another five or six line drives that were caught.”

Overall, Wilk was very happy with his team’s performance in Florida.

“I thought it was a successful trip because we were able to play the game and practice almost on a daily basis down there,” he said. “Anytime you get that kind of rhythm we are going to become a better baseball team.”

Despite having to postpone its game against UMBC on Tuesday, Georgetown was able to play its scheduled game Wednesday against George Washington. Because of field conditions at the Hoyas’ Shirley Povich Field, the game was moved to the Colonials’ home field.

The change in location did not phase the Hoyas, however, and they defeated their cross-town rivals 7-6. Freshman pitcher Nick Leonard went five innings, allowing just one earned run and Collins kept up his hot hitting, getting three hits and scoring one run. Georgetown also committed three errors, which almost cost them the game.

The Hoyas’ defense and pitching has been inconsistent this year and Wilk has emphasized that the teams need to fix those problems.
“We need to work on our pitching staff. [Our pitchers] need to get the ball down in the zone,” he said. “Our team needs to play better defense and get timely hitting.”

On Friday, Georgetown will begin a three game set against Towson (9-3). The Hoyas will play the first two games at home, before travelling to Towson for the finale.

It will not be the first meeting between the two teams this year; Towson took a 9-1 decision over Georgetown back in February in North Carolina. Wilk is confident that things have changed since then.

“When we faced them the first weekend of the year, our offense wasn’t doing what were doing right now,” Wilk said. “I think this is a favorable matchup for us now that our offense kind of understands what we are, what we can do.”

Despite boasting a winning record, Towson has struggled of late and enters the series on a three-game losing streak.

First pitch for Friday is slated for 3 p.m. at Povich Field in Bethesda, Md.

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