There are two constants after a long, frigid winter that happen to go hand in hand: increasingly comfortable weather and baseball. For the Colgate club baseball team, spring could not come soon enough.

Despite a 3-5 record in the National Club Baseball Association’s (NCBA) District I East conference, sophomore Adam Basciano is optimistic for the future.

“Now that we’re in a league, we’re looking to build up our team,” Basciano said. “There are not too many juniors and seniors, so the future looks bright.”

The catcher may have good reason for his outlook. After years of playing meaningless games on whatever field they could get their hands on following the varsity team’s removal in accordance with Title IX, the club team finally has a conference and home games.

That progress is largely due to the efforts of senior captains Brian Bovyer and Mike Barber, the latter of whom secured the club’s position in a league that includes Boston College, Boston University, State University of New York (SUNY)-Oneonta, SUNY-New Paltz and SUNY-Binghamton. The season is split between the fall and the spring to accommodate the harsh weather of the northeast.

The team just returned from a weekend trip to Boston, where they dropped two games to first-place Boston College. The trip was still a positive one, though, as it gave the players a great opportunity

for bonding.

“We took in a game at Fenway, which was a real nice boost for team chemistry,” Basciano said. “Now, we’re hoping to win every game remaining if possible, but at least be competitive going forward. We’re also trying to get fans to come out to our few home games, especially with the nice weather coming up.”

Basciano, along with sophomore pitcher/middle infielder Nick Whalen and sophomore outfielder/pitcher Pete Rustowicz, should provide a solid core of leadership as the team solidifies in the next couple years. First-year outfielders/first basemen Scott Levinson and Trevor O’Bryan have provided offensive sparks early this season and could indicate future success for the team. Senior pitcher Casey Sherman has been a stalwart in the rotation and is on his way to a solid senior campaign.

Colgate will play seven home games (including three doubleheaders) in the next two weeks at Hamilton Central School, behind the 94 Broad and Phi Tau houses on Broad Street. The team cannot play home games in the fall due to conflicts with the high school sports schedule, so this will be a unique opportunity to see Colgate in action. The first slate of games is this Sunday, April 13 against non-conference foe SUNY-Cortland, and begins at 10 a.m. Hum babe.

Contact Jordan Plaut at [email protected].