Return home revives Bobcat bats

     After a 2-3 road-trip, No. 8 GCSU Baseball is thrilled to return to familiar ground.
     The Bobcats have cruised through the first half of their home stand, dominating the first five games by bruising opponents with a combined score of 67-15.
     “You always want to win at home,” said Michael Antonini, a senior pitcher. “You get out here in front of your home crowd and you just want to produce. You have to have a winning record at home.”
     So far this season the Bobcats have done just that. With a home record of 16-2 they have been nearly unbeatable at John Kurtz Field.
     “Not needing to travel and spend hours on a bus and in a hotel, the players getting to sleep in their own bed. Those are just advantages you have when you’re playing at home,” said Chris Calciano, the Bobcats head coach.
     In the first game, the Bobcats smoked Albany State 17-2. Senior first baseman Daniel Heflin lead the charge with five RBI, four from one swing when he belted a grand slam in the eighth inning.
     The team continued to roll Friday by beating Lander University 9-4 and completed the sweep, Saturday with hot bats that accounted for 12 runs in the first game and 13 in the second contest.
     Antonini was called on to start the Friday contest and after a shaky first two innings in which he gave up four earned runs, he settled down and dominated Bearcat hitters for the next four innings. In all, he threw six innings and recorded four strikeouts while walking only two.
     Antonini has dominated at home this season; so far he has posted a stellar 2.41 ERA at John Kurtz Field. He leads all Bobcat starting pitchers this season with an overall ERA of  2.86 and in wins with seven.
     Saturday, the Bobcats pummeled Lander with an outstanding display of hitting. The team combined for 27 hits in the doubleheader that was highlighted by freshman designated hitter, Brett DiFelice’s 6 for 8 performance that included five RBI’s and three runs scored.
     “I’m just seeing the ball great, and I guess I had some luck, too,” DiFelice said about his best showing to date.
     Senior right fielder, Justin Mills, shared the spotlight hitting a three run blast over the center field wall in the fourth inning of game one and added a two RBI double in the eighth.
     “It’s good to be back home; we feel a lot more comfortable. Whenever you get your fans on your side it’s a lot easier to play baseball, relax and just have fun out there,” Mills said. “We especially like winning in front of our fans.”
     The Bobcats continued to do just that on Tuesday by blowing out Presbyterian College 16-5.
     The game was highlighted by home runs from freshman shortstop Chandler Snell and sophomore catcher Pete Paris.
Paris started the action in the first inning by launching his first career home run to put the Bobcats up 3-0.
     Snell added his four-bagger by leading off the eight inning and tagging a pitch over the left field wall. Mills followed with a rally-starting walk. The inning ended with seven hits and eight runs.
     “We hit real well,” Calciano said of their  fifth straight win. “and we committed no errors in the field.”
     The Bobcats continue the home-stand this weekend, hosting North Georgia College and State University Saturday and Sunday, Clark Atlanta University on Tuesday and the University of West Georgia on Thursday. Wednesday’s game against Valdosta State was moved to April 25 due to inclement weather.
     “We’re taking it one game at a time,” Calciano said. “The most important game is the next one, but it’s very good to be home for them.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 13 2007. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry