Clemson Bats Prove to be Too Much for The Hawks

hartfordhawks.com

hartfordhawks.com

Matthew Tomer, Sports Editor

The Hartford Baseball team headed down to Clemson, South Carolina, to face the Clemson Tigers for a three-game weekend series. After dropping the first game on Saturday, February 26, the Hawks couldn’t handle the pressure of Clemson as they dropped both games on Sunday as well. Clemson kept the streak alive after the sweep, improving to 7-0 on the season, while Hartford moved to 0-3 overall.

In-game one, Clemson took an early 2-0 lead in the first inning over the Hawks. Hartford didn’t take long to respond, as they tied the game in the top half of the second inning. To tie the game, Hartford’s own Logan Cole singled up the middle, scoring Jake Santiago. Despite those runs in the second inning, Clemson dominated the Hawks on both sides of the diamond, winning game one, 13-3. Clemson reliever Ty Olenchuk earned the win, as Hawks starter James Judenis suffered the loss.

Unfortunately for the Hawks, they saw Clemson’s best in game two. After running across the plate first in game one, Clemson also started the scoring in game two, jetting out to a 2-0 lead. Once again, the Hawks had an answer as Logan Cole had another game-tying hit, scoring Noah Rivera and Jake Santiago. In the top of the seventh, Kevin Koziel hit Hartford’s first home run of the season, but that wasn’t enough. Clemson ended off an impressive weekend and took home the series sweep as they flew past the Hawks with a 28-3 win. Hoping to bounce back, the Hawks will stay on the road as they head to Bowling Green, Kentucky, to face Western Kentucky University.