Over the weekend, William and Mary baseball (12-19, 6-3 CAA) won its second consecutive Coastal Athletic Association series, taking two out of three games against Elon (11-20, 3-6 CAA) at Plumeri Park in Williamsburg, Va.
The Tribe, which recorded just one victory from Feb. 25 to March 15, has steadily built momentum over the last two weeks, winning five of its last six conference matchups. Following the weekend’s results, the Green and Gold sit second in the CAA standings.
Friday, March 28 to Sunday, March 30, William and Mary swept Hofstra (12-20, 3-6, CAA) after pulling out three consecutive one-run wins. The series sparked the Tribe’s hot streak and served as a benchmark of progress in the eyes of head coach Rob McCoy, who praised the team’s offensive performance.
“That’s who we are,” McCoy said. “That’s who we have to be. This year, with the injuries, and the people out of position, and the pitching that we’ve had, that’s just what we have to do.”
Although the Tribe gave up 27 runs and committed six errors during the series against the Pride, continuing its season-long pitching and defensive woes, it scored a total of 30 runs and manufactured clutch RBIs in each of its wins.
“We still made some of the mistakes, or a lot of the mistakes, that we’ve been making on the mound and in the field,” McCoy said. “But our hitters are being less and less affected by it. The ability to go out there and fight each inning, regardless of what happened in the top half, especially at home, is the mark of a strong offense. I think we showed that last weekend.”
McCoy hoped his team would continue its streak of strong home performances against Elon, a team he cautioned was more talented than its record.
“[They’re a] dangerous team,” McCoy said. “Even though they haven’t had a good first two weekends, they can get you. They’ve got strong starting pitching, they compete at the plate and play pretty solid defense. It’s just like any other conference [series]. I think the tougher team is going to win. We’re just going to have to out-tough them, and it’s nice to have them at home instead of their place. We’re counting on that.”
The Tribe’s Friday, April 4 opener against Elon provided a welcome respite from the heart-stopping action of the Hofstra series. The Green and Gold took a substantial lead in the fifth inning and never looked back en route to an 8-4 victory.
The opening frames were low-scoring. Senior outfielder Lucas Carmichael and graduate student outfielder Ben Parker each recorded singles that extended their respective hitting streaks to 15 games each, but the Tribe offense could not mount a threat against Elon junior starting pitcher Justin Mitrovich. Over the game’s first four innings, the Green and Gold managed three hits, all of them singles.
The Phoenix found just as little luck against William and Mary sophomore pitcher Chad Yates, who held the visitors to one hit through three innings. A walk and a single put runners on the corners in the top of the third, but junior catcher Jerry Barnes III caught Elon junior catcher Alex Duffey stealing to end the threat.
However, a William and Mary defensive miscue soon allowed the Phoenix to surge into the lead. Sophomore center fielder Vince Fattore eked out an infield single to open the fourth inning before senior outfielder Kenny Mallory Jr. drew a walk. Graduate student infielder Will Vergantino proceeded to test the Tribe’s defense, dropping down a bunt that trickled up the left field line.
Tribe freshman infielder Jamie Laskofski corralled the ball and attempted a running throw that flew under the glove of sophomore first baseman Anthony Greco. By the time senior right fielder Christian Rush recovered the ball, Fattore and Mallory had already scored.
Vergantino, who reached third base following his successful bunt, was promptly singled home by junior outfielder Tank Yaghoubi. With the scoreboard reading 3-0 in favor of Elon, Yates was replaced by freshman pitcher Zach Boyd. Boyd retired the side before holding the Phoenix scoreless during the top of the fifth.
Mitrovich, still on the mound in the bottom of the fifth, quickly retired junior outfielder Charlie Iriotakis and Barnes. Needing just one out to escape the inning, Mitrovich hit graduate student infielder Owen Wilson with a pitch, walked Parker and gave up an RBI single to Carmichael, who promptly stole second base. With two runners in scoring position, Rush scratched out an infield single that made the score 3-2, Elon.
Greco drew a walk to load the bases, and Mitrovich hit graduate student utilityman Derek Holmes, tying the game. Laskofski, who committed the fourth-inning throwing error that led to three Elon runs, put on display the offensive approach McCoy had praised before the game — unbothered even after making mistakes. The red-hot Laskofski, who batted .462 during the Hofstra series, dropped a two-RBI double into left field, making the score 5-3, William and Mary.
Iriotakis proceeded to slash a single into left field, driving in Holmes and Laskofski and prompting Mitrovich’s removal. William and Mary emerged from the inning with a 7-3 lead.
“Really, it’s about the process,” William and Mary assistant coach Caleb Lang said. “Continually putting pressure on the pitching staff and on the defense. They made some plays early. We had two outs in the fifth, nobody on base. Owen Wilson, our nine-hole, was able to get on base, and then we got ten straight guys on. Never giving an at-bat away, you never know which inning it’s going to be — these guys are really nice and [do] a good job at doing that.”
The remainder of the game was uneventful, with Boyd, freshman pitcher Jack Weight, sophomore pitcher Daniel Lingle and freshman pitcher Tyler Kelly holding Elon to one earned run over the final six innings. An eighth-inning Rush RBI single accounted for the game’s final run, and William and Mary cruised to an 8-4 victory.
Rush recorded two hits and two RBIs on the day, while Carmichael recorded two hits and one RBI. Parker reached base three times, recording one hit and drawing two walks, while Iriotakis finished the game one-for-four with two RBIs. Holmes’s only hit drove in a run.
Although the Green and Gold’s defense committed a costly error, its other Achilles heel — its pitching — turned in perhaps its best performance of the year. The William and Mary staff held Elon to just three hits, the fewest allowed by the Tribe all season.
Saturday, April 5, William and Mary defeated Elon 13-12 in a high-scoring, back-and-forth game much more typical of the Tribe’s style. Both William and Mary senior starting pitcher Nick Lottchea and Elon junior starter Nolan Straniero struggled, giving up seven runs over 3.2 innings and six runs over 4.0 innings, respectively.
An Iriotakis RBI single put William and Mary in front early, but a grand slam from Elon junior infielder Jackson Alford capped off a six-run third inning for the Phoenix. After Parker singled, advanced to second on a wild pitch and stole third, Rush and Greco hit back-to-back home runs that brought the Tribe within striking distance. With his team leading 6-4 in the top of the fourth, Elon senior outfielder Charlie Granatell slashed an RBI single that drove Lottchea out of the game.
With the score now 7-4, Elon gifted William and Mary a run after Phoenix junior first baseman Troy McGirt misplayed a Rush pop-up, allowing it to fall for an RBI double. The visitors responded by parlaying a walk and a wild pitch from junior reliever Noah Hertzler into a two-run fifth inning.
Laskofski opened the home frame by hitting his first triple of the season, sneaking a ball down the first base line and into the right field corner. Elon’s Straniero was removed from the game in favor of sophomore pitcher Carson Wehner, who promptly gave up back-to-back home runs to Iriotakis and junior catcher Witt Scafidi, making the score 9-8.
A scoreless frame from junior pitcher Connor Kolarov followed. The Tribe then used three consecutive RBI singles to take its first lead since the second inning. A seventh-inning Carmichael double was followed by a Rush triple and a Greco sacrifice fly, and the hosts’ lead had grown to 13-9 entering the ninth inning.
“Six runs is not going to beat us recently, especially not here,” McCoy said. “We’re starting to get used to the types of games we’re playing. It is resiliency. Guys aren’t being bothered by being down, but at the same time, we also know what we’re capable of doing. So if the game is going in that direction, it’s just another setback, and we’re going to come back out still swinging and still putting up runs.”
With Boyd, who had relieved Kolarov during the top of the seventh, on the mound, it initially seemed as though the Tribe wouldn’t have trouble protecting its four-run lead. Although a Holmes error allowed Alford to reach base to begin the frame, Boyd proceeded to strike out Fattore on four pitches. Vergantino ripped a single into center field, but Boyd coaxed a flyout from Mallory, and Elon found itself down to its last out.
Kelly took the place of Boyd, who was taken out of the game after throwing 41 pitches. Vergantino reached second base on defensive indifference, putting him right behind Alford, who had scampered to third base following Mallory’s flyout. Kelly then walked junior infielder Justin Szestowicki on four pitches.
With the bases loaded, Elon junior outfielder Alec Welshans pinch hit for Yaghoubi. After seeing three pitches from Kelly, Welshans attempted to check his swing but instead hit a bouncer past Kelly towards second base. Wilson, playing shortstop, gloved the ball but fired his throw past Greco. Alford and Vergantino both crossed the plate, making the score 13-11. The Tribe’s second error of the game and 73rd of the season put the game’s result in jeopardy.
Runners now on the corners, Granatell stepped to the plate, representing the go-ahead run. With the count 1-1, he hammered a Kelly pitch into left field, scoring Szestowicki. Freshman outfielder Nathan Wingenroth, who had replaced Welshans on the bases, whirled home, attempting to even the score. Carmichael fired a throw into the infield’. It was relayed to the plate, and Scafidi tagged out Wingenroth, ending the game and sending the Tribe dugout into a frenzy.
“That’s why you practice relays,” McCoy said. “You practice going and getting balls off the wall and throwing them in, and we did a pretty flawless relay. But, you know, again, when you have an offense like we do, the other team has to find a way to either match you or outscore you, obviously.”
“They’re pressing,” McCoy said. “They’re trying to come in and get that tying run when they have the chance to do it, which was probably the right thing to do. Because if they don’t, either the game is over, or we’re going to put up more. So, it’s kind of a stressful situation for people to play against us.”
Rush led the way on offense for the second consecutive day, going three-for-four with three extra-base hits and four RBIs. Iriotakis also drove in four runs on the back of his three-hit, one-home run performance, and Parker and Carmichael each recorded two hits to extend their respective hitting streaks to 16 games. Laskofski, Scafidi and Greco also contributed RBIs.
Although the Tribe’s pitchers struggled as a unit, Lingle, Boyd and Kolarov combined to throw 4.0 innings while giving up just one run.
Sunday, April 6, William and Mary saw its five-game conference winning streak come to a close, falling 10-0 to Elon in a seven-inning game that was never competitive.
The Phoenix wasted no time jumping on William and Mary graduate student pitcher Ryan Feczko. Alford hit the game’s opening pitch into center field for a single. Granatell and junior infielder Ryan Sprock followed with doubles, and Duffey singled to right field. Elon took a 3-0 lead before it made an out.
Subsequent singles from Szestowicki and Fattore stretched the Phoenix’s advantage to 5-0, prompting McCoy to remove Feczko in favor of Kolarov, who gave up one more run before getting out of the inning, making the score 6-0, Elon.
Elon continued to tack on runs throughout the game as the William and Mary offense struggled to find traction, getting shut out for only the second time this season. Although the Tribe recorded eight hits on the afternoon, seven of them were singles. Elon graduate student pitcher Declan Lavelle threw a complete game, striking out six and walking zero.
The Green and Gold’s only scoring threat came in the third inning, when Parker doubled and Carmichael singled to put runners on the corners, but Rush flew out to end the inning.
Parker and Carmichael each extended their respective hitting streaks to 17 games, bringing them into a tie with former Tribe outfielder Joe Delossantos ’24, who rattled off a 17-game hitting streak in 2023, for the longest streak by a Tribe batter over the last decade.
William and Mary will return to the field Tuesday, April 8, when they will match up against Duke (21-12, 8-7 ACC) at Jack Coombs Field in Durham, N.C.
