With the top spot in the division at stake, Bowdoin and Tufts University began a three-game series last weekend in Medford, Mass. The Bears needed to win at least two of the three games in order to take over first place from a Tufts squad that was undefeated in the NESCAC.
Ready for the opportunity, Bowdoin came out strong in the first game of the series. Ace pitcher and Orient Athlete of the Season Christian Martin '14 started the crucial game and pitched just as he had all season. Now leading the team in wins, ERA, innings pitched and strikeouts, Martin pitched eight strong innings against the Jumbos, allowing just three runs on seven hits. After trading runs for the majority of the game, Bowdoin finally took a commanding 9-3 lead in the ninth after scoring five runs in the inning. John Lefeber '14 led the team with 3 RBIs while Kyle Leblanc '14 had two of his own. Tufts would rally in the bottom half of the inning but would ultimately fall 9-5, losing its first conference game of the season.
Tufts responded well in the Saturday doubleheader, winning both games to secure first place in the division. In the morning game, early hitting from the two teams quickly yanked both starting pitchers before the end of the fourth inning. After Bowdoin took a 5-4 lead in the top half of the fourth inning, Tufts quickly answered with two runs to take a 6-5 lead into the fifth. Adding an insurance run in the sixth, Tufts won the game 7-5, as Bowdoin failed to score again. Jordan Edgett '13 had 3 RBIs in the loss.
With the series tied at one and first place hanging in the balance, the rubber match was arguably the most important game of both teams' seasons to date. Lefeber pitched seven strong innings for Bowdoin, allowing just two runs. However, Tufts pitcher Derek Miller did him one better, throwing eight shutout innings en route to the crucial win. The Polar Bears scattered five hits throughout the contest but could never quite break through the strong Tufts pitching. The Jumbos would add three more runs in the eighth, ultimately winning the game 5-0 to take the series.
"It was an extremely tough series," said Brett Gorman '11 on Sunday. "Unfortunately they were able to take the wins today, but I'm proud of the way we battled in all the three games."
After the tough series, Bowdoin then faced the University of Southern Maine (USM) on Tuesday. Unlike the pitching duels of the weekend, this game was an absolute slugfest, with 33 total hits. USM scored seven first inning runs and never gave up the lead. Bowdoin was able to keep up for most of the game, but could not recover after USM put up six more runs in the fifth inning, eventually winning 15-12.
After the 1-3 week, Bowdoin still has a 20-11 record overall and is locked in as the No. 2 seed in the East Division going into next weekend's NESCAC playoffs. In the West Division, Amherst holds the top spot while Middlebury is in second. Bowdoin lost two games to Amherst on April 3 and will play Middlebury twice at home this Saturday before the playoffs begin on May 13.
"We are a much different and much more confident team then we were in early April," said Gorman. "We're prepared to hit the playoffs in stride and bring a NESCAC Championship back to Bowdoin next Sunday night."
The Polar Bears will also play two rescheduled games this weekend, one against Colby today and another against St. Joseph's on Sunday.