Spring break is considered the most fun time of the year for most students. While others took the time to travel, spend time with friends and family, or just relax, the Oberlin baseball team enjoyed a different type of fun, going 4–1 during their spring break trip to Florida, where they competed in the RussMatt invitational.
“I think when you have a whole week where it’s nothing but baseball and hanging out with your boys, it is the most fun week of the year for pretty much everybody,” second-year infielder Sam Labrecque said. “You don’t have to worry about exams; there [are] no homework assignments to do. You are playing baseball and then going to the hotel or somewhere else and doing something after.”
Aside from the warm weather and time spent hanging out with teammates, it’s easy to see why Labrecque had fun during his trip, as he batted with a .643 AVG and a whopping 10 RBIs on only 14 at-bats. That type of success is fun no matter where you’re playing.
Labrecque’s dominant performances helped, but it took a team effort for the Yeomen to achieve the success they had during their trip. It began on Sunday, March 22, when the Yeomen swept Lawrence University in a doubleheader, 7–6 and 11–8.
Oberlin enjoyed success from both established contributors and new players. Third-year Brady Groves had perhaps his best performance of the whole trip during the second game against Lawrence. The reigning All-Conference right fielder went two for three at the plate and batted in four runs, with a home run to put the cherry on top.
First-year Patrick Leonard played an important role as well in this doubleheader, batting a .333 AVG with three RBIs. Leonard’s performance paints a bigger picture of the role that this year’s freshman class has had on the team’s success.
“We have a freshman class who came in with a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of talent and contributed immediately,” Labrecque said. “That’s probably been the biggest impact.”
The importance of this year’s freshman class is perhaps best illustrated by first-year Jameson Bryant’s dominant showing against Hamilton College on March 23. In seven innings, Bryant only allowed three hits while striking out nine batters, culminating in him not allowing a single earned run.
Following his performance, Bryant was named the NCAC Pitcher of the Week while also being named as having the #1 pitching performance in all of Division III for that week according to 64 Analytics.
Bryant humbly attributed his and the other first-years’ success to the supporting staff around them, mentioning how important the culture that the coaches and upperclassmen have built has been.
“It comes back to the culture that Coach Ray and the upperclassmen have built,” Bryant said. “We have guys who lead by example every single day, and that has made it a lot easier for us to step into bigger roles. When everyone around you is making plays, it just makes everything feel less stressful.”
Indeed, the Yeomen have found meaningful contributions from both the underclassmen and upperclassmen, with Groves batting a .450 AVG throughout this trip.
The Yeomen were faced with a double header on March 25, where they played Williams College at 11 a.m. and then Carleton College at 2:30 p.m. Groves and Labrecque continued to impress against the Purple Cows, with Groves going three for five at the plate with two runs batted in, while Labrecque went a perfect three for three to go along with two RBIs.
Unfortunately, these individual efforts weren’t enough, and the Yeomen would suffer their only loss of the trip in a 9–13 game against Williams College.
Oberlin would bounce back hard with a blowout win against Carleton College, defeating the Knights 15–5. While the underclassmen had impressed throughout the trip, the upperclassmen stole the show this game. Offensively, fourth-year Anton Shelton went two for three at the plate and walked once, resulting in him scoring three runs.
Third-year Kyle Baxt also went two for three, with his powerful swing resulting in three runs batted in. On the mound, third-year pitcher Davis Hayes struck out more batters than he allowed hits, with five strikeouts to only four hits in 5.1 innings pitched, ultimately surrendering only one earned run.
The Yeomen have absolutely found their groove, as they have won eight of their last nine games. When asked about how this out-of-conference stretch bodes for in-conference play, both Bryant and Labrecque mentioned how important it was to build up their confidence early.
“Our goal coming into the season was to make the NCAC tournament, and after our hot start in non-conference play, that goal has really solidified itself,” Bryant said. “After each win, it starts to feel more and more realistic. We’ve put ourselves in a great position to compete in conference play, and I think our confidence grows with every game we win.”
Labrecque expressed a similar sentiment, mentioning the importance of creating winning habits.
“In baseball, you’re playing two or three games a day, and there are some games where you’re just not as high-energy, so I think when that happens, it comes down to just habits,” Labrecque said. “We’ve won a lot. We’ve been behind in multiple games and came back to win. Even when we’re not at high intensity, the idea that we have won multiple games in adversity and out of habit, I think that’ll really help when we’re in conference play.”
The Yeomen have proved that they are a deep team that has the talent to make some noise in conference this year. Now, they have to prove that they can keep their success going, with their first test coming in their conference opener against the Wabash College Little Giants in a doubleheader today at Dill Field.
