The Blue Jays continued their winning ways down in Fort Myers, Fla., going 8-2 on their annual spring trip. The boys wrapped up the trip by laying the hurt on Bethel University and SUNY Plattsburgh, winning 12-2 and 14-5 to mark the team’s sixth and seventh consecutive victories respectively. The Jays are now 12-2 on the season.
Despite an early deficit, the Blue Jays topped Bethel on the backs of strong pitching and powerful bats. Junior righty Jacob Enterlin allowed a pair of singles to start the game and struck out the next batter but then allowed a run on a groundout to the shortstop. Enterlin used another groundout to third base to end the inning.
As the away team, the Jays came to bat down a run in the second but quickly tied up the game as senior catcher John Hettleman, batting second in the inning, drove a single up the middle to reach base. He advanced to second on another single by junior designated hitter Jake Rogers, before scoring on a third single through the right side by junior third baseman Craig Hoelzer, his second RBI of the year.
In the top of the third, Enterlin sent down the Royals in order, bringing the middle of the Blue Jays’ order to the plate. From here, Hopkins took control of the game, scoring 11 more unanswered runs, including three in the third inning, two in the fourth, three in the sixth and three in the seventh.
Meanwhile, Enterlin was shutting down Bethel, scattering seven hits over 6.2 innings, allowing only one more run in the seventh, striking out four and walking just one. Enterlin was replaced with two outs in the second after giving up a sacrifice fly, which scored Bethel’s second and final run. Junior right-hander Justin Drechsel came on in relief, shutting out the Royals, allowing three hits while striking out two and walking one over Bethel’s final seven outs.
The Blue Jays finished with 20 or more hits for the second game in a row. Junior Colin McCarthy notched his second career four-hit game, scoring two runs while driving in two. Seniors Richie Carbone and Hettleman knocked in three RBIs on three hits apiece, while fellow seniors Mike Denlinger and John Maxwell combined to score six runs.
Wearing white and blue, the Jays wrapped up the victory early against the Plattsburgh Cardinals, pounding out 13 runs in the game’s first three innings. Sophomore Kyle Gillen and senior John Maxwell set the tone, leading off the game with a walk and a single respectively. Batting third, McCarthy wasted no time, smashing a double to right center to score both runners. After Denlinger struck out, Carbone ripped his first of two doubles into left center, driving in McCarthy. Carbone advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a groundout by Hoelzer.
The Blue Jay infield got off to a rough start in the bottom of the first. After sophomore hurler Colin Friedman retired the first two Cardinals in order, Hoelzer, the third baseman, made throwing errors on consecutive plays to keep the inning alive. With two outs, a single from Plattsburgh State’s Tuya Osawa loaded the bases before another single from junior Nicholas Lupo scored Plattsburgh’s first run of the game. Another throwing error by freshman shortstop Conor Reynolds would allow two more runs to score before Friedman got out of the inning with a force at second.
Hopkins shook off the inning and put the pressure right back on Plattsburgh, batting around the order to score seven in the top of the second. They Jays smacked six hits and benefitted from two errors from the Cardinals, turning a one run lead into an eight run advantage. Another two runs in the third gave the Jays further insurance and left Plattsburgh with little chance to make up the 13-3 deficit.
The Cardinals managed to score one run in both the fourth and sixth innings, but it was not enough as relievers Trevor Williams, Zach Augustine and Sam Einhorn closed out the game for Hopkins. Friedman was the winning pitcher, tossing four innings, giving up three hits and four runs — all unearned — while striking out one and walking two.
McCarthy and Carbone led the day at the plate, combining for six RBIs and four runs on four hits in the victory. The Hopkins pitching staff allowed only one earned run on the day and helped seal the seventh straight win for the Blue Jays.
Finally, Coach Bob Babb reached a very impressive milestone on the spring trip, winning his 1,000th career game as the head coach of the Blue Jays in a 22-3 victory over St. Joseph’s of Long Island on March 20.
"I've been very fortunate to have a supportive administration that helps me and has really given me the green light to build this program,” Coach Babb said. “I've been blessed with great assistant coaches who put in long hours, and who really want to learn the game and are willing to do things the Hopkins way. I've also been blessed with great players. That combination along with the support of parents and former players really makes for a special program. Everyone is a part of the success I have, from the players, parents, administration and the assistant coaches, they all deserve some of the credit too."
Congratulations to Coach Babb on his remarkable achievement. The Blue Jays will travel to Haverford, Pa. this Saturday to face off against the Haverford Fords in a doubleheader matchup. The games are set to start at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. respectively.
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