The University of Rhode Island baseball team was swept by no. 14 Florida State University this past weekend to kick off the season. The Seminoles outscored the Rams 50-6 in the three-game set.
On Friday, Rhode Island senior Steve Moyers got the start and the loss, but the game did not get out of hand until after he was taken out of the game. In four innings, he let up four runs and struck out four. It was the fifth inning that left Rhode Island without hope when the Seminoles tacked on 10 runs. They finished with 19 runs in the game, compared to Rhode Island’s one, coming from the bat of sophomore Mike Foley with his fifth inning solo home run.
Where the Rams really struggled in the opener was in the field. They committed six errors in the game that amounted to seven unearned runs. However, for the remainder of the series, they committed just two.
“Defensively, we need to get a lot better, especially in the infield,†said head coach Raphael Cerrato. “We made too many mistakes.â€
On Saturday, sophomore Tyler Wilson started for the Rams and pitched well out of the gate. However, he allowed seven runs in two innings, including a grand slam in the third. The final score was 8-1. Rhode Island’s lone run came in the third inning when junior Martin Figueroa doubled and sent senior Connor Foreman home, who got on base earlier in the inning on a fielding error.
Sunday’s finale was more of the same from the Rams. FSU scored 23 runs to Rhode Island’s 4. Redshirt junior Ben Wessel got the start, but was not on the mound long, giving up nine runs in 3.1 innings. The Seminoles scored every inning but the eighth. In the third, Rhode Island sophomore Jordan Powell scored when Foreman singled to right field. URI put up three more runs in the eighth when freshman Brett McManus hit a solo shot and redshirt junior Mike Corin and Powell each picked up an RBI.
Rhode Island struggled at the plate all weekend, batting just .196.
“Hopefully this is a wake-up call for the team,†Cerrato said. “We got a lot of work to do and got to get a lot better. Florida State played great in every aspect and we pretty much played poorly in every aspect.â€
This weekend Rhode Island’s tough schedule continues, as they take on the University of Maryland in a three-game series.
“We always play the best teams in the country,†Cerrato said. “Usually, we’re very competitive against the best teams.”