Consistency and concentration will be the keys to making it there, said Head Coach Karl Steffen. “We have to do it by playing good solid baseball day in and day out.”

Certainly, RPI has the talent this year to go far. The team has lost only three players—and no starters—from last year’s team that went 22-16 and won its 10th straight UCAA title.

The team’s greater experience was cited by several players as its greatest asset this year.

Co-captain Ed Haldeman said that “for the most part, every player knows what it is like to compete on the collegiate level, and that makes a big difference come tournament time.”

Another major point in the Red Hawks’ favor has been the weather—the comparatively mild winter has allowed the team to frequently practice outdoors, something that is rarely possible before spring break.

“We’re way ahead of where we usually are,” said Steffen, and problems that usually get worked out in the first few games have already been taken care of.

The Red Hawks begin their 2002 campaign with 11 games in Florida over spring break.

Five competitions in a week is a tall order for most non-professional athletic teams. Preceded by a set of six games in just three days, it becomes a true test of a squad’s depth and endurance—which is just what Steffen was aiming for.

The UCAA, he says, has been improving steadily over the past several years, and to maintain the Red Hawks’ advantage—the team has won the conference for the past six years—Steffen has tried to put together as tough a non-conference schedule as possible.

RPI will play most of the nationally ranked teams in the area, with games against No. 4 Montclair State, No. 6 SUNY-Cortland, and No. 30 William Paterson all within a week of each other.

Winning the conference again will also be tough—Rochester nearly knocked off the Red Hawks in 2001, and Union will also field a tough squad this year.

The Red Hawks’ biggest challenge, though, may be themselves. Several players on the team have strong personalities, and forging them into a cohesive unit may not be easy for Steffen.

“We have players who have the ability to have outstanding individual years, but possibly at the expense of the team,” said co-captain Brendan Witherell. “We need everyone to make the sacrifice to the team goals, to winning, and to just getting the job done.”

Defense may be the team’s biggest technical weakness. The Red Hawks were very erratic in the field in 2001, and it will be the job of middle infielders Witherell and Tim Egan to provide steady gloves to stabilize the defense.

Pitching has traditionally been the strength of the Red Hawks, and this year is no exception—Steffen said that he would put his staff up against any other in Division III. Co-captains Travis Teeter and David Hubbs will anchor the starting rotation, and Haldeman returns as the team’s closer. Teeter was named to the All-Region first team, and Haldeman was a third team selection.

RPI gets offensive production from everyone in the starting lineup. Outfielder Pat Hughes led the way last season, picking up the team triple crown (.393 BA, 6 HR, 33 RBI).

Recruiting has fixed the major flaw in last year’s lineup—a lack of left-handed bats—and Steffen says that all parts of the team are solid.

“Our talent level is as good as it’s ever been,” he said.

With everything apparently going their way, the players are confident that this will be an outstanding season. Observers of the team appear to agree—RPI opens the season ranked 24th in the nation in Division III.