Grimes and Garcia Honored With E8 Weekly Awards
ALBANY, N.Y. - Russell Sage College Baseball seniors Evan Grimes (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) and Xavier Garcia (San Diego, CA/Saratoga Springs/SUNY Adirondack) were both honored with Emipre 8 weekly awards for the period ending on Sunday, March 22, 2026.
Grimes was named the Empire 8 Conference Player of the Week. He hit .529 with nine RBI in the 4-0 week...The senior, who scored three runs and totaled 16 bases, slugged .941 and reached base at a .556 rate.
Garcia was honored as the Empire 8 Conference Pitcher of the Week. The senior allowed just three hits and zero earned runs with eight strikeouts in six innings during the win over Western New England on March 21.
The Gators (10-3) are back in action on Tuesday as they host VTSU Castleton.
Gator Bites with Papa John's: RSC is in its first season under the direction of Head Coach Matt Marsh…The Gators are coming off a 27-15 record and a trip to the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament Finals last year…19 returners combine with 18 newcomers on this year's squad…Senior pitcher/outfielder Evan Grimes (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa/SUNY Adirondack), senior catcher Colin Casey (Marlboro, NY/Marlboro/Saint Rose), and senior pitcher Xavier Garcia (San Diego, CA/Saratoga Springs/SUNY Adirondack) headline the returners…Grimes garnered a multitude of honors after last season, being named to the First-Team in the Empire 8 and Second-Team All-Region from the ACBA…Casey was named second-team All-Empire 8 for the 2025 campaign… Senior infielder Joseph Karpierz (Latham, NY/Shaker/Xavier), junior infielder Jayden Kennedy (East Patchogue, NY/Patchogue Medford/HVCC), and junior pitcher Tyler Murray (East Greenbush, NY/Columbia/HVCC) highlight the newcomers… Grimes was named the Empire 8 Conference Pitcher of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 1...The lefty registered an eleven strikeout performance across 5.2 innings in the 2-0 season-opening win vs. Mount Saint Vincent on February 28...The All-Region performer allowed just two hits and two walks to help the Gators begin their season in the win column...Karpierz was selected the Empire 8 Conference Baseball Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 15...The infielder batted .522 (12/23) with nine runs scored and 13 RBI across six games...Karpierz, who slugged .826, reached base at a 58.1 percent clip...He tallied five doubles and went 4-for-4 on stolen base attempts...Grimes was named the Empire 8 Conference Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 22...He hit .529 with nine RBI in the 4-0 week...The senior, who scored three runs and totaled 16 bases, slugged .941 and reached base at a .556 rate...Garcia was named the Empire 8 Conference Pitcher of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 22...The senior allowed three hits and zero earned runs to earn the win against Western New England on March 21.
