In the season opener, the offense came out with guns blazing. Senior outfielder Nick Parenteau led the team to a 17-hit, 20-run performance, as RPI dismantled Robert Morris, an NAIA school, 20-9. Parenteau went 4-for-6 with a home run and 4 RBIs. Junior lefthander Ryan Ool picked up the victory with five innings of scoreless relief.

Coach Karl Steffen didn’t feel that grabbing a victory in their first game of the season was any big relief, though. “[We] wanted to see in that first day that the guys could make the adjustment,” Steffen said. “We did the things we want to try and do every time we play.”

Junior Mike Passante also had a 4-for-6 performance, scoring three times, and driving in two others. Sophomore shortstop Adam Lasek added three hits and three runs batted in.

The Red Hawks tried to ride their momentum into the next day’s game, but fell short in a 13-9 loss to Ohio Dominican. The game was close until the seventh inning, when Dominican racked up eight runs to seal the game for good. RPI made a valiant comeback attempt, scoring six runs in their half of the ninth inning, but it was too little, too late for the Red Hawks. Junior Rich Mundy banged two hits to knock in three runs for RPI. Senior outfielders BG Porter and Ryan Meron each collected three hits and an RBI.

Charlie Yarnold got the Red Hawks back on the right track on Monday, allowing no earned runs in six-and-two-thirds innings en route to a 10-3 defeat of Savannah College.

“He pitched great down there…hit locations, mixed pitches, and established his fastball,” raved Steffen about his pitcher.

The offensive attack was lead by Passante, who went 4-for-6, scored two runs, and drove in two more. Dan Quinn blasted a long three-run home run, and Joe Ihnatolya chipped in with a base clearing double to knock in three runs.

Passante was named Performer of the Week last week by the Liberty League for his contributions to the offense. Mike went 18-for-34, beginning the season with a .529 batting average. In the leadoff spot, he also drew ten walks, which gave him an amazing .636 on-base percentage.

The high on-base percentage is what Steffen liked the most out of Passante’s production. “Mike and BG [Porter] seemed like they were on base all of the time,” Steffen recalled. He attributed the success of the middle of his lineup to the guys at the top. “We had a balanced attack, one through nine.”

On Tuesday, freshman Joe Zongol took the mound for his collegiate debut against NAIA school Mary University. Zongol pitched a complete game masterpiece, allowing one hit and walking only two in a 5-0 shutout. He also picked up 14 strikeouts. The Liberty League named him Co-Rookie of the Week for his outstanding nine-inning performance.

“Joe throws the ball very hard,” Steffen said bluntly. Last week, he “was able to make the big pitch” when he had to. Steffen said Zongol “battles the whole way,” and will continue to do that for the rest of the season.

A rookie set the tone on offense that day as well, as freshman third baseman Shane Griffin went 3-for-4 with a run scored and two driven in. Lasek and Passante added the rest of the run support for Zongol.

The following day, RPI improved to 4-1 in a thriller, and had to move to extra innings to do it. Freshman Tim Klein had a solid performance through seven innings on the mound, but the bullpen and defense gave up the lead to Division II West Virginia Tech in the eighth and ninth innings.

Although Steffen was happy with the defense his team played (about half as many errors as last year’s trip to Florida), he admitted the team still made some mistakes. “We gave some teams some opportunities. You’re going to make mistakes like that.” Steffen attributed some of the mistakes to the fact that the team has really only practiced in a gym, not on a field.

In dramatic fashion, the Red Hawks scored five runs in the top of the tenth to secure the win. Passante led off the inning with his third single of the game, and was sacrificed over to second on a bunt by Porter.

Steffen brought Ihnatolya in to pinch hit, a move that paid off as he drove in Passante with a double to center. Quinn, who had homered earlier in the game, was intentionally walked, but the rest of the lineup stepped up. Mundy, Lasek, Meron, and Stevan Slusher all came up big for RPI in the extra frame.

After a day off, the Red Hawks returned to the field to try and extend their win streak to four games against Tiffin, another NAIA school. The Red Hawks, however, fluttered in the late innings to lose a close contest 9-8. The Dragons from Tiffin jumped out to an early 5-1 lead on starter Chris Sullivan, but RPI’s offense managed to get the team back in the game, and even grabbed a two run lead at one point.

But in the end, it was all Tiffin. They scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth to pull off the comeback win. Ihnatolya’s round tripper, Quinn’s three hits, and Lasek’s three RBIs weren’t enough to slay the Dragons on Friday.

To close out their spring break road trip, Steffen’s squad split a doubleheader with D-II West Virginia Wesleyan. RPI dominated the first game, winning 16-5 on the shoulders of another stellar pitching performance from Yarnold. He struck out nine, and allowed only one earned run, grabbing his second victory on the week. Combine that with his save and a 0.66 ERA, and the Liberty League gave him the nod for Pitcher of the Week honors. The Red Hawks lost the nightcap in a close 5-4 contest.

Both of Yarnold’s victories came after tough losses the team suffered the day before. Steffen acknowledges that the victories were important, and hopes that Yarnold can step up into a “stopper” role if need be.

Compiling a 5-3 record against non-Division III competition is a good omen for what is to come out of the squad this year. “[The coaching staff] liked the way they played defense, and made adjustments when they had to.”

Steffen then added that a few of his veteran guys didn’t have their best stuff, but he attributed it to a spring training atmosphere, much like that of Major League Baseball.