RSC Baseball Uses Big Innings to Sweep Doubleheader
ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Baseball moved to 10-0 in Empire 8 Conference play with Saturday's home doubleheader sweep of visiting Alfred.
ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Baseball moved to 10-0 in Empire 8 Conference play with Saturday's home doubleheader sweep of visiting Alfred.
The Gators (21-3/10-0 E8), receiving votes in the latest American Baseball Coaches Association National Poll, won by scores of 19-4 and 17-4.
The high-powered RSC offense used big innings to have both contests end early via the ten-run rule. In the opener, the Gators plated eight runs in the third inning, before scoring seven first-inning runs in the nightcap.
RSC, which totaled 23 hits in the sweep, has now scored 10+ runs in 11-straight contests. The Gators, winners of their last 15 games, are outscoring Empire 8 opponents by a 141-36 margin and pummeling E8 hurlers to the tune of a .405 team batting average.
Senior Joseph Karpierz (Latham, NY/Shaker/Xavier), who began the week atop the Conference in hitting, went 5-for-8 with five runs scored and six RBI today. The infielder had two doubles and totaled 12 bases.
Junior outfielder Connor Griffin (Jersey Shore, PA/Jersey Shore/Lock Haven) chipped in three hits in five at-bats, five runs scored and five RBI.
The Gators, closing in on the program record for wins in a season, are slated to wrap up their three-game weekend series with the Saxons (2-26/0-12 E8) tomorrow afternoon.
Gator Bites with Papa John's: Russell Sage College Baseball 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…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…Karpierz, 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 E8 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 E8 Baseball Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, March 15...He batted .522 (12/23) with nine runs scored and 13 RBI across six games...The infielder, who slugged .826 and reached base at a 58.1 percent clip, 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…The Gators received seven votes in the March 31st edition of the ABCA Division III Coaches Poll, the first time receiving votes in program history…Grimes was named the Empire 8 Conference Player of the Week for the period ending on Sunday, April 5...The senior hit .385 with 17 RBI in the 7-0 week including a walk-off grand slam against Houghton...On the mound, the lefty went 2-0 with 16 strikeouts across 13 innings...The Gators started the spring with an 18-3 record, 7-0 of which was in E8 play…RSC earned 19 votes in the April 7th ABCA national poll…Karpierz entered Wednesday's game vs. SUNY Poly leading the Conference in hitting at .481…The infielder, who has helped RSC bat .329 as a team, topped the E8 with a .564 on-base percentage and 35 runs scored…Grimes is among the Conference leaders at the plate and on the mound…The southpaw began the week leading the E8 with 43 strikeouts across 32.0 innings, the third-most on the circuit…He is second in the Conference with four triples, and third with three homers and 33 RBI… Freshman utility Nick Irizarry (South Plainfield, NJ/South Plainfield) has been setting the table effectively, swiping bases on 23 of his first 24 collegiate stolen base attempts… Senior Aidan Green (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro/Onondaga CC) and Griffin have started the spring strong on the mound…Griffin entered the SUNY Poly game with a 0.86 ERA, the best in the E8…Opponents were batting just .176 off of the transfer from Lock Haven, the worst in the Conference…Green commenced the week fourth in the E8 with 30.2 innings pitched…He tallied 25 strikeouts, one complete game, and a 3.23 ERA to start his spring at 3-0.