By Benjamin Diamond

After a close loss to the University of Rochester Yellow Jackets, the Oswego State baseball team was able to come back and sweep SUNY Oneonta before facing off against SUNY Brockport, a future playoff opponent, this weekend.

To this point in the season, the Lakers are 19-6, as well as being undefeated in conference play at 9-0. They will be put to the test versus 23-4 SUNY Brockport this weekend.

Head coach Scott Landers says, the vibes continue to be high in the locker room as the team faces their toughest portion of the season.

“It’s been the same vibe,” Landers said. “I think we are used to being in this position and typically over the years it comes down to us, Brockport and Cortland. I think after we dropped Rochester, getting back into the winning column, I think we have a good feeling.”

SUNY Brockport has been one of the hotter teams in Division III baseball, winning 21 of their last 23 games. Landers knows that the competition will be tough but he knows his team has what it takes to play with anyone.

“They need to stay the course,” Landers said. “Don’t get too complacent with what we’ve done. You’re getting to a part of the season, especially last year with COVID, that we were kind of done with games at this point. We have a month left to play and we have to stay healthy, stay in the weight room and keep moving forward.”

Although the Lakers are heading into the toughest stretch of their 2022 schedule, Landers says that the team needs to go into the games as they always do, ready.

“Our game plan is the same as usual,” Landers said. “We’ll move forward playing our game. Over the last month or so we have done a lot of good things, but we haven’t put them all together. The guys know that we need to put it all together for the next two weekends and play good baseball.”

One of the players that has been a big piece in the team’s offensive production is senior utility player Julien Drew. Drew got off and on stints in Landers’ lineup in 2021, but this year has been different. By getting more at-bats this season, Drew feels more comfortable at the plate.

“I always knew I could hit but now coach believes in me,” Drew said. “I always believe in myself and I know I can hit and that’s all I really try to do, just get the bat on the ball and hit it hard.”

Drew’s numbers back up his stronger offensive play. This season, Drew is batting .333, with an .859 OPS. He only has one home run, but he is third on the team in RBI’s with 24. Drew has made the Lakers lineup even more formidable than it has been in the past, adding another guy who can put the ball in play at a consistent level, and he knows he needs to be able to keep that up as it gets late in the season.

“I just have to stay within myself,” Drew said. “I know they have some good pitching, but I know they aren’t going to blow anything by me. So, I just need to stay on the offspeed and stay in my legs, and if people keep getting on base, I’ll keep driving them in.”

Lakers pitcher Anthony Van Fossen has been a solid top of the rotation starter during the season. His numbers, although rather high, have been passable in helping the Lakers win games. So far this season, Van Fossen has a 4.91 ERA, but with a very solid 1.25 WHIP. He also has a 3-0 record and 31 strikeouts in 36.2 innings pitched.

His ability to keep the Lakers in games can be attributed to his focus in practice which he takes very seriously to make sure he is ready to go when called upon.

“I think I’m doing a good job in practice, loosening my arm up,” Van Fossen said. “I do a lot of band work, as well as a lot of light throwing throughout the week so I can save my arm for the weekend. I’m taking the smart approach heading into Brockport and Cortland, taking it light and ramping up as the end of the week comes along.”

Van Fossen knows that he also has parts of his game he needs to work on in order to improve himself on the mound.

“Just reflecting back on my previous outings, seeing what pitchers have been working and which have not,” Van Fossen said. “Trying to execute those in practice, getting on the mound, making up scenarios, like what pitches are going to be thrown in what count. We are going to be facing good teams, so I need to be able to execute my pitches correctly and efficiently.”

The Lakers are set to face the Brockport Golden Eagles this weekend, starting on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Photos provided by Oswego State Athletics