Light Blue Wins Four of 10 on Road Trip

The one thing the Columbia baseball team didn't get during spring break was a break.

The Lions traveled to the Carolinas to play 10 games in nine days against four nonconference teams. The team opened the road trip well, earning their first win of the 2007 season against the Citadel in Charleston on March 10. The Light Blue defeated the Bulldogs 14-1 in the first game of the doubleheader behind a solid start from junior pitcher Bill Purdy, who threw 101 pitches in eight innings and gave up only one run on the way to his first win of the season. Cocaptain Andrew Ward went three for five at the plate and contributed a run and three RBIs with a three-run home run off of Bulldog pitcher Wes Wrenn as the Lions exploded with six runs in the top of the fourth inning.

Unfortunately the offensive showcase would not continue, as Columbia managed only one run in the second game of the doubleheader, losing 2-1 behind a solid effort by junior pitcher Henry Perkins. Perkins took the loss despite giving up only five hits and two runs, one earned, in eight innings. Columbia continued to struggle offensively in the rubber match as the team managed just three hits in a 6-1 loss. Junior pitcher John Baumann lasted only four innings, giving up eight hits and five earned runs.

Columbia's offense woke up when the team traveled to Buies Creek, N.C., to take on Campbell University. The Lions won the first game of the set against the Camels 14-4 behind two-run home runs by both senior catcher Thomas Stevens and sophomore infielder Mike Roberts and a three-run triple by Ward. Columbia went on to sweep Campbell by winning the second game 11-9. The Lions trailed 8-2 before scoring eight runs in the sixth inning, capped off by Ward's three-run home run to take the lead 10-8. With the series sweep, Columbia improved its record to 3-5-1.

The third stop of the trip was in Boiling Springs, N.C., to take on Gardner-Webb University in a two-game set. The Lions dropped the first game 20-8 as the Bulldogs scored six runs in the fourth inning and seven runs in the sixth. Columbia then took the second game 14-6 to split the series. Catcher Dean Forthun hit three-for-four with four RBIs, while Ward contributed two hits, two runs, and two RBIs.

Columbia went into their final series against Western Carolina University with a 4-3 record on the road trip. Fatigue seemed to set in, as the Catamounts swept the Lions, leaving the Lions' spring break record at 4-6. Columbia lost the first game 10-9, as the Lions went into the bottom of the seventh inning leading 9-6 before surrendering four runs to the home team. Columbia lost the second game 17-11 after the Catamounts jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the first inning. It was a messy game for Columbia, with eight errors leading to eight unearned runs. The Lions failed to salvage the final game of the series, losing 14-6. It was a seesaw battle until the Catamounts put up three runs in the sixth inning to lead 9-6 and scored five in the eighth to put the game away.

While the Lions' season record dropped to 4-9-1, there were some encouraging signs during the road trip. Purdy was named Ivy League pitcher of the week on March 13, as he went 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA in 17.0 innings. In addition, Ward was named to the Ivy League's first honor roll of the year. He currently leads the team with a .417 batting average, 25 hits, two home runs, 20 RBI, and a .633 slugging percentage.

The Lions will look to their stars to perform well this week, as they wrap up their preconference schedule at Hofstra before beginning Ivy League play against Penn on Saturday. The team must be relieved to finally come home, as the schedule had it playing its first 16 games of the season all on the road. While it ran out of steam during the last leg of its 10-game, nine-day road trip, the team played decently against nonconference teams that consistently play ranked opponents and showed that they could be legitimate contenders in the Ivy League this year.