Sam Cunningham

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April 19, 2004

The Eagles were busy behind the scenes to earn their three wins last week. The hours we logged on the bus might easily have surpassed the time we spent on the field had we not played three of the longest games of the season.

Perhaps the Tuesday game against Huntingdon College only seemed to last upwards of three hours because it is still winter in Montgomery, Alabama. Highlights from the win included a pair of home runs by Andrew Pinckney (not exactly "Huntingdon-specials," but he would tell you he should have hit at least four that day) and Taylor Gettinger getting "rip city" in his favorite ballpark.

Lowlights?? How about four hours out in the 38 degree weather with a steady drizzle coming down and a stiff wind blowing in from left. Good thing we had Steve Zaychik, the "Crushin' (Bela)Russian" on the mound. It probably helped that there were more people from north of the Mason-Dixon Line in our dugout than anywhere else within a 100-mile drive. I'd also bet my Sonic Watermelon Slush that we had the only two Utah Utes in the state of Alabama that day.

Having just returned from our business trip to Savannah, I think we are all breathing a sigh of relief. We got two wins to complete the season sweep of the SCAD Bees, but it could have been a real fiasco. Our hitting, pitching and fielding basically took turns bailing each other out.

Saturday we squeaked out a 10-inning victory with some clutch middle relief out of freshman Daniel Kaufman. Sunday, playing at the home field of the Savannah Sand Gnats (Single A affiliate of the Montreal Expos), we gave up our lead several times before finally recapturing it for good in the seventh and holding off a ninth inning rally with a 6-4-3 DP. Keith Meizler picked up the win in game one and the save in game two.

We got the job done last weekend but nothing came easy. We couldn't even get off the bus without Coach T having to break up two intramural soccer games. I think his line was, "Move your cars, punks, or Splinter will throw you in the laundry bin."

We look to maintain our No. 1 ranking in the South Region this week with three big home games starting Tuesday with LaGrange. Our regular season concludes with a weekend series against NC Wesleyan.

Sam Cunningham is a sophomore from Atlanta, Ga. He would love to answer e-mail questions from Emory recruits and fans.