BY TARIQ FISCHER

In print | March 17, 2005

After some pre-break bonding which served to officially welcome the first-years to the baseball team, Swat won in Florida for the first time in three years.

The Tide opened the week with a 16-9 loss to MacMurray College, but redemption was within reach. A breakthrough victory came the very next day against Anna Maria College. The Garnet won 6-5 behind the stellar pitching of Justin Chen ‘05. “He had about four perfect innings,” Jody Fisher ’05 said. “He pitched phenomenally.” Anna Maria managed to tie the game at five before Swat pulled out the clutch victory. "That’s the difference between this team and Swarthmore teams in the past," Fisher continued. “It was nice to be on the right side of that kind of game.”

The squad rebounded from a 14-3 loss on Tuesday to New Jersey University with a thrilling come-from-behind victory in a rematch against MacMurray. Down 8-1, the Tide rallied to within two runs of tying in the last inning before taking a 10-9 lead to avenge the first loss of the season. “I’ve never been a part of a comeback like that,” Fisher said.

The team closed the week out with a doubleheader against Anna Maria, losing 5-2 and 10-6. Despite the losses, the trip is an encouraging sign from a team on the rise. “We played tough opponents and we were in every game,” Ben Mendelson ’05 said. Helping keep the games close, the Garnet bats blazed brighter than a Bob Marley concert, as the team hit .340 collectively.

The Tide returned to campus and opened at home against Neumann yesterday afternoon. The game turned into a showcase of gutsiness that would make a gastroenterologist queasy. Jared Leiderman ’05 went over the 100-pitch mark and shut out the Knights for seven innings.

Despite the co-captain’s effort, the Garnet fell 5-3 in 10 innings. Holding a 2-0 lead in the eighth, a series of errors drove in three quick Neumann runs. In the ninth inning, Fisher led off, getting to first base before two outs brought Patrick Christmas ’08 — who led Garnet batters that afternoon with a single, a triple, and an RBI — to the plate. Christmas singled, and a clutch double drove in Garnet runner Jacob Anguiano ’07 to tie the game.

Swarthmore kicked off the extra inning with holiday spirit, as Christmas went horizontal to make a gravity-insulting catch near first base. Neumann responded, however, driving in two runs before quieting the Garnet bats for the win.

The squad has a passion to improve with every game. “Three runs is not going to do it in a nine inning game,” Mendelson said. “But we’re getting there.”

The young squad has great expectations for what has the makings of a breakout season. Marywood comes to campus for a doubleheader on Sunday at noon.

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