While only four teams have beaten the GW baseball team this season, there is one opponent that has dropped the Colonials into second-to-last place in the Atlantic 10 West. This opponent has no offense, no pitching and no defense. With the defending A-10 Champion Colonials off to a 19-7 start, the only thing keeping GW in the conference cellar is the weather.
Wednesday’s canceled game against Georgetown marked the fifth consecutive game that has been rained or snowed out and the 12th cancellation or postponement in GW’s last 15 scheduled games. As a result, GW is falling behind in the A-10 standings and is having trouble building any momentum.
“It’s been tough to get into a groove,” senior outfielder Tony Dokoupil said. “Baseball is a sport that’s meant to be played everyday. It’s a matter of repetition, and if you don’t keep it going, it’s tough to turn it on and off.”
And the lack of games played is throwing off more than GW’s rhythm. With some conference teams having played as few as 16 games and others having played as many as 30 going into Wednesday, the weather in the A-10 region has left the standings in disarray.
Aside from first-place Richmond (24-6), which is ranked No. 15 in the country, three teams with sub-.500 records are ahead of GW in the standings because the Colonials have played only three conference games, two of which they dropped to Rhode Island March 23 and 24.
GW Head Coach Tom Walter said the weather has been particularly favorable for St. Bonaventure and Temple, whose canceled games against GW will not be made up. The Colonials were the favorites against both teams.
“I consider the postponements to be a major disturbance,” Walter said. “Our goal this season was to win around 40 games and to do that we need to play about 56 games.”
That won’t happen now, however, as the Colonials will play only 49 games this regular season, barring more inclement weather. This will force GW to win all but two of its remaining games to meet Walter’s goal.
“If we don’t get to make those games up, it’s definitely going to hurt us,” Dokoupil said. “I’m not sure how it’s going to pan out, but we’ve had no opportunity to play six straight games, and I think had we played those games we certainly would have done well.”
Walter said the weather has hampered his team the most from behind the plate, where Colonial batters are hitting .306. While players have occupied lost game time by practicing indoors, Dokoupil said there is no substitute for real competition.
“Hitters are affected the most because if you’re not in a game situation, you’re not getting your timing down,” Dokoupil said. “Going to the cage is good practice but it’s not a game.”
The Colonials hope to get back on the field Thursday at home against George Mason in a game that was rescheduled from Tuesday, but with more rain in the forecast, nothing is certain.
Saturday and Sunday, GW will play on the road at Xavier in Cincinnati, Ohio. For those games, finally, there is no rain or snow predicted. But until then, Dokoupil said, all the Colonials can do is wait.
“It’s been out of our control,” he said. “The weather has kind of dictated our own fate, and that’s been frustrating.”
-Max Zimmerman contributed to this report.
