Dartmouth baseball defeated Plymouth State yesterday, 15-5, before a sparse crowd at Red Rolfe Field.
The victory can be attributed to good hitting, smart base running, solid defense - anything but experience. The starting lineup yesterday consisted of six freshmen, two sophomores and one senior.
After "play ball" is heard across the diamond, however, all that matters is how these guys field and hit.
Andrew Spencer '97, Travis Horton '96 and Mike Armstrong '97 have made consistent contact at the plate and have demonstrated an ability to come through with big hits in clutch situations.
The team's future will be dictated in large part by whether younger players such as Spencer and Armstrong will be able to keep their composure as the season progresses.
There is a general consensus among the players that the team has matured together very quickly.
"At the beginning of the season we were a very young team and a lot of players needed experience in game situations," ace relief pitcher Dave Angeramo '94 said. "But now most of these younger guys look like veterans and we seemed to have come together as a team."
While the younger players have lived past expectations, other players on the team have demonstrated that this ball club has depth.
Brian Eller '94 started the season with many strong plate appearances and seems to be regaining his touch after a mild slump.
Todd Seneker '95, who possesses what is considered to be the sweetest swing on the team, hit a home run against Brown on Monday.
Greg Gilmer '95 and Greg Zucker '94 have also suffered injuries, but both are expected back.
The pitching has been erratic at times, though it has been mostly effective. The position is also the only one which regularly sees a senior or junior starter. Partly for this reason, much of the team's leadership comes from the mound.
Captain Steve Murphy '94 will pitch today's game against Columbia University. He has tried to keep the team focused on beating Columbia and Yale University over the weekend.
"We are going into the weekend series with Yale with control over our own destiny, which is as much as any team can ask," Murphy said. "We're playing these games on our home field and if we win, we're in great shape for the rest of the race."
Angeramo echoed Murphy's optimism.
"Our goal is to play our hardest every game," Angeramo said. "And if we do that, we should be right there until the end."
Today's game against Columbia is scheduled for 3 p.m. The Big Green will play two doubleheaders at Yale, Saturday and Sunday, both starting at noon.
