RPI has won 22 of their last 24 games, and has lost only four since returning from Florida in mid-March. Last year, RPI won 12 in a row before dropping the season finale.

RPI played a doubleheader Wednesday and a single game Thursday against Union (7-22, 6-14) to make up for the rainouts two weekends ago.

“It seemed like we were playing Union for a whole week,” Head Coach Karl Steffen deadpanned after the games.

Junior Jason Pollard sparked the comeback in game one as RPI bounced back from a 4-0 deficit to win 7-4. Pollard drove in three runs down the stretch on a sacrifice fly and a single to center.

The catcher was honored in the league with Performer of the Week for batting .556 this week, bumping his team-high average to .450. The Hudson, N.Y., native scored five runs, bringing his total to another team leading 45, and drove in 10.

Senior Charlie Yarnold dominated the Dutchman lineup in the ensuing game, and the Red Hawks squeaked out a 2-1 victory.

Steffen knows that the offense won’t carry the team every game. “We’re playing pretty good defense, and we’re doing the little things that we need to do.”

The only run off of Yarnold came in the third when he allowed a one-out triple. Two batters later, the runner scored on a single to give Union a 1-0 lead.

Rensselaer battled back again, however, and when senior Joe Ihnatolya led off the fifth with a single, freshman Jim Devine made sure he wasn’t stranded. Devine nailed a double, driving in Ihnatolya, and later crossed the plate himself for the winning run.

“I hope we have the mental toughness to come back,” the veteran coach said of his team. He admitted it would be nice to not have to play from behind, but “[the team has] been faced with some adversity, and hopefully by us doing that we will have that ability.”

In Thursday’s game, back at Robison Field, junior Luke Calzone (7-0, 1.83 ERA) cruised to his seventh victory on the season. Calzone allowed two unearned runs in the fifth—one after an error in the field, and he also walked in a run.

Ihnatolya produced some offense early, driving in the first run of the game in the first and adding two more on a home run in the third, his third on the season. That was all the Red Hawks needed, although they would add some more to win 7-2.

The Red Hawks hosted Skidmore Saturday, and handed the Thoroughbreds two losses in the twinbill. RPI won the first game 7-4, and earned the victory in game two 7-1, though the game was much closer than the box score shows.

Sophomore Tim Klein (2-2, 3.20 ERA) picked up the win in game one, even though he got into some trouble late. After allowing only one run through five innings, he allowed three men to cross in the sixth, finally giving way to freshman Andrew Novick, who got out of the jam in the sixth and pitched a scoreless ninth for the save.

Game two was a pitchers’ duel, knotted at one until the eighth when sophomore pinch hitter Stevan Slusher and centerfielder Sean Wilkes, a freshman, hit back-to-back doubles off Thoroughbred reliever James Melillo. Sophomore sensation Joe Zongol (5-1, 4.29 ERA) went the distance, and struck out 11 batters, allowing just one run on four hits.

“We had a lot of opportunities; we just didn’t cash them in.” Steffen said that the starting pitcher was more of an off-speed pitcher and he was “keeping [the team] off balance,” whereas Meilillo was “more of a fastball guy.”

Sunday, Rensselaer traveled to Saratoga Springs and pounded Skidmore in both games. RPI outscored the Thoroughbreds 35-4 including a 23-run performance in the nightcap.

The Red Hawks jumped on Skidmore right away in the early game, scoring two in the first, and five in the second. Leadoff hitter Michael Passante started the scoring by reaching on a walk and crossing the plate later in the inning. Ihnatolya tripled in three runs in the second.

Yarnold worked a complete game for his sixth victory, lowering his team-best ERA to 1.19.

RPI got on the board early once again in game two, and never looked back. Passante singled to lead off the game and again scored the game’s first run. The Red Hawks had two big innings, scoring six in the fourth and adding nine more in the sixth.

The highlight of the game offensively came in the sixth, when Ihnatolya took a ball deep for the second time in the week, this time with the bases loaded.

Calzone went five innings for the win, allowing two runs, but neither earned, and remained perfect on the season.

Rensselaer (27-8, 16-4) goes into the last weekend of the regular season in first place in the Liberty League with four games left against Vassar (6-27), who is currently in the league cellar. Barring a meltdown, RPI will earn the top seed in the league tournament and will try to avoid an early exit like the one that transpired last season.