Baseball splits 2 v. Wesleyan, Van Zants shine on mound

Weekly Roundup: Busy day in Conn. proves no problem for men’s tennis

Playing two matches in one day did not daunt the men's tennis team, as the Polar Bears beat Wesleyan and Trinity by a combined score of 15-1 last Saturday. Bowdoin (5-5, 2-1 NESCAC) is in the midst of a three-match winning streak, and has returned with a vengeance from its spring training trip to California, in which it faced multiple top-20 teams.

Weekly Roundup: Women’s lacrosse defeats Endicott after loss to Trinity

The women's lacrosse team lost to undefeated Trinity 13-6 before fighting to an 18-12 win against Endicott last week. The Polar Bears were unable to recover from an early 5-0 deficit in the Trinity game, which ultimately cost them the match. The Bantams' victory avenged their only loss in the past two seasons, which came at the hands of Bowdoin in last year's NCAA quarterfinals.

Weekly Roundup

Baseball splits 2 v. Wesleyan, Van Zants shine on mound

April 6, 2012

Brian Beard, Creative Images

**ALL EYES ON DECK:** Shortstop Aaron Rosen ’15, owner of the second-highest batting average on the team, stands at bat. The rest of the baseball team looks on from the dugout, a new addition to Pickard Field this year.

The baseball team split a doubleheader against Wesleyan last Saturday to bring its season record to 11-7. With a total of four runs scored overall between the two games, the pitchers battled to control the tempo and keep the opposing offenses off the board.

In the first game, starting pitcher Christian Martin '14 limited Wesleyan to just two runs and five hits in six innings, and Jay Loughlin '14 gave the team a chance to tie, allowing only one hit in the last inning. Ultimately, the Polar Bears' offense could not come through and tallied just three hits in a 2-1 loss.

Bowdoin's defense made three errors compared to Wesleyan's two, and Bowdoin allowed one stolen base while having a batter picked off in the first inning. The Cardinals came away with runs in the third and fourth innings, and Bowdoin scored their lone run in the sixth inning when Tim McGarry '13 reached base on an error, got to third on a passed ball, and scored on a Dan Findley '13 groundout.

Though the Polar Bears again finished with just three hits in the second game, their pitchers bore down to keep Wesleyan off the board. Oliver Van Zant '13 started and threw six shutout innings, allowing just five hits while striking out 10 batters, before his brother Henry Van Zant '15 came to relieve him.

The rookie closer struck out three in as many innings, and after Bowdoin scored in the bottom of the eighth, came away with his first win. With two runners on in the ninth inning, he struck out the next two batters before catcher Buddy Shea '15 threw out a baserunner attempting to steal third to end the game.

"You never want to get swept, so going in, it's my job to stop the bleeding," Oliver Van Zant said. "Go out there, throw well, and your team will take care of the rest."

Bowdoin was slated to also play the University of Southern Maine on Sunday, but the game was cancelled due to a scheduling conflict. The team will play a three-game series against Bates this weekend before traveling to Saint Joseph's on Monday.

-Compiled by Ron Cervantes.

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