Broncs slip past Baseball

The Penn baseball team achieved a split decision of sorts yesterday, continuing one trend while ending another. Unfortunately for the Quakers, both developments were negative. On one hand, Penn's 9-4 defeat by Rider (5-3) at Bower Field was another chapter in a string of Quaker losses to the Broncs. Last season, for instance, Rider topped Penn by a handy 10-0 margin. At the same time, this particular loss is especially galling. The Quakers (8-3) had put together a remarkable seven-game winning streak, featuring an average of more than 10 runs scored per game. Penn had also received outstanding pitching efforts of late, as Quaker hurlers had allowed just four runs in the preceding three games. All that success came crashing to a halt yesterday, as Penn played poorly in any number of ways. First and foremost, the Quakers simply did not pound the ball the way they had been. Penn began yesterday's game batting .365 as a team, and that stellar average was accompanied by an equally impressive .510 team slugging percentage. The starting lineup that faced the Broncs included six players batting .300 or better. In Rider starter Anthony Rawa, the Quakers were facing a pitcher with an ERA hovering slightly more than 2.00. Rawa and reliever Michael D'Andrea, who improved to 2-0 with the win, shut down Penn all day, allowing just five base hits. The combined performance of Rawa and D'Andrea was all the more impressive considering the lack of support they received from the Rider defense. Although the game ended on a well-executed double play, the Broncs' three earlier errors led to all four Penn runs. "We haven't played good defense since we started the season," Rider coach Sonny Pittaro said. "That was one area I thought would be a strength for us. We got the great play to end the game, but we've got to make the routine plays." Even as the Quaker bats were dependent on Rider miscues, the Penn defense was hardly faring better. Although all nine Broncs runs were earned, Penn mental lapses contributed significantly to the Rider offensive outburst. In the seventh inning, for instance, Bronc shortstop Joe Doto laid down an apparent sacrifice bunt with no outs and men on first and second. In the ensuing confusion between Quaker freshman pitcher Alex Hayden, whose loss brought his record to 1-1, and sophomore catcher Joe Piacenti, neither fielded the ball. Rider's seventh inning, however, was nothing compared to its eighth. Right fielder Kevin Lazarski led off the inning with a home run, evening the score at 4-4. From there, amazingly enough, things still went downhill for Hayden and his Quaker teammates. With two outs and Bronc center fielder Phil Ledesma (0 for 3) on first base, Quaker junior first baseman Allen Fischer committed his first error of the season, allowing Ledesma to take second base. Hayden followed that up with a four-pitch walk to Rider second baseman Brian Farrell to put runners on first and second. At that point, Penn's trouble had still just begun. Doto (2 for 5, one RBI, one run) then laced a sinking line drive to right field, and Quaker senior Tim Shannon (1 for 1, two BB) failed to make his attempted diving catch, giving Rider a 5-4 lead and leaving runners on first and third. When Hayden hit pinch hitter Jason Koehler to load the bases, Penn coach Bob Seddon had finally seen enough. In came Quaker freshman reliever A.B. Fischer to stop the bleeding. Fischer, though, only poured salt on the wound. Before throwing a single pitch, Fischer balked home yet another Bronc run. Three pitches later, Rider left fielder Mark Gola (3 for 5, one HR, four RBI, one run) hit a three-run home run to complete the scoring which led to the Quaker loss. "They only got nine hits, but out of the nine they got nine runs," Seddon said following the game. "That's a lot of runs with nine hits. The home run ball hurt us, and we hurt ourselves by not making a few plays.?The inning would have been over. It's just the little things that hurt us." The Penn miscues Seddon alluded to came in all shapes and sizes, but a common theme held them together. In virtually every instance, the Quaker errors were of the mental variety. A number of distractions may have contributed to that shaky mental state. Penn sophomore second baseman Derek Nemeth, for example, missed the game due to an exam he had yesterday. Quaker junior starting pitcher Ed Haughey, meanwhile, left the game in the fourth inning with a split nail. "It didn't seem like we were too psyched up for the game," Penn catcher Joe Piacenti said. "We had class today, a couple of us had exams. We didn't exactly get down here in time and get ready before the game. Before the game we were definitely a little lackluster." In addition, a logistical change limiting Penn's pre-game warmup time may also have affected the Quakers, who were playing just their second home game of the season. "We didn't come out to play today," Fischer said. "We all showed up late.?If you don't come ready to play, you're not going to beat by any team. Today we just weren't in it."

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