Baseball | 4/12/2024 12:41:00 PM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – After two games against out-of-conference foe Oswego State, the St. John Fisher University baseball team resumes Empire 8 play this weekend with three games against Keuka College, with all games held at Finger Lakes Community College due to weather concerns. 
 
The Cardinals start with a single game against the Wolves on Saturday at 5:30 P.M. before concluding the series with a doubleheader on Monday starting at 3:00 P.M.
 
Here's what you need to know:
 
Last Time Out
Fisher lost both ends of their doubleheader against Oswego State, falling in a 20-14 slugfest in game one before going down in defeat 11-1 in game two. A bright spot was graduate student Brian Norsen, who hit two home runs and notched five RBI in the first game. In game two, freshman Robert Leach did well in relief, throwing two scoreless innings. 
 
Know Your Foe
Keuka College enters the series with the Cardinals with a mark of 3-16 on the year, including a 2-4 record in conference play. Fisher has done well historically against the Wolves- in fact, they are 24-0 against them since 2006, including taking all three games of last year's series by a combined score of 21-5. 
 
The Wolves are led at the plate by Carlos Fantauzzi (team-high .964 OPS and an E8 ninth-best 16 RBI) and Matt Vaccaro (.353 BA). On the mound, they rely upon Lucas Gilbert. With six appearances and two starts, his 3.74 ERA is the lowest among qualifying pitchers on the team. 
 
Fun fact: Keuka was an all-female institution until the 1980s. 
 
Like An Old Norse(n) God
Norsen recently set a program record for career RBI, but going by his year so far it's safe to say he isn't done yet. The first baseman leads all E8 players in hits (46), doubles (12), RBI (33), and total bases (75). He is second in the conference in batting average (.442) and home runs (5),  third in slugging (.721), fourth in OPS (1.205), and seventh in on-base-percentage (.484). In the field, his 188 putouts are 72 more than the next player. His five hits against William Paterson in February are tied for the most by an E8 player in a single game this season, and he twice has had five RBI games during this campaign. 
 
Two-Way Fulton
Sophomore Ethan Fulton earned Empire 8 Pitcher of the Week honors for last weekend's performance against Elmira. On Sunday, the Trumansburg graduate went the full seven innings in game one of a doubleheader, shutting out the Soaring Eagles while allowing just three hits and racking up a career-high nine strikeouts. 
 
Fulton also contributed at the plate, driving in three runs in Saturday's 12-1 win over Elmira. Ethan's .460 on-base-percentage is fourth-best on the Cardinals among qualifying players, and he's drawn more walks at the plate (15) than he's allowed from the mound (11). 
 
What Comes Next
After their weekend series with Keuka, the Cardinals host RIT next Wednesday for an out-of-conference game at 4:00 P.M.
 
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