On Friday, May 21, the baseball team fell short against St. Paul, losing the game 9-2.  

Algonquin was unable to shut down senior and third baseman Max LeFrancois, who led the way for St. Paul as he went five for five with a double and drove in two runs. His brother, freshman catcher Jake LeFrancois, had a strong showing in the game.  Senior outfielder Cody Smith also drove in multiple runs.

Junior Connor Lee pitched five innings before sophomore Cole Jones came in to pitch the final two innings.

“[St. Paul] has a few guys who can really hit and some legitimate college guys in the order, so they’re a tough team for anyone to face,” Lee said. “I had confidence early, but my command killed me later on in the game.”

Seniors Nick Poon, the designated hitter, and Sam Hill, a shortstop who is committed to UMass Amherst for baseball, posted strong showings at the plate.  Junior catcher Andrew Carlson also stood out for Algonquin, going two for two and driving in a run on a single, but it wasn’t enough to outperform the LeFrancois brothers.

“I felt great,” Carlson said.  “I was just on. I was really just trying to get the team going, get the ball rolling.”

Thanks to two runs scored in the bottom of the second inning partially thanks to Carlson, Algonquin had an early 2-1 lead.  However, they were unable to hold on for long.

“I think sometimes when we get up early, we seem to get comfortable with that lead and it dies out after that,” Carlson said.

Both Lee and Carlson think team chemistry has something to do with the team’s struggles, though they feel it is improving and will help them look better in each game.

“Being with the team more and getting comfortable with each other really helped,” Carlson said.  “Before, nobody on the team had really played with each other. Only four of the players on the team had played on varsity together.  We just need to get more comfortable with each other and we’re getting better at that.”

The team will play against St. Paul again in their first playoff game. Lee feels the team is capable in the playoffs but will need to make some changes in order to do so.

“I think this team has great potential but we need to change our effort and attitude if we really want to be successful in the playoffs,” Lee said.  “I have seen this team look unbeatable at times.  We just need to want to win every game.”