After the best start in over 80 years, the Paladins baseball team has cooled off considerably over the last two weeks.
The team picked up a nice win against Southeastern Conference powerhouse Georgia Bulldogs last week but was swept by conference foe Samford before dropping two of three against upstate rival Presbyterian College Blue Hose.
The Paladins still sport a solid 16-11 record but are 5-7 in Southern Conference games, only good enough for seventh place at the moment.
The Southern Conference is led by Georgia Southern with an impressive record of 18-9, which puts them at #22 in the nation according to the Baseball America Top 25.
Furman has been paced offensively by utility infielder Alex Abrams, who has played most of his time at first base but also plays third base and makes the occasional relief pitching appearance. Abrams is hitting .359 at the dish, which ties him for eighth highest batting average in the SoCon.
Sophomore third baseman Christ Ohmestede continues to supply the power after his two home run performance in the weekend’s only win over Presbyterian puts him at 6 on the year, matching his season total from last season.
However, the story this year for the Paladins has been the total team effort that has contributed to winning. Every game someone is stepping up to lead the team by example and contributing in whatever way possible.
Senior outfielder Will Muzika has supplemented his .294 average and four homeruns this season with a team-leading 15 stolen bases, only one off the pace for the conference lead.
Senior Nate Smith has been the staff workhorse, with 48.2 innings pitched to lead both the team and conference. His 3-1 record is supported by his 49 strikeouts (a rate of better than 1 strikeout per inning) and a 2.77 earned run average.
The Paladins look to turn around their recent losing streak as they continue to proress throughout the season.
This is a critical time in the season for the team as they look to keep their heads about water and try to get back on the winning track.